Building with Nature: a framework to inspire the next generation of placemaking.
Green Infrastructure plays a vital role in improving the health and wellbeing of people, whilst improving opportunity for biodiversity to thrive. In these uncertain times increasingly defined by urgent climate crisis, the catastrophic collapse of ecosystems worldwide, and the social and economic impacts of a global pandemic, the role of providing adequate, sustainable and dynamic green spaces to mitigate some of these factors is more important than ever.
Building with Nature (BwN) is a set of standards designed by and for industry professionals, to ensure that all development proactively tackles climate, ecological and public health emergencies. It aims to support new practices by distilling essential actions, policies and targets into practical knowledge for specialists working in design, planning, architecture and construction. By using the BwN standards throughout the design and construction process, and by applying them in management and stewardship, the vital contribution of green infrastructure to sustainable development goals can be maintained, and exemplary practice can be made mainstream.
Two developments which have been accredited with a Building with Nature Award offer practitioners insight into how holistic, sustainable and equitable design solutions can be made:
Knights Park in Cambridge, built by developer Hill is a zero-carbon, thoughtfully planned, low rise urban development of 184 homes. The development is defined by a car free landscaped avenue that connects to cycle and pedestrian routes and nearby amenities. Residents look across trees and greenery, most homes have street level front doors, while gardens, upper floor terraces and streets have been designed with people in mind to create a sense of layered sociability. The design is complemented by a water recycling system, a district heating network and an underground waste and recycling system.
Photo author unknown. Sourced from https://www.knightspark-eddington.co.uk/
Oakfield in Swindon, developed by Nationwide Building Society in collaboration with Igloo Regeneration includes quiet tertiary streets and shared spaces with a focus on cycling and walking. There are separate walking and cycling routes, allotments, public and private green spaces, a community forest, play spaces and a new community space. Arranging homes around communal courts is designed to foster community spirit, and a mix of traditional back gardens and communal courtyard gardens aim to provide people with a variety of amenity spaces.
Photo author unknown. Sourced from https://oakfieldswindon.co.uk/
The two case studies are examples of developments which have placed green infrastructure at the forefront of good urban design. They are good examples of how nature- based solutions can be integrated with the built environment. SuDS, active travel, integral green infrastructure features and interactive, therapeutic landscapes are considerations which can be embedded early in the design process, and the BwN standards provide a set of benchmarks which ensure their sustainability and longevity are maintained throughout the lifespan of the development.
References:
Jerome, G. Building with Nature: Quality Standards Driving Innovation, Urban Design Group Journal 162, Spring 2022 p.31-33
https://www.buildingwithnature.org.uk/
https://www.hill.co.uk/about-hill/sustainability/knights-park-cambridge
https://www.nationwide.co.uk/about-us/building-a-better-society/oakfield/
Graeme this is an interesting blog about a set of standards I had not previously heard of. Many urban developments are still being designed around cars. With public health being a key priority over recent years, making the shift to embed nature at the core of developments can provide substantial environmental and health benefits.
There is a hypothesis by Orian which suggests that humans are psychologically adapted to certain landscape elements from our ancestral habitat the African savannah (Heerwagen, 2001). Despite modern environments looking quite different, the theory suggests that core elements positively influence attitudes and health due to intrinsic feelings of safety. Such elements include; clustered trees for refuge, level access, water features, and access to natural light (Heerwagen, 2001). This supports the building with nature aspirations, suggesting there is an innate desire to be close to nature.
Beatly also suggests that “nature in our life is not optional but essential” (Beatly, 2011). Moreover, it is important when considering green infrastructure to not forget the green, which is often the case, with the emphasis being placed on reduced consumption and energy efficiency (Beatley, 2011). The building with nature standards incorporates this within their guidance and champions natural biodiverse environments.
1. Heerwagen, J. and Hase, B., 2001. Building biophilia: Connecting people to nature in building design. Environmental Design and Construction, 3, pp.30-36.
2. Beatley, T., 2011. Biophilic cities: integrating nature into urban design and planning. Island Press.
3. Beatley, T., 2008. Toward biophilic cities: strategies for integrating nature into urban design. Biophilic design, pp.277-305.
Thank you for writing this blog. This is an very justified blog. I agreed with you about the concept of ‘Building with nature’. Landscape resilience is a developmental value and worthy of further exploration and practice in the future, as it offers strategies and forward-looking approaches to help urban and rural planning become more
economical, efficient, healthy and resilient in the context of climate change and disaster impacts. Green infrastructure refers to man-made and natural green networks, linear, point and open spaces, as well as planar and three-dimensional vertical green spaces at all scales in urban and rural areas. In the context of environmental change, traditional grey infrastructure is no longer effective in resisting disasters. Green infrastructure is more effective in coping with environmental shocks by absorbing, mitigating, adapting and even re-evolving to cope with the damage caused by various types of disasters, which is in line with the concept of ‘resilient cities’ and ‘sponge cities’ that has been promoted in recent years. The difference is that Landscape Resilience focuses more on the resilience of green infrastructure, emphasising its ability to recover quickly in the face of disasters and evolve to adapt to future changes.