2/ Whole health focus

Natural Living Foresight Report

Our human senses

Reconnecting

Sensing nature

Nature is a multisensory experience. A human who is sensing nature is using various modes of perception: sight, smell, taste, hearing, and touch. None of us senses in the same way, and our diverse and differently-abled bodies perceive and feel differently. Not using our rational brains but just experiencing creates a different connection to nature and our human senses.

Sensory interaction by immersing yourself in nature is scientifically proven to be effective in alleviating human vulnerabilities. Gardening and touching the soil has an effect on mood. Scientists have discovered that the mycobacterium found in soil can improve brain functions and make you feel better.

Left to right, ACG Seoul, photo by Elizabeth Sallee Bauer, photo by Cavan

“True luxury today is connecting with nature and feeling

that your senses work again.”

TYIN Architects

Opportunities

• Tactile objects and natural surfaces attract attention and make people want to interact

Sensorial

Objects that are meant to evoke imagined feelings of touch on the skin.

Sensorial Brushes by Najla El Zein

Ambient

Interaction design installation, which explores physical and digital interaction between the human body and light.

Sincronia by Habits Design Studio

Textures

Tactile puzzle pieces that light up once they are put together correctly.

Puzzler by Devanshi Mehra

Sensing nature

Installation to simulate morning mist and to provide an open place for meditation.

Botanica Meditation Center by HAS

Interactive

Interactive oculus shape that mists and a pebble shape that fills with water and then cascades over.

Seeing Through the Universe by Maya Lin

Haptic

A textile interface using light as a feedback signal.

Fibre Haptics by Youran Song

Strength and recovery

Being active

Connecting to our bodies

Energy management is more important than time management. Harnessing the body’s ultradian rhythms by taking intermittent breaks restores physical energy. Exercise within green spaces and the great outdoors is a beneficial natural medicine to address health challenges facing developed countries.

Combat sitting-related health risks by taking frequent breaks and stretching. Strength training is essential to overall fitness; lean muscle mass naturally diminishes with age. Hydrotherapy, stretching, compression garments, massage, sleep and nutrition; recovery is vital in taking care of your health and body.

Left to right, Yoga studio with rammed-earth walls by Invisible Studio, photo by Mohd Najib Mostafa, photo by unknown

“The antidote to exhaustion isn’t rest.

It’s nature.”

Shikoba

Opportunities

• Create new workday rituals that include movement and being in nature

Holistic health

Holistic spa and gym that focuses on mindset, nutrition, movement and sleep.

Bodyism Spa and Gym London, UK

Viewing nature

Saunas with a glass wall so you can enjoy nature as you experience sauna bathing.

Aire X sauna by Heartwood

Outdoor bathing

Bath suitable for indoor or outdoor use.

In-Out Collection by Artedomus

Massage

Portable massager for muscle relief.

Theragun Mini by Therabody

Community

Free-standing outdoor fitness units designed for strength training and stretching.

Kebne Outdoor Gym by Nola Urban Furniture

Home equipment

Subscription home gym with AI sensors that recognize your weights while you work out.

Tempo Move

Healing Tones

Sound

The importance of sound on our health

The calming sounds of nature, specifically rivers, rain and birdsong have a more significant positive impact on cognitive performance than silence. Biophilic sounds significantly decrease heart rate and muscle tension, help people feel safer and more secure, and improve sleep. Soundscapes are essential for public health due to the benefits of natural sounds and the adverse effects of noise.

Natural sounds provide an essential ecosystem. Sound is one of the key concepts of wellbeing-led design.

Left to right, ASMR exhibition at the Design Museum London, Plant Bioacoustics by Julian Charriere, The Hearing Birdsong app by Kennedy Woods

Over half (57%) of people in the UK would like their home to be quieter, 62% are drawn towards quieter appliances. Two thirds (63%) of 18-34 year olds are willing to pay more for quieter appliances.

National Noise Report survey by Quite Mark

Opportunities

• People have become more sensitive to noise during the coronavirus pandemic, being mindful of sounds is important

Acoustics

The open structure material dampens noise and contributes to restful acoustics.

Natural Acoustic Wood Wool by Baux

Amplifying

Wooden megaphone that brings the sound of the forest alive as you sit inside the construction.

Nature Megaphone at the Boyd B. Banwell Nature Preserve

Sound absorbing

Capsule chair that creates privacy without being completely cut off from the surroundings.

Sound-Absorbing Armchair by Kateryna Sokolova

Natural sounds

Speakers out of handmade clay pots made by artisans in Chile and Portugal.

Mapu Speakers

Surrounding sounds

Moving below the structure triggers motion sensors that cause the mechanisms to move the tubes and create sounds.

SoundYard musical pavilion by Eunan Deeney

Texture of sound

Computationally designed and built timber block walls to improve sound quality.

Acoustic Wall by Gramazio Kohler Research

“Natural living is not a new age idea; it is a way of life practised since the dawn of time and is a means to a better life for everyone. “

Green Enchantments

Our internal clock

Circadian rhythm

Light cycles

Access to natural light and views improves people’s overall happiness and well-being. The sun is a source of both light and warmth. We have become biologically encoded to seek out its rays. More than that, our body relies on the sun to stimulate Vitamin D production and regulate the body’s daily rhythms. Exposure to light, during the day, particularly in the morning, is beneficial to people’s health.

Round shapes, solar and time are used to create designs that are inspired by the sun and the 24-hour cycle of the day.

Left to right, Sun intervals app by Nicolae Gherasim, photo by unknown, Circular 365° house by Andrea Hikone

Workers in daylight office environments reported a 51% drop in eyestrain, a 63% drop in headaches and a 56% reduction in drowsiness.

Cornell University

Opportunities

• Think in energy and time, when is the best time to work, meet or work out?

Illuminated

The Sundial Chandelier’s disks look as if they are illuminated by six different suns.

Sundial Chandelier by Maarten de Ceulaers

Mimicking nature

Lamp with the effect of sunlight glowing through clouds.

Ombre Light by Mette Scheldes

Sun rituals

A building that combines nature-worship and cultural facilities.

Sun Tower by OPEN architecture

Light cycle

Lamp that changes light intensity during the day.

Kinetic Sunset Sunrise lamps by Barbora Adamonyte

Capture light

Self-powered solar light that captures, stores and produces light indoors.

Sunne by Marjan van Aubel Studio

Solar poster

Stained glass window-inspired solar poster, the colours change throughout the day.

Solar Window Poster by Marjan van Aubel Studio

Whole Body Health

Beauty

Holistic beauty

For beauty products, medicinal ingredients, botanicals and materials derived from age-old traditions are combined with high-tech techniques to create natural and user-friendly products. Anti-microbial and healing benefits leave skin soft and with a natural dewy glow.

The whole body is included in treatments with clay, light and water pulsations. Natural scents inspired by nature are used on the body.

Left to right, Gotham Wellness Salon New York, Digital artificial flower by De Vormforensen, photo by unknown

“Nature does not compartmentalise. Its instinct is integrative and holistic.”

Ram Nath Kovind

Opportunities

• The story behind the ingredients is essential; what is the source, and how does it address people’s health and beauty concerns. Communicate through honest storytelling and transparent messaging