Bob, Kellie, and Korra participated in the inaugural Biophilia Asset Mapping (BAM) Scavenger Hunt in downtown Albuquerque, hosted by Women in Design: New Mexico.
The event opened with a learning session on the topic of Biophilia from Kris Callori, the founder and principal of Verdacity, a local sustainability consulting firm. Biophilia is literally defined as “love of life” and articulates the innate biological bond humans have with other living systems. Kris’s presentation illustrated the importance of biophilic design in the built environment by providing sensory descriptions for 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design, as presented in a report from Terrapin Bright Green.
The goal of the event was to map applications of biophilia in downtown Albuquerque by means of friendly competition. The IDeA team joined with Trevor from Vibrantcy, a local engineering firm. The team raced around downtown, taking photographs, writing sensory descriptions, and taking videos of biophilic principles being utilized in hotels, plazas, and other public spaces.
When all the points were in, Team IDeA was one of three teams in a tie for first place! The tiebreaker was a vote on the best “sample of nature” brought back by each team, and IDeA’s moss and rainwater sample lost the win by a mere one vote!
The team had a lot of fun, and hopes to take part in future BAM events around Albuquerque to explore all the biophilic patterns throughout our city. Maybe next year IDeA can take first place!
This event was of particular interest to Kellie, as her Master of Architecture thesis investigated the link between the built environment and wellbeing through the concepts of daylight and views in an urban condition. She valued the discoveries she made through the research portion of her thesis including the ways that natural light, views, and physical connectedness with nature can affect human health, comfort, mood, and performance.
Learn more about Biophilia and Biophilic Design through the Terrapin Bright Green Report here: https://www.terrapinbrightgreen.com/report/14-patterns/
View Kellie’s MArch Thesis here: http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1491313608301448