Restorative outdoor qualities in workplaces for better well-being, cooperation and productivity
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet - Institutionen för landskapsarkitektur, planering och förvaltning |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 500 000 |
| Project duration | December 2014 - August 2015 |
| Status | Completed |
| Venture | Challenge-Driven Innovation – Stage 1 initiation |
Purpose and goal
Stage 1: Show actors in construction/real estate chances for recovery, increased wellbeing and productivity with improved environmental qualities, plan Stage 2 Studies to improve and measure effects, Stage 3 Develop evaluation certification criteria for restorative work environments, particularly environmental psychological aspects lacking in current certification system. Sweden can take the lead here. Goal achievement Stage 1: Great interest. No. of parties for Stage 2 has more than doubled (6 construction/real estate companies, 4 universities).
Results and expected effects
Pilot study of KI campus shows: 8 environmental qualities Swedish research has identified as valuable can be identified/classified by experts and laymen; stress at KI is great and varies by staff category; environmental experiences and wellbeing vary across areas with different qualities. KI lacks ´Pleasure gardens´, small places for each building for coffee/talking/socializing. Creating such areas is expected to increase wellbeing, security, willingness to cooperate and productivity. Outline of standards for evaluating qualities exists and will be developed in Stage 2.
Approach and implementation
Parties learned relevant research. KI survey analyzed/discussed. How ´impressions of nature´ can be created indoors has been studied. Parties selected projects to test/develop quality criteria in Step 2, 20 studies on everything from early overall planning, projecting, construction and operations. Workplace wellbeing/stress/productivity are affected by environmental qualities several hundred meters away, i.e., by public grounds and other buildings. Thus cooperation between building owners and municipalities is important, and criteria for sustainable city planning.