ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on our context, specifically the natural world we evolved in and how we love looking at that, too. It reviews recent literature that reveals our inherent need to connect to nature to nurture our mental, physical, and spiritual health, and well-being. Defining biophilia as the “urge to affiliate with other forms of life,” it explains why biophilic design works: it acknowledges how our evolutionary past resonates daily with how we respond to our present built environments. The chapter also explores how exposure to nature enhances cognitive abilities and why planting trees can improve community cohesion in new and existing developments.
