ABSTRACT
The workplace has seen a drastic transformation from the boys’ club of the 1950s, to the cubicle fields of the 1980s and the open plans of the 2000s. This transformation has paradoxically been likened to the evolution of zoo design, each cubicle likened to an animal cage, except that place design for zoo animals to socialise, hunt and rest is decades ahead of place design for people to collaborate, work and restore. In all sectors, efforts to reduce absenteeism and presenteeism by even a fraction of a percent can yield substantial financial benefits for an organisation. Exposure to real nature enables better focus, mental stamina and productivity. Strategic workstation orientation emphasising a view to nature can have economic value relative to worker performance, with long-term productivity improvements yielding increased profits. A holistic biophilic workplace design strategy recognises well-being as the aggregate of all human senses – visual, aural, gustatory, olfactory, tactile, temporal, etc.
