Take a moment to reflect on the physical design of your office or home office. What colours and materials do you see? What’s the lighting like? Are there any pictures or paintings on the walls? What are they of? Can you find anything natural? How does it make you feel?

Although many employers are putting in place policies and initiatives to improve wellbeing and reduce burnout (like support services, counselling, and workshops), an important component is often overlooked: physical workspace design.

Layout, comfort and collaborative spaces are important. But one of the most effective ways to improve mental health and productivity is integrating nature – also known as biophilic design.

Biophilia is the innate tendency to seek connections with nature and other life forms. Biophilic design utilises our intrinsic connection to nature to design built environments that enhance wellbeing and sustainability.

It’s a whole science, so I’ll focus on how to use elements of biophilic design in workspaces even with a low budget.

Examples of workspaces with biophilic design

Large-scale examples of biophilic design include the Amazon Spheres in Seattle, consisting of three-domed greenhouses filled with over 40,000 plants from 30+ countries. Or Google’s Bay View Campus in California, which integrates green roofs, extensive daylighting, natural ventilation, and indoor gardens into its workplaces.

If you’ve got an unlimited budget and the motivation to renovate your entire workspace, have fun with it.

But remember, biophilic design isn’t just about wellbeing and should meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals by improving energy efficiency, climate adaptation, and urban resilience (otherwise it may just be greenwashing).

How to implement biophilic design with a small budget

Fortunately, you don’t have to go to extremes to integrate nature into your workspace.

Many organisations don’t have the budget to revamp their entire building, and it might not be a top priority. However, there are low-cost ways of bringing nature into your workspace that have been shown to improve wellbeing, productivity, and nature connection.

A 2023 review on the most effective approaches to biophilic design concluded that direct experiences of nature are most effective, followed by indirect experiences and experiences of space and place.

Direct experiences 

Indoor plants 

Studies have found that 1–3 plants per employee or desk can reduce stress and depression symptoms and improve productivity, concentration, and wellbeing:

• Plants have many talents and benefits, such as improving air quality 
• They can be placed on desks, shelves, or hanging planters – get creative!
• If possible, se native low-maintenance plants 
• Consider a plant adoption program where employees bring and care for plants
• Plants should be placed in the direct office environment for best results
• Some research has shown that blue, yellow, and red flowers have a greater restorative effect than purple and white flowers 

Natural light 

Light exposure regulates your circadian rhythm. If there’s insufficient light exposure in an office, it can negatively impact sleep quality and lead to increased fatigue, negative mood, and reduced productivity and concentration. Maximising natural light reduces eye strain, improves moods, and enhances productivity. Here are free and low-cost ideas:

• Rearrange desks to be closer to the window.
• Use light-coloured or reflective surfaces and mirrors to help distribute natural light.
• Use sheer curtains to allow more daylight in.
• Open the windows at least once a day for fresh air (if possible).

If your office doesn’t get good light (like the prison I used to work in, where windows didn’t lead to the outside world!) you could swap cold lighting for warmer, natural-tone LED bulbs. 

Create an office garden 

Gardening is therapeutic and may boost creativity and teamwork – and it doesn’t have to cost much:

• If you have an outside area, plant flowers, herbs, or even vegetables 
• If there’s no outdoor space, you could find a suitable windowsill for a planter
• It could even become project to build team cohesion and connection by rotating responsibilities and planning what to plant

Encourage outdoor breaks

By now everybody knows they should stop eating lunch at their desk. What would be even better is to go outside on your breaks, even just for 10 minutes. If you can, you could set up a designated outdoor break area. If there’s a park nearby, go for a walk alone or with your colleagues. Make it a thing!

Nature sounds and smell

Bringing nature sounds and smells into your workspace might seem controversial to some, but they’re effective:

• Smells like lavender and eucalyptus reduce anxiety
• Nature sounds increase feelings of comfort and relaxation and increase positive emotions
• If you’re feeling fancy, you could even get a real water feature.

Indirect experiences

Natural views and nature artwork

Simply viewing pictures of nature can replenish cognitive resources (thinking, memory, concentration, decision-making), improve your mood, and potentially increase creativity and connection to the natural world. You could hang posters, paintings, or photography on the walls, or even have someone paint a mural.

Nature-inspired colours, textures, and materials

If you fancy a bit of DIY, you could paint a wall or two with earthy tones like green, blue, or warm browns, which have been shown to have a calming effect on uus.

Using natural materials might be the most expensive option on this list but could be pulled off with a small budget:

• Using (sustainable) wood, bamboo and stone textures creates a more grounded, nature-connected experience
• Replace as much plastic as possible; for example, use wood or cork bulletin boards and desk organisers

And while you’re at it, encourage your team to stop using plastic bottles, utensils, and lunchboxes and replace them with more durable materials

The bottom line is you don’t have to renovate your entire building or spend much money to implement biophilic design into your workspace. Small changes to the sensory experience of an office can have a huge impact on employees’ mental health. The bonus is that it may awaken or reinforce their nature connection and environmentalism.

Anna Drescher holds a master’s degree in psychology and mental health. She’s been working in the field for almost 10 years. You can connect with her on X @annadrescher_mh.