This essay is an expanded version of a LinkedIn article that Bill posted on July 1, 2026. Dynamic and Diffuse Light is one of the 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design that sometimes gets overlooked. This may be due to people thinking that the pattern is just focused on bringing daylight into a space. Daylight is […]
Instagramability wasn’t a term the Port or the design team tossed around when developing a concept for the all-user bathrooms at the new PDX airport terminal. But here we are, 10 years later and there are several threads on Instagram and TikTok showcasing and commenting on the airport’s newest ‘destination’. What should we think when […]
Mind Body Space is no entry level exhibit of biophilic and regenerative design—it’s an intimate gathering of minds. Niels Hofstee and Michaël Vrijhof, the principals of Office for the New Earth (ONE), along with Nuria Muñoz Arce of Habitarmonia Academy & Ecosystem, were the co-organizers of the Mind Body Space Global Symposium in Amsterdam this […]
| This feature is a follow up to Bill’s previous post on The Journey of Sustainability. 1 September 2021 Thirty years ago today, Amory and Hunter Lovins, over the objections of some of the Rocky Mountain Institute’s board of directors, allowed a 29-year-old to launch a new program to work with real estate developers to make […] — Read More
| The green building movement and arguably the larger discussion about sustainability have progressed in scope and understanding over the last three decades. Terrapin staff have been at the heart of this journey. In retrospect, this progression can be understood as three distinct levels of sustainability, each with their own focus, and with direct and indirect benefits […] — Read More
| The Portland International Airport (PDX) is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state’s passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. The site is bordered by the Columbia River in the north and the Columbia Slough in the south with […] — Read More
| Terrapin provided consultation on sustainable design strategies and educational programmatic opportunities for this recently completed energy and nature education center. — Read More
| Designing with nature could be described as an industry response to health and wellbeing trends. But there is a history and science to this practice known as ‘biophilic design’. Biophilia is the innate connection between humans and nature. Biophilic design is the expression of those experiences of nature for a healthier built environment. Since our […] — Read More
| Terrapin is proud to release its newest publication, “The Nature of Air: Economic & Bio-Inspired Perspectives on Indoor Air Quality Management” — Read More
| A lot has happened over this past year, both around the world and within the arena of biophilic design. Since publishing our latest book, Nature Inside, and our current effort to craft a second edition of The Economics of Biophilia, we’ve revisited our reading list to reflect on the most recent thinking. Many of these […] — Read More
| Disaster resilience has focused primarily on the physical characteristics and resource provisions of a home. How might we incorporate psychological resilience into design? — Read More
| Terrapin recently completed a four-month community engagement and support process for those who lost homes in the 2018 Woolsey Fire. — Read More
| This February, Terrapin welcomes Rita Trombin for a short-term residency, in collaboration with ILFI, to help continue Terrapin’s efforts to provide the design community with practical tools for biophilic design application. The focus of Rita’s residency will be on developing foundational materials for designing with fractals. This idea was born out of the Greenbuild 2019 […] — Read More
| A “New Design Ideas” article on biophilic design and the future of architectural education. — Read More
| Our very own Dakota Walker discusses a common thread behind Terrapin’s diverse work in sustainability — Read More
| A new “Frontiers” publication on biophilic design, climate resilience and performance parameters for healthy built environment. — Read More
| Terrapin is proud to release its newest publication, “The Nature of Air: Economic & Bio-Inspired Perspectives on Indoor Air Quality Management” — Read More
| Here are some of our takeaways from an action-packed week at Greenbuild — Read More
| In this feature, Bill Browning provides his take on the growing adoption of biophilic design and ways that practitioners can expand their use of this design language. — Read More
| Join Bill Browning at Greenbuild in Chicago as he teams up with other experts to discuss climate-specific biophilic design interventions. — Read More
| Terrapin is proud to release its newest publication: “An Ear for Nature: Psychoacoustic Strategies for Workplace Distraction & The Bottom Line. — Read More
| Join Catie Ryan among other experts in biophilic design to discuss our important relationship with the natural world. — Read More
| Bill Browning will speak at the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture’s annual conference this year. He will speak about the science of biophilia and biophilic design, new techniques for in-the-field measurement of brain response, and more. — Read More
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