New Territory has unveiled Parterre, a conceptual project that fluently integrates plant life into modern workspaces, allowing professionals to work in spaces that have nature at its heart and that can also provide benefits to their mental wellbeing and productivity at work.
Parterre offers a fresh take on Biophilia - a form of architectural design that seeks to bring building occupants closer to nature - and its applications within the contemporary workplace. Launched out of the ventures arm of New Territory, Parterre represents a desk system that fills the negative spaces between desk surfaces, connecting seating and working areas with plant life.
"Parterre integrates plants as an integral building block of the desk system," explained Luke Miles, founder of New Territory. "We wanted to give people the opportunity to programme the space and consider plant life as a part of the physical infrastructure. Using the distinct properties of different plant types to deliver on specific spatial needs - like acoustics, scent and porosity. We also want people to actively look after the system, so integrated sensors that alert the users over a slack channel for example, as to when to water the plants."
This new concept was borne out of the growing expectation for the modern workplace to provide more than just a place to work, but also an environment that befits flexible and healthy working, whilst providing a fluent rhythm throughout workspaces. Studies have shown that offices with plant life incorporated within workspaces could increase productivity by up to 15%, whilst lowering physiological stress levels, improving wellbeing and increasing an employee's attention span. Another landmark study in Denmark also concluded that children exposed to more greenery had 55% less mental health problems later in life compared to those who were not.
Through Parterre, New Territory has considered how Biophilia could be built into the very fabric of the modern workplace, to create a modular system of plant life that works seamlessly within office spaces and also benefits employees and organizations. By disrupting the traditional, linear layout, Parterre aims to soften the relationship between plants and work surfaces, while providing the opportunity for staff to take ownership of the space they work in and care for their office environment.
Photos: Courtesy of New Territory