Why Workplaces Need More Nature

According to the United Nations, over 60 percent of the world’s population will be living in urban areas by 2030.1 Managing these urban environments and ensuring the health and well-being of their inhabitants is one of the biggest challenges of the twenty-first century. Mass production, service industries, and marketplaces with a thriving workforce are the engines that propel cities forward to achieve growth and prosperity. Driven by technology, this urban labour force is spending more time than ever in office buildings, on average between 40 to 49 hours a week globally,2 which is roughly a quarter of every week. With people at the heart of this urban growth, maintaining a happy and healthy workforce is pivotal in creating successful businesses and in turn, resilient, sustainable cities. With so much time being spent in the working environment, it is unsurprising that business leaders are increasingly focused on ways to promote employee well-being. So how do we create an environment that achieves this?