In his landmark 1984 book Biophilia, acclaimed biologist Edward O. Wilson defined the term biophilia as “the urge humans have to affiliate with other forms of life.” Since then, individuals from a variety of disciplines have applied this concept of being one with nature to everyday living.
“What most cities have in common are the interrelated challenges of getting to carbon neutrality while accommodating growth, creating resiliency, and repairing ecosystems,” said Philip Enquist, UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair for High Performance Energy Practices in Urban Environments. “Cities must meet future challenges while thinking strategically about the environment.”
To address this issue, Enquist and his City Design Practice team at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) are taking the concepts of biophilia and sustainable growth to a whole new level by encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration at UT and creating the foundation for new graduate programs in the College of Architecture and Design.