{"id":944,"date":"2024-02-21T09:23:48","date_gmt":"2024-02-21T09:23:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.autodesk.com\/forma\/?p=944"},"modified":"2024-02-21T13:28:43","modified_gmt":"2024-02-21T13:28:43","slug":"lessons-in-designing-sustainable-happy-homes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.autodesk.com\/forma\/2024\/02\/21\/lessons-in-designing-sustainable-happy-homes\/","title":{"rendered":"Lessons in designing sustainable happy homes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As we release the new Housing tool for Autodesk Forma<\/a> I had the pleasure of researching and reading this great e-book by Ramb\u00f8ll, Henning Larsen, and the Happiness Research Institute on “Happy Home – Learnings from the row house typology” and had the pleasure to invite Rebecca Dillon-Robinson, Principal Urban Planner, Ramboll Regenerative Cities<\/strong>, to talk to us about the learnings from their research here. I’m so excited to have her as a guest blogger to share all this with us. All opinions are those of the contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Autodesk. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As architects, engineers, and scientists, we are called to reimagine the future. The need to move to zero carbon, regenerative economy is undisputable, and climate change is descending upon us. We have been trained to imagine the future and build the imagined. But are we well equipped to design a future in which we will be happy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Vindinge Nord, Roskilde. Image courtesy of Henning Larsen, Ramb\u00f8ll and The Happiness Research Institute, 2022. All rights reserved.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ramboll, Henning Larsen, and the Happiness Research Institute Happy Homes research<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Our Happy Home research, published in 2022, identified the crucial role that our homes have in supporting our happiness. But it also identified that our happiness at home exists beyond the physical thresholds of houses; across homes, streets and neighbourhoods, with all three shaping our emotional well-being. Focusing on experiences of happiness in row houses, the research found that many respondents noted the local service, amenity, natural and social ecosystem informing their happiness at home over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“We need to design spaces that allow for and encourage happiness.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Our research has identified five drivers and ten recommendations<\/strong> which can be used as a toolbox by developers, planners and architects to create happier homes and neighbourhoods for all housing typologies and all stages of design. Happiness is not a constant emotional state, but rather a range of changeable positive feelings and life satisfaction. We need to design spaces that allow for and encourage happiness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Vindinge Nord, Roskilde. Image courtesy of Henning Larsen, Ramb\u00f8ll and The Happiness Research Institute, 2022. All rights reserved.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Row housing offers a solution and lessons for other typologies<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The row housing typology \u2013 encapsulating both semi-detached and terraced single-family homes \u2013 is one very familiar in the UK and with growing interest in Denmark, where this study was based. In the UK row-housing makes up 52% of the housing stock and it is increasingly being revisited and reimagined by architects in contemporary versions across Europe. Row houses appeal to developers because they are simple to construct, small and easy to sell. From the perspective of the user, a row house is a smaller version of a single-family house. The row house typology offers a variety of benefits, including a small garden, the ability to interact with neighbours on a daily basis, and often a good urban location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To instil happiness in the design of row-housing there are some components that our research found essential, one of which was to create semi-private spaces to serve as a link between the private and the public. This semi-private space is typically the front garden or yard which functions as a space to meet neighbours and as a buffer zone. The physical design of this zone can influence its social dynamics. Placement of the kitchen near the front door and overlooking the garden, for example, can activate this semi-private zone, allowing for interactions with neighbours. These interactions are crucial to building social connection, a key component of happiness.<\/p>\n\n\n

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