The Power of Trees

How do you feel when you walk into the building where you work? Are you welcomed with daylight and a pleasant view? We all know that would make us feel better about coming to work. Now there is movement in the architecture and design industry to bring these elements into buildings more, to design buildings for the people who inhabit them. I went to hear Judith Heerwagen, Ph.D. talk at the Cascadia Region Green Building Council last week about the progress that's being made in this direction. The thing that fascinated me the most, though, were the studies on how connection to nature affects people.

In Europe, there are hospitals with working gardens where convalescing or long-term patients can get out and dig in the dirt and help tend the plants. They are discovering a notable improvement among Alzheimer's patients - more interaction and improved memory. Those who knew how to garden before they had Alzheimer's retain that knowledge - they know exactly what to do and how to do it. What a boost to the self-esteem! Even among those that weren't gardeners, getting out and digging in the dirt is helping them talk more and interact with the people around them.

The effect of nature on children is quite dramatic. In Chicago, they discovered that in high rise apartment complexes where there were large trees with benches underneath, the crime rate was reduced, aggression was reduced and there was an improvement in community bonds. Among the children, there was a reduction in symptoms of hyperactivity and ADD. With a pleasant place to sit outside, people came out, let their children play, got to know their neighbors and started looking out for each other. Chicago is now engaging in the biggest tree planting effort ever.

One playground in Seattle had the typical big play structure, but it also had a bunch of bushes where the kids could crawl in and look out without being seen. The bushes were by far the most popular - those that didn't get there first were relegated to the play structure. And the behavior was decidedly different. The kids in the bushes engaged in less aggressive play, more imaginative play. To the boys, the bushes were a spaceship, to the girls, a castle. A stick became a wand, a sword, a stirring spoon, a scepter. Imaginative play is the most important play for cognitive development. Pretending is vital for kids - it's how they process what they are learning.

When I left the lecture and went outside, I discovered across the street was a park-like passageway between apartment buildings to the next street. I didn't necessarily need to go to the next street, but I was drawn to that space and just had to walk through it. It was full of trees, bushes, and flowers. There was a winding path with benches along it. I felt rejuvenated just passing through and suddenly realized I was smiling. What would our cities be like if every neighborhood had such a place? If every office, every apartment had a view of a tree?