Plants Can Work WELL For You

Thanks to the rising demand for businesses to prioritize sustainability and wellness in the built environment, the field of landscaping has undergone significant change over the past decade. Here’s why we believe it’s important to choose a WELL-affiliated landscaper in the current climate.

Driven by a deeper understanding of health and wellness, and the offshoot benefits for business, there has been a global push for companies – large and small ­– to change their approach to urban design. As a result, there’s a renewed focus on sustainable practice in commercial landscaping, with more architects and interior designers harnessing the positive impact of people-centered biophilic design.

Thanks to Natura’s obvious synergy with the high standards set by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), we’ve aligned ourselves with the IWBI’s WELL Building Standard to actively incorporate sustainability and wellbeing into their work. 

As a result, hotels, workplaces, and other commercial spaces that hire WELL affiliates (like Natura) are guaranteed world-class standards and services. IWBI-licensed  designers are adept at creating both indoor and outdoor spaces that promote relaxation, stress reduction and positive mental health – all in accordance with the WELL Building Standard. 

WELL designers are qualified to help buildings and businesses achieve a WELL certification, which inevitably sets them apart from competitors in their field. But, what is the WELL certification and why does it matter?

The WELL Effect

The WELL certification is awarded to buildings that meet the IWBI’s stringent standards for design and health. Once earned, the certification must be renewed annually.

The WELL Building Standard comprises ten main concepts, including air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort, sound, materials, mind, and community. Across these ten concepts, the IWBI has established certain preconditions. If these are met across the board, it can earn you a bronze certification. The institute then awards silver, gold and platinum certifications based on a points system, which evaluates how many WELL features you have in your space.

However, to implement WELL features and meet the IWBI’s stringent standards, it’s worth having WELL-licensed service providers in your corner. This ensures that you tick all the right boxes required to fully comply with the IWBI’s features. It’s also much more doable to achieve the WELL certification with a licensed partner than trying to meet WELL requirements on your own.

We Work With WELL

Natura has been part of the Works with WELL network of businesses since July 2023, giving us license to help our clients comply with some of the elements listed under WELL’s Mind concept.

WELL affiliates receive a Works with WELL trademark license based on their ability to help other businesses with certain features of the WELL Building Standard. Like the WELL certification, the WELL logo has become symbolic of a company’s commitment to people-first environments. It’s proof of a business’s dedication to people’s wellbeing and health, which is something that needs to be formally acknowledged by the IWBI if you want to earn a WELL license.

After stringent evaluation, we are proud to say that we have our Works with WELL license and are qualified to assist companies with three specific elements of the WELL Mind concept, namely:

• M02: Nature and Place
• M07: Restorative Spaces
• M09: Enhanced Access to Natura

The Perfect Partner

Nature makes people happy and is inherently relaxing, which is why several features under WELL’s Mind concept draw on biophilic design. It’s also why incorporating natural elements into a space is such an important part of three WELL Mind features, which also happens to be Natura’s area of specialty.

More than our expertise in plant selection and maintenance, our greatest strength as a company is our ability to create  people-centered spaces that prioritize mental health by bringing the outside in. Our biggest joy is creating environments where people thrive, and it’s important to us that our work consistently meets the standards of the IWBI. 

Being part of the Works with WELL network of professionals makes this possible. Like certificate holders, Works with WELL license holders get evaluated once a year to ensure that we remain in peak condition as WELL partners. Our products and services are also thoroughly evaluated to guarantee WELL compliance across the three elements we’re licensed to advise on. 

Enhancing office spaces or hotels with certified commercial landscaping means so much more when you’ve partnered with a member of the Works with WELL network. It ensures that the team working in and around your site genuinely cares about the health and wellbeing of your team, your guests/clients, and your business. 

In Need of a Redesign?

Interior landscaping has always been an easy way to instantly improve the look and feel of a space. You might have already incorporated plants and plant life into your indoor design, but it’s not impossible for your office, hotel or commercial space to have stagnated over the years (or veered away from its corporate identity). Plants can help you recenter your brand identity.

Alternatively, your space may have evolved over the years but left your plant design behind. So, if you’ve made modifications to your interior design or architecture, it might be time to consider a new interior landscape as well. 

You should also consider if the look of your design is still in line with what’s trending. Over the years, the most popular plants and planter designs can change. If you feel your plants and planters are no longer on trend, it’s high time you consider swapping them out for something else. 

That said, how can you ensure that your redesign will meet WELL’s standards? The truth is, it’s unlikely that it will be WELL compliant unless you’ve asked an expert.

Helping YOU Meet WELL Requirements

Partnering with a company that is already familiar with the WELL Building Standards will help significantly. The requirements for M02 and M09, for example, are extremely specific. If you want to successfully meet these standards (or be in the running for a WELL certification), a lot of planning – and a partner well-versed from the planning perspective – is a necessity. 

Other experts, like psychologists, nutritionists or even landscape architects, might be able to advise on other WELL core concepts. But when it comes to plants and three of the features under Mind (M02, M07 and M09 specifically), Natura serves as a guiding light.

This leaves opportunities for different disciplines to work together. For instance, you might not know what sets a landscape architect apart from a landscape designer. The reality is, Natura’s approach as a landscape designer, and the types of projects we’re able to handle, will differ significantly from the work of a landscape architect. This is based on training, expertise and professional focus. 

However, bringing service providers from different facets of the design industry together, especially if they’re both part of the WELL network, will work in your favor (more so if you want to be WELL accredited).

The bottom line is, having a group of experts who are already familiar with WELL will pave the way for an easy design process. Whether you’re starting from the ground up, embarking on an overhaul, or simply sprucing up a space, having a WELL-savvy team of service providers to help you is always a good idea.

Ready to work with WELL-licensed plant specialists? Contact us today to schedule your first consultation.