Getting Back to Nature

I’d find it hard to argue that we haven’t lost our connection to nature, although in many ways, Toronto is better off than other big cities. At least here, we’ve got plenty of trees and some open spaces where you can see the sky without craning your neck, even in the heart of downtown. But we’ve also got our share of concrete canyons, and they are soul-suckers.

The health benefits of spending time in nature are myriad and well documented. A Norwegian study found that those with moderate to severe depression experienced reduced symptoms after 12 weeks’ participation in a horticulture program. Another study found that those who walked on an outdoor track moved faster, perceived less exertion and experienced more positive emotions than those in the gym. In a Scottish study, people who walked in a rural environment even viewed their to-do lists as more manageable than those who walked on city streets. In a study by South Korea’s Chonnam National University, MRIs showed that subjects who saw an image of mountains, forests and other landscapes had heightened activity in the part of the brain linked to positive outlook and emotional stability (and couldn’t we use a little more emotional stability these days?) and the part tied to recollection of happy memories.

Part of getting real about just how out of touch we are won’t come just from walks in the woods, though, but rather green (truly green) building initiatives. Fortunately, the pendulum is swinging back towards some sort of balance with nature, even in an urban environment, and we’re better positioned in Toronto than in many older, more dense cities to do it right.

Green roofs are a great place to start. In Toronto, a green roof bylaw means that new commercial and institutional developments require green roofs, as well as some residential projects. It’s a start. The YMCA on Grosvenor uses their green roof to house a running track and they also use it for al fresco yoga and Pilates. What could be better for a yoga session than being surrounded by greenery and fountains?

The DUCA Financial building on Yonge Street features a roof that houses two separate garden spaces, including a rec area for building employees. What a concept! Make your employees happy and they’ll be more productive, but many companies still favour an old school “scare them into productivity” ethos that just doesn’t work. The greenery is visible from the conference rooms, too. York University installed a green roof on its computer sciences building – it’s inaccessible but does provide stormwater management solutions. The City Hall Podium at 100 Queen West is a city-owned property that features extensive publicly accessible gardens.

But we’re still not there in the residential sector. Who’s doing it right? Singapore is. With a population of 5.3 million, they’re about twice our size (not including the ‘burbs), and 85% of the population lives in high-rise social housing. Their Pinnacle@Duxton seven-tower complex features skybridges at the 26th and 50th floors that house family-friendly amenities such as an outdoor gym specifically designed for the elderly, a children’s play area, mini parks, and an 800-metre running track that links all the towers together. It all goes a long way to overcoming the physical and psychological barriers that prevent families from seeing high-rise living as a viable option —  if you didn’t have to go all the way down to the street every time you wanted to walk your dog or take your kids to the park, wouldn’t that feel better?

Because developers who include community spaces at height in order to build taller can exclude those spaces from the taxable areas of their developments, they are building lushly planted gardens in the sky quite willingly.

There’s a 35-storey building going up in Melbourne, Australia, that features ground floor retail, three floors of office space, 154 apartments and four community gardens — one every sixth floor, and each facing a different direction. Faceted balconies that will give the effect of greenery-draped crystals give the place its name: Crystal Gardens. Rainwater collected from the façade will water the gardens and flush the toilets.

Via clearpointresidencies.com

In Sri Lanka, just 10 km from its largest city, Colombo, Clearpoint Tower will become the world’s tallest vertical garden. No glass surfaces are directly exposed to sunlight, and the need for air conditioning is reduced to a minimum thanks to optimal orientation of the apartments and plants that act as sound and heat buffers while also cleaning the air. An automated drip irrigation system that uses collected water works independently.

There’s no question that we can — and need — to do this. I hate to say it (again), but I’m not sure we have the vision or the right focus to do it right right now. We’re stubborn, and we keep electing candidates based on much more selfish issues, but if we could put some of the right people in place, and look to other cities that are getting it right for inspiration, maybe we can put more nature in our future.