Feature image: The LEED Gold Student Experience Center at Oregon State University in Corvallis. Photo copyright Alan Brandt Photography.

One of my favorite aspects of project development is the use of LEED Innovation credits and pilot credits. When project teams pursue pilot credits that align with their organizations’ missions, values and project goals, they discover a variety of support tools. These tools can help in tracking metrics for existing practices, refining current policies or providing frameworks that elevate design to the next level.

Many pilot credits offer strategies related to the goals of human health and wellness. Here are two credits that I have applied over the years with specific projects.

Design for Active Occupants

The Design for Active Occupants LEED credit aims to improve building users’ health through physical activity. With an extensive list of features to choose from, the credit also offers opportunities to enhance social connection and celebrate art.

Example: Student Experience Center at Oregon State University

Openness and connection were driving themes for the LEED Gold Student Experience Center (SEC) at Oregon State University (OSU) in Corvallis. The 90,000-square-foot building brings together 30 student organizations into a single, centrally located space. The collaborative nature of the activities within the spaces called for a highly transparent design to facilitate views and physical connections between the organizations. During the eco-charrette, opportunities to incorporate art and inclusivity were identified as priorities.

Design for Active Occupants was a perfect fit with these goals. The building includes four staircases, each with unique features designed to encourage use, enhance the occupant experience and promote physical activity. The three-story primary staircase in the lobby is highly visible from the entry. The art installation “Afterglow” responds to the ovoid curves of the stairs and creates a continuous spiral effect, capped by a mirrored ceiling that visually extends it. Modeled on an Oregon sunset, the colors shift as you ascend. The flowing forms produce a synthesis of art and architecture, using inviting sensory stimulation in stairwells.

Features found in the design of the building’s other staircases are daylighting, rotating feature art and reentry points even in the enclosed exit stairs. Signage encouraging stair use for health benefits is strategically placed near elevators and stairwells to further promote physical activity among occupants.

By incorporating these features, the design not only promotes physical health, but also enhances social connectivity and celebrates artistic expression, creating a holistic and enriching environment for the students.

This pilot credit has been transitioned to an Innovation credit in LEED v4.1.

View from above of a spiral sculpture in red and orange incorporated into a staircase. — The LEED Gold Student Experience Center at Oregon State University in Corvallis. Photo copyright Alan Brandt Photography.

Designing with Nature: Biophilic Design for the Indoor Environment

The intent of the Design with Nature: Biophilic Design for the Indoor Environment LEED credit is to support and improve human health, well-being and productivity by incorporating elements of nature into indoor environments. Biophilic design is known to mitigate stress and enhance occupant comfort. The requirements of the credit rely on existing frameworks, such as the 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design from Terrapin Bright Green and Stephen Kellert’s elements and attributes.

Example: Patricia Reeser Center for the Arts

The Patricia Reser Center for the Arts in Beaverton, Oregon, combines a state-of-the-art performance and visual arts venue, an education center, and a meeting hub, while serving as a catalyst for development within its emerging urban context in suburban Beaverton. Located next to Beaverton Creek and Natural Area, the project leverages its proximity to nature to create a profound connection between visitors and the natural environment.

Early in the design process, the ideas of prospect and refuge, views of the outside, connectivity to place (both physical and emotional), and the play of light were identified as key opportunities. The biophilic interiors and regenerative enhancements at the adjacent creek foster a purposeful and visceral connection through expansive views and a feeling of prospect. The proximity to the creek and the city’s desire to integrate wood inspired use of a beaver dam metaphor for the wood enclosures in the lobby (outside the beaver dam) and the lobby (inside the beaver dam).

Locally sourced fir wood wall and ceiling panels—layered “sticks” in the lobby and vertical “cutouts” in the theater—create a complex yet ordered pattern that supports the seamless integration of acoustical and theatrical systems. The play of natural light coming from the light across the woven wood interior wall of the lobby is dynamic and diffuse, evoking the organic crisscross pattern of a beaver dam’s woven structure.

This project had biophilic design thinking at its core. Applying the credit to the project helped the team articulate and fully understand its design approach. This formalizing of process and deeper recognition of biophilic strategies that took place on this project have also influenced the design of subsequent projects, helping teams integrate the language of biophilic design into daily practice.

This pilot credit has been transitioned to an Innovation credit for LEED v4.1.

A light-filled lobby with complex wooden architecture. — The LEED Gold Patricia Reser Center for the Arts in Beaverton, Oregon. Photo copyright Jeremy Bitterman Photography.

Looking ahead: LEED v5 and the future of health-focused credits

Looking at the first public comment draft, concepts from the pilot credit are already making their way into LEED v5. For example, in the current draft, elements of the biophilic design pilot credit are embedded into two credits of the Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) category.

Connecting with Nature promotes biophilic design for human health and environmental benefits by integrating natural elements directly, using representations or patterns of nature, and including spatial features with characteristics of the natural environment that cultivate connections.
Occupant Experience optimizes comfort and well-being through options such as providing a customizable environment for socializing, meetings and dining, where occupants can sit outside the main action, with permanent architectural features at their backs to allow for wide views.

Health-focused credits in LEED offer teams many ways to promote physical, mental and social well-being outcomes. With so many to choose from, I have found it incredibly helpful to establish specific health goals tailored to a project, early in the design process, to guide the team in making intentional selection of credits. For further guidance, explore the health and well-being requirements of the Integrative Process credit.

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Using LEED innovation and pilot credits to achieve health and wellness