Restorative design and the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) offer a fundamental perspective for those who design spaces intended for daily life, study, and work. The quality of an environment, in fact, can also be assessed through its abilty to support attention, perception, psychophysical balance, and connection with the natural context.

When discussing sustainability in architecture, the focus often centers on materials, consumption, energy performance, and eco-friendly processes. Alongside this dimension lies a less visible yet decisive form of sustainability for people’s experience: cognitive

sustainability.

A cognitively sustainable environment enhances perception, supports attention, fosters positive emotional responses, and facilitates behavior; in other words, it makes the space more consistent with the activities it is designed to accommodate and with the actual needs of those who use it.

From biophilia to psychophysiological regeneration

The starting point of restorative design is biophilia, that is, the innate human attraction to nature and to everything that evokes it.
The presence of shapes, colors, and patterns inspired by nature can stimulate involuntary attention, allowing the mind to regenerate and making it easier for focused attention—the kind required for more complex and demanding activities—to recover.
At the same time, this experience helps activate the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system, promoting the return of physiological parameters to more balanced levels and fostering the emergence of positive emotions.
When a built environment respects the biophilic connection between humans and nature, it can be perceived as more restorative, more pleasant, and more cognitively sustainable.

What is the Biophilic Quality Index?

The Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) is the Biophilic Quality Indicator, the result of a collaboration between Rita Berto, an environmental psychologist with a Ph.D. in Perception and Psychophysics, and Professor Giuseppe Barbiero, director of the GREEN LEAF Affective Ecology Laboratory. It is a quantitative assessment tool designed to objectively define the restorative and biophilic value of an environment.

The Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) stems from the biophilia hypothesis of E.O. Wilson and S. Kellert and from research on restorative environments, with reference to Stephen Kaplan’s Theory of Attention Regeneration and Roger Ulrich’s Theory of Stress Recovery.

Its function is to assess the extent to which an environment respects the bond between humans and Nature, promotes positive cognitive processes, and supports performance. To do so, it examines concrete aspects of the space:

• the degree of separation from “negative” distractions
• the level of environmental stimulation
• the coherence and complexity of the environments
• functionality
• opportunities for direct contact with Nature
• the presence of biomorphic forms and structures.

How is the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) applied in the project?

The Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) can be used in two complementary ways. In new construction projects, it serves as a guideline, helping designers make informed choices from the very beginning. In existing environments, it functions as a checklist, useful for measuring the restorative value of a space and identifying potential areas for improvement.

The tool consists of five sections and evaluates environmental characteristics using a 10-point Likert scale. The partial scores generate a final value converted into a percentage, which indicates how restorative a space actually is.

From this perspective, the BQI provides biophilic design with a more solid methodological foundation. Well-being becomes an observable, comparable parameter that can be integrated into the design process.

Projects implemented using the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017)

The projects mentioned demonstrate how the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) can be applied to a wide variety of contexts: schools, residential buildings, mobile units, offices, gardens, and university spaces. This shows that restorative design can be applied to different scales and uses, adapting to the specific needs of each environment.

The Elementary School of Gressoney-La-Trinité

The elementary school in Gressoney-La-Trinité, in the Aosta Valley, is Italy’s first biophilic school. The project includes a “refuge” corner in the main classroom and a “restorative” classroom, reflecting the application of the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) in school settings.

Villa Fontanella in Magliaso

Villa Fontanella in Magliaso, near Lugano, is a residential project designed using the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017).

Biosphera 2.0 and Biosphera Equilibrium

Credits: ROCKWOOL Italia S.p.A.

The Biosphera 2.0 and Biosphera Equilibrium mobile modules apply the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) to the restorative design of compact, experimental spaces.

The Forest, Edileco’s hub in Milan

Credits: Edileco Progettazione

The Forest, Edileco’s hub in Milan, is the first office in Italy to be certified under the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) and applies restorative design to workspaces.

The Garden of San Faustino in Milan’s Ortica neighborhood

Credits: Urban File

The San Faustino Garden, located in Milan’s Ortica neighborhood, is a restorative garden created in collaboration with the University of Milan, which applies the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) to urban open spaces, extending restorative design to the city’s public spaces and green areas.

Room C3 at the University of Valle d’Aosta

The “C3-study/relax” room at the University of Valle d’Aosta, designed in collaboration with architect Chiara Marchetti, applies the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) to the restorative design of a university space dedicated to study and relaxation.

The Milan office of Cubico Sustainable Investments Italy S.r.l.

Credits: HI LITE Next S.r.l.

The Milan office of Cubico Sustainable Investments Italy S.r.l., designed by Progettazione Aurea, applies the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) to the restorative design of workspaces.

Why the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) is important for design culture

The cases cited provide a concrete overview of the potential applications of the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017). Schools, homes, offices, gardens, and experimental modules serve as contexts through which to examine a single design question: to what extent does a space truly support those who inhabit it?

For MeM, this question is central. Biophilic and restorative design requires expertise, sensitivity, and tools. The Biophilic Quality Index (BQI; Berto and Barbiero, 2017) allows us to complement a qualitative reading of the space with a more objective assessment, capable of guiding design choices and verifying the restorative value of environments.

Source of the article

This article is based on the article “Restorative Design and the Biophilic Quality Index” by Rita Berto, Ph.D., GREEN LEAF – Groupe de Recherche en Education à l’Environnement et à la Nature, Laboratory of Affective Ecology, University of Valle d’Aosta – Université de la Vallée d’Aoste.