Healthy lifestyle communities: an innovative model of educational architecture and urban planning which promotes health and wellness

Abstract

The focus of this essay is the design of Healthy K-12 Educational Facilities to promote health of the individual as well as the community. The term health can be defined as the mental and physical wellness of the individual, given his or her own personal goals. Health is investigated to promote: physical activity, mental soundness, social stability, nutritious consumption, and environmental awareness for the individual as well as the community. The intent is for health to become second nature. To accomplish the primary goal of personal health and wellness, this essay reviews and assesses The Active Design Guidelines and creates supporting arguments through the literary work of Richard Gerver, Creating Tomorrow’s Schools Today. Two case studies: the Federal Environmental Agency by Sauerbruch Hutton and Marysville Getchell High School Campus by Craig Mason and DLR Group are utilized as precedents, but are also critically analyzed. The conclusion introduces an existing site with the potential for the design of a Healthy K-12 Educational Facility. Within this proposal is the development of a complete system made up of specific programmatic strategies, which are crucial to the design of a Healthy K-12 Educational Facility, promoting health for the individual as well as the community