Reconnecting with Nature and Healthy Office are recurring themes among people looking for new solutions to improve the quality of life in their working environment. WOW! has recently published several articles on Biophilic Design and Corporate Gardens.
It was with these two concepts in mind that the startup Hexagro Urban Farming has designed the Living Farming Tree, an innovative and stylish vertical garden with a modular design and IoT technology bringing Nature to any workplace. 

It’s nowadays a clear evidence that in order to attract and retain the best talents, employers need to offer them stimulating environments enhancing their productivity and job performance.
Many studies conducted by Gallup, a renewed company operating in the field of employees’ engagement, show that the Millennials are currently looking for job positions and companies which care about their well-being: in such a context, a working environment promoting well-being appears to be valued more that the overall payoff. 

Statistics speak for themselves: 33% of people chose their job based on the quality of the workplace. On the other hand, according to a report released by Interface, companies with highly satisfied at work have 37% less absenteeism rate, 21% higher productivity and 10% more satisfied clients compared to the average.   

However, a research from the Global Wellness Institute points out that the benefits of business wellness are still not particularly valued at a global level.
Nevertheless, human well-being should and must be nurtured especially in those spaces where we spend the most of our time: offices. 

As biophilic design teaches us, it is crucial to bring a fresh touch of Nature to all those indoor spaces where stress is at its maximum levels and the creation of pleasant and comfortable environments is strongly needed. 

Applying methods of biomimicry design – taking inspiration from the recurrent patterns in nature to design new products and sustainable business models – and bringing Nature in places which originally have not been designed to allow plants and people to thrive is probably the greatest mission for Hexagro Urban Farming.

Reconnecting people with nature through urban farming technologies is their belief; biophilic design, indeed, should not be perceived as only a luxury for high end properties, but an effective solution accessible by anyone, anywhere to improve the quality of the environments where they live and work. 

Thanks to the aeroponic technology developed by the vertical farming industry, it is now possible to combine the intelligence of such innovative systems with biophilic design to allow people to access and experience a new type of nature: the edible nature. 

Imagine if aromatic herbs and medicinal plants were spreading delicious fragrances and natural perfumes within your office and always ready to be picked up  for you to prepare your favorite relaxing infusions. 

A green and energizing moment enabling you to interact with your colleagues in a pleasant and engaging working environment. 

Only 40 seconds of interaction with nature are able to significantly decrease people blood pressure and improve focus by 6%! 

The Living Farming Tree, thanks to its innovative IoT farming technology, is moreover able to monitor environmental parameters and measure the quality of a specific environment, and, by engaging the user in an interactive gamified experience, is able to suggest the best herbs to harvest and benefits from the highest healing properties of the plants grown in the system. 

Some renewed companies in Italy and Switzerland, such as Accord Hotels and the banking group Raiffeisen, have already installed their Living Farming Tree to improve the wellbeing of their guests and employees offering unique and high-tech biophilic experiences.