Integration of Habitable Farming into Residential Spaces: Lessons from Pasona HQ Urban Farm and Future Applications in Interior Design
摘要
This paper explores the hypothesis of controlled domestic farming integrated into residential spaces as a means of psychophysical wellness, food production for the household, and contribution to reduction of carbon footprint especially in dense urban areas. The Pasona HQ is a nine-storey office building located in downtown Tokio hosting the main office of Pasona Group, a Japanese recruiting company with 800 employees. The entire 215,000 sqft of building space has been renovated in 2011 with a project by Kono Designs, transforming the 50 year-old building into an urban farm office with green facades and 43,000 sqft of internal spaces dedicated to farming. The farming areas within the building host around 200 species of edible vegetables including fruits and rice, are distributed throughout the office spaces integrating the working areas including partitions, ceilings, and meeting spaces, and the harvested vegetables are prepared and served daily at the cafeterias within the building. The whole concept demonstrates not only an improvement of internal air quality and an increment of 12% in work productivity, but also a positive response in terms of social interaction and collaboration between employees including a marked reduction of absences for illnesses and turnover. Studies for farming in restricted internal spaces using advanced technologies, like aeroponic systems, LED lighting, and soilless cultivations, have been developed since 1960s to provide crews of nuclear submarines and remote bases in Antarctica with fresh vegetables during long periods of isolation in confined spaces. Most recently, these technologies have been further developed to yield crops in condition of microgravity to support future long-term missions in outer space, not only in terms of food production but also for the psychological wellbeing of the crew. Furthermore, the psychological stresses experienced during Covid-19’s lockdown demonstrated how much domestic greening could represent a source of relaxation and intimate contact with nature.