A team of Perkins&Will researchers has been awarded a $30,000 grant from the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Foundation to enhance their PRECEDE dashboard, an open-source tool that draws on federal data to identify and assess community health priorities within the U.S. by location.
PRECEDE, which stands for Public Repository to Engage Community & Enhance Design Equity, will help designers integrate and translate public health data into design decisions.
“We selected Perkins&Will’s proposal because of its focus on health equity at such a critical time. Their tool paves the way for a future of more equitable public health,” says S. Dawn Haynie, Ph.D., a research fellow for ASID. “It makes the traditionally complex contextual research about a specific site accessible to all designers, not just those with research expertise.”
The CDC estimates that a significant proportion of a person’s health is attributed to the quality of their environment, personal education, and any behavioral constraints that may be impacting their community. Designers have an opportunity to improve community health outcomes by designing according to these factors.
However, access to the nuances within this federal data is limited, thus making it more difficult for designers to integrate such information early in the design process, when diversity and inclusion are most effectively addressed.
Identifying this gap in data and practice, the team first developed a beta version of PRECEDE in spring 2022 in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Compared with similar public health-focused data visualization tools—most coming with limitations like not allowing the user to search by mailing address or not accounting for environmental factors—PRECEDE aggregates multiple sources into an easy-to-understand resource hub complete with best practices informed by successful case studies.
The research team first identified over 40 design-relevant health indicators that could be improved by interior design, such as obesity, diabetes, and asthma, in areas like material selection, ventilation, and circadian lighting.
“When we walk in the door, we bring our health conditions with us,” says Dr. Erika Eitland, director of Perkins&Will’s Human Experience Lab. “This tool allows us to use publicly available data to identify health priorities for our communities without having to ask invasive questions about individuals’ health.”
Using PRECEDE tool on projects
Case studies demonstrate PRECEDE’s ability to impact a wide range of project types and populations. For a Durham, North Carolina school, designers discovered higher-than-average breast cancer deaths in the area and responded with healthier materials to limit teachers’ and staff’s exposure to known harmful materials.
Similarly, at a national nonprofit’s Washington, D.C. headquarters, PRECEDE brought forward active workstations that encourage movement to mitigate the city’s high rates of cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure.
“This is a powerful example of how a multidisciplinary team from interiors to urban design and public health to architecture can de-silo research and support systems-level solutions,” adds Eitland.
Now, the team will continue to develop the tool outside of Excel using data analytics platform Power BI and an application programming interface that will retrieve data from their sources directly. Harvard Graduate School of Design, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Wentworth Institute of Technology will act as academic partners throughout the process. The PRECEDE dashboard pilot will then be delivered to ASID Foundation in September 2023., after which it will make the rounds at conferences and within partnerships.
Joining Eitland on Perkins&Will’s awarded team are David Cordell, Amina Helstern, Tyrone Mashall, and Devika Tandon. The ASID Foundation Research Committee selected winning projects based on the significance of the study, innovation in research questions, strength of methodology, applicability of findings, and more.
Related Stories
University Buildings | Jun 28, 2024
The American University in Cairo launches a 270,000-sf expansion of its campus in New Cairo, Egypt
In New Cairo, Egypt, The American University in Cairo (AUC) has broken ground on a roughly 270,000-sf expansion of its campus. The project encompasses two new buildings intended to enhance the physical campus and support AUC’s mission to provide top-tier education and research.
MFPRO+ New Projects | Jun 27, 2024
Chicago’s long-vacant Spire site will be home to a two-tower residential development
In downtown Chicago, the site of the planned Chicago Spire, at the confluence of Lake Michigan and the Chicago River, has sat vacant since construction ceased in the wake of the Great Recession. In the next few years, the site will be home to a new two-tower residential development, 400 Lake Shore.
Codes and Standards | Jun 27, 2024
Berkeley, Calif., voters will decide whether to tax large buildings with gas hookups
After a court struck down a first-in-the-nation ban on gas hookups in new buildings last year, voters in Berkeley, Calif., will have their say in November on a measure to tax large buildings that use natural gas.
Mass Timber | Jun 26, 2024
Oregon State University builds a first-of-its-kind mass timber research lab
In Corvallis, Oreg., the Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex at Oregon State University aims to achieve a distinction among the world’s experimental research labs: It will be the first all-mass-timber lab meeting rigorous vibration criteria (2000 micro-inches per second, or MIPS).
Sustainability | Jun 26, 2024
5 ways ESG can influence design and create opportunities
Gensler sustainability leaders Stacey Olson, Anthony Brower, and Audrey Handelman share five ways they're rethinking designing for ESG, using a science-based approach that can impact the ESG value chain.
Student Housing | Jun 25, 2024
P3 student housing project with 176 units slated for Purdue University Fort Wayne
A public/private partnership will fund a four-story, 213,000 sf apartment complex on Purdue University Fort Wayne’s (PFW’s) North Campus in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The P3 entity was formed exclusively for this property.
Sustainability | Jun 24, 2024
CBRE to use Climate X platform to help clients calculate climate-related risks
CBRE will use risk analysis platform Climate X to provide climate risk data to commercial renters and property owners. The agreement will help clients calculate climate-related risks and return on investments for retrofits or acquisitions that can boost resiliency.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 24, 2024
‘Yes in God’s Backyard’ movement could create more affordable housing
The so-called “Yes in God’s Backyard” (YIGBY) movement, where houses of worship convert their properties to housing, could help alleviate the serious housing crisis affecting many communities around the country.
Student Housing | Jun 20, 2024
How student housing developments are evolving to meet new expectations
The days of uninspired dorm rooms with little more than a bed and a communal bathroom down the hall are long gone. Students increasingly seek inclusive design, communities to enhance learning and living, and a focus on wellness that encompasses everything from meditation spaces to mental health resources.
Museums | Jun 20, 2024
Connecticut’s Bruce Museum more than doubles its size with a 42,000-sf, three-floor addition
In Greenwich, Conn., the Bruce Museum, a multidisciplinary institution highlighting art, science, and history, has undergone a campus revitalization and expansion that more than doubles the museum’s size. Designed by EskewDumezRipple and built by Turner Construction, the project includes a 42,000-sf, three-floor addition as well as a comprehensive renovation of the 32,500-sf museum, which was originally built as a private home in the mid-19th century and expanded in the early 1990s.
