In the following, HGA’s Sustainability Director, Ariane Laxo, talks about her transition from focusing on interior design to being a sustainability advocate, favorite projects, and considerations every interior designer should include when making sustainable design decisions.

What inspired you to be a Sustainability Advocate, and to make the transition from Interior Design?

I grew up in the woods in rural Western Massachusetts, fostering a deep love of the natural world early in life. Environmental conservation was one of my core values, but it wasn’t until I read the book Cradle to Cradle in college that I made the connection to design. When waste = food, our world can truly support our needs today without negatively impacting ecosystems or future generations. As a design practitioner, I was inspired by the intersection between sustainability and the interior design approach of human-centered empathetic design. I explored research-based solutions that could positively impact the health and well-being of users in the buildings I was designing. Attending a Climate Reality Project training in 2014 became the catalyst to shift my focus from the micro-scale of interior design on individual projects to the macro-scale of system-level change. Learning about the current science of climate change inspired a greater sense of urgency, and I knew I could best support my firm, clients, and the planet by dedicating myself to organizational level change management and sustainability in practice. This culminated in a career shift in 2020 when I stepped into the role of Director of Sustainability at HGA.

What is your favorite HGA Sustainability project? Were you personally involved with this project?

HGA has so many examples of sustainability in practice, from high performance projects like the Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, the first fully certified Living Building Challenge renovation in the world, to projects that integrate biophilia flawlessly in design without ever calling it out as sustainability. One of my favorite high performance projects that I’ve worked on is the Westwood Hills Nature Center. The client wanted this building to be a teaching tool, demonstrating sustainable design throughout the project as part of their conservation programming. The design team was collaborative across disciplines, and sustainability strategies literally shaped the building, from passive design strategies contributing to the net zero energy goal to natural, biophilic materials selected to foster a connection to nature and lower the project’s embodied carbon. The resulting space is beautiful, inspiring, and blends seamlessly into the surrounding natural environment.

What are the key considerations that every interior designer should include when making sustainable design decisions?

• 1. Space plan with daylight. Consider access to quality daylight when determining layout. Orientation matters: collaborate with other team members to minimize glare, especially in spaces facing east and west.
  2. Lead with biophilia. A connection to nature has many proven benefits, including improved satisfaction, productivity, and learning outcomes. Design concepts that lead with biophilia, integrating the 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design, inherently foster occupant health and well-being.
  3. Avoid chemicals of concern. Chemicals with known negative health impacts should be avoided in our specifications. Ask manufacturers for Health Product Declarations, and look for product certifications that validate no harmful chemicals are used, like Declare Red List Free.
  4. Lower embodied carbon. The next 8 years are critical in the climate crisis; our choices today determine the future climate for the next 100 years. Use less materials, use re-used or reclaimed materials, and specify products with lower embodied carbon by leveraging Environmental Product Declarations and tools like Building Transparency’s EC3 to understand the carbon impact of the products you are considering. The urgency behind these choices is real – and future generations depend on us.

Learn more about Ariane Laxo.