Truth in the News
- NHLA
- Nov 1
- 2 min read
Truth in the News: Biophilia Is Not a Look—It’s a Material Truth
How concrete is marketing “biophilic design”— and how hardwood can lead with the real thing
Concrete is having a biophilia moment. In CEU decks and webinars—like Architectural Training & Seminars’ October Biophilic Design North America webcast—manufacturers are framing concrete as biophilic by proximity: plazas ringed with planters, interior water walls, daylight through big apertures, and “natural” colorways. Biophilic design—the practice of connecting people to nature through the built environment—is driving much of today’s wellness-focused architecture. It’s a clever strategy—attach the product to a wellness story most clients already want.
But here’s the opportunity for wood: biophilia isn’t a design trend; it’s a material truth. Hardwood isn’t “biophilic by association”—it’s intrinsically biophilic in its texture, scent, warmth, and ability to age beautifully. If specified with intention, hardwood can lead the biophilic conversation, not follow it.
What Concrete Is Selling
Concrete’s biophilia narrative hinges on association. In the ATS webcast, presenters emphasized familiar principles—visual connections to nature, sensory variety, and stress reduction—before positioning concrete as an unavoidable partner in biophilic spaces. Water features, urban gardens, and daylight become excuses for concrete to participate. The narrative centers on engineering: if concrete can be made more durable, porous, or “green,” then it can coexist with biophilia. The underlying message: concrete can imitate harmony with nature through technology.
What Hardwood Can Prove
Wood doesn’t have to imitate nature—it is nature. Its grain patterns mirror fractal geometry, its surfaces invite touch, and its thermal qualities foster comfort. Over time, hardwood develops a patina rather than decay, offering longevity that feels alive rather than static. And unlike concrete, it doesn’t need chemical innovation to participate in biophilic design—it simply needs to be detailed and respected.
Hardwood also carries an authentic carbon story. Trees absorb carbon throughout their growth, and solid wood continues storing it inside buildings. Repairable and refinished instead of replaced, hardwood products support circular design with minimal energy input, where concrete engineers compatibility, wood embodies it.
Talking Points for Clients
On authenticity: “Hardwood provides direct, daily contact with a living material—not a simulation.”
On well-being: “Biophilia happens where hands and eyes meet the building—floors, rails, and stairs.”
On longevity: “We refinish, not replace. That’s real sustainability.”
The Honest Comparison
Concrete can support biophilic spaces, especially as structure or site hardscape. But when the goal is human connection to nature inside the built environment, hardwood does what concrete only gestures toward. Concrete can frame the natural world; wood lets people touch it.
Bottom Line
Biophilic design isn’t a marketing adjective—it’s an evidence-based commitment to human well-being through natural contact. Concrete can coexist with nature. Hardwood lets people live in it.
