Interview with Robin Guenther, Architect and Expert in Sustainable Design
Robin Guenther doesn’t just design pretty hospitals. She designs spaces that resonate health and well-being from the ground up.
As the sustainable healthcare leader at global architecture and design firm Perkins+Will, Guenther understands that every aspect of health and sustainability needs to be considered in the design of hospitals and healing spaces. It’s not enough to build hospitals with the latest healthcare technology. Rather, we need to be considering all aspects of a hospital’s building design and how that design lends itself to healing people and healing the planet.
“There’s something ironic about physicians, nurses and caregivers working to keep people alive and healthy in buildings that feel dead and that are built of materials that contribute to disease,” explains Guenther. “We need to build healthcare facilities that inspire health, that are built with healthy materials, that use as little energy as possible and that connect us with our living environments.”
Guenther was one of the keynote speakers at the CleanMed conference in Portland, Ore. this year. The conference is held annually for hospital and business leaders working at the forefront of sustainable healthcare.
In this video, Guenther shares some of her insights on the current trends in sustainable healthcare design – from building low-energy and net-zero hospitals to designing for the impacts of a changing climate.
