AIA UK Sustainability Series - Designing for People: Environmental Psychology and the Built Environment

Photo credit: Foster + Partners

No space is ever neutral — it shapes our health whether we intend it to or not. On Wednesday 18th February 2026, AIAUK continued its ongoing sustainability event series with a special talk from Environmental Psychologist Marta Saniewska at Foster + Partners.  Marta explored how environmental psychology can strengthen architectural and urban designs by grounding intuition in evidence. Drawing on case studies from Foster + Partners’ projects - most notably their Maggie's Centre in Manchester - she demonstrated how research from psychology and neuroscience can inform decisions on materiality, spatial layout, and access to nature, and how these insights can be strategically integrated into the design process to create projects which reduce stress, support wellbeing, and improve user experience.

Our foundational sponsor Herman Miller generously hosted the event in their Clerkenwell showroom, with plentiful drinks and nibbles before, during, and after the talk.