How to Create A Healthy Yoga Studio

Reader Contribution by Paula Baker Laporte and Faia
1 / 4
2 / 4
3 / 4
4 / 4

Imagine doing yoga in nature…a leveled forest floor is your earthen platform. The sun’s light diffused through the tree canopy creates the perfect ambient temperature. A subtle breeze kisses your skin. The air is fragrant and you drink it in. The song of nature serenades your ears and the hues and tones of earth, leaf, flower and bark feast your eyes. Subtle electrical pulsations flow through you from cosmos above and earth below. Your practice is enlivened. This wholeness need not be lost when you practice indoors.

I am a longtime yoga practitioner. I am also an architect. 20 years ago I became chemically sensitive and I was compelled to seek healthier ways to design and build. I discovered the principles of building with nature and it profoundly changed my work. I know now that we can create beautiful spaces that nurture us, embrace us and deepen our experience as we practice.

The natural laws concerning healthy building were re-discovered in Germany and formulated into a system called Bau-biologie or Building Biology in the early 60’s. This quest was precipitated by an alarming number of people who became sick from the new chemical laden building products that were used to rebuild Post WWII Europe. This was the beginnings of Sick Building Syndrome. Surrounded by historic earthen buildings that had served for hundreds of years Bau-biologists studied them in comparison to the new industrialized buildings and formulated 25 principles for healthy building. Although this body of knowledge is broad and complex in scope, the essence of it can be summed up into three simple statements:

• Nature is the gold standard for human health and is the environment against which all built environments should be evaluated.

Comments (0) Join others in the discussion!
    Online Store Logo
    Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368