Greenwalls to improve the concentration and wellbeing of university students
Major universities across Australia are installing ‘greenwalls’, which involved wrapping facades of buildings with plants, in an attempt to improve concentration levels and promote overall wellbeing.
The Greenwall Company, which has pioneered the greenwall, uses design techniques across both residential and commercial projects.
It has worked with a number of universities, including The University of QLD and La Trobe University, to design and install their patented greenwall technology.
Mark Paul, horticulturist and founder of The Greenwall Company, said studies have proved the benefits of greening community spaces, one of which is improved concentration levels.
“Over the past three years we have been working closely with a number of universities to create bespoke designs to work within the architecture of the buildings,” Paul said.
A study by Dr Kate Lee from the University of Melbourne revealed that glancing out at a greenroof for only 40 seconds boosts concentration.
Beyond the increase in concentration levels, greenwalls help to improve air quality, are aesthetically appealing, lower power bills and even act as an insulator.
In 2013, The University of Queensland introduced their new Global Change Institute Building, which features The Greenwall Company’s unique greenwalls as the key design feature and achieved a six green star rating.
A 70 sqm panelled greenwall was installed over the air- conditioning vent. This formed part of the air filtration system, allowing the greenwall to clean and purify the air.
The greenwall design also included a pond of native rainbow fish with waterplants and a vertical wetland to strip nutrients from the pondwater — a simple ecological system.
More recently, The Greenwall Company have completed the installation of a greenwall at La Trobe University in Melbourne.
The Healthsciences building features a mainly native planting covering 20 sqm.
