MIX COVID-19 DESIGN PRINCIPLES

MIXdesign is exploring the inevitable impact that the coronavirus pandemic will have on public buildings. Looking at the spatial implications of COVID-19 is a natural extension of our mission to make public spaces safe and accessible for all people regardless of age, race, gender, religion and ability in ways that explore social equity, health and well-being.  Our COVID-19 initiative builds on our ongoing collaboration with clinicians from Yale Public Health, CHOP (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia) and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, based on studies that demonstrate that the designed environment has a measurable impact on mental and physical health.

Photo illustration by Najeebah Al-Ghadban

Approach: Cross-Disciplinary Contextual Thinking

We need to resist the temptation to look for quick fix design solutions that narrowly frame this as a mere public health issue shaped by seemingly objective functional parameters alone. Instead, to arrive at viable design responses we must step back and look at the spatial consequences of the pandemic within a larger cultural and historical context and take into account the needs of marginalized and vulnerable populations who are often left out of the conversation.  The design of public spaces that mitigate viral spread like that of COVID-19 is a dynamic balancing act demanding a multi-disciplinary approach across science and humanities that studies epidemiology, human behavior and space within a place-specific social, historical and political context that draws from the input of experts representing sciences, humanities and design.

• COVID’s Potential to Reinforce Inequity: MIXdesign cautions that COVID-19 could be a setback for inclusive design if commercial, government and institutional clients decide to reallocate resources from inclusive design projects to come up with short term solutions that meet the needs of the mainstream at the expense of marginalized populations including people of color, the elderly, women, trans/non-binary people, religious Muslims and Jews, people with ASD and caregivers.

• Discrimination: We must be vigilant and not repeat past historical mistakes: over the course of American history, public health fears were used to justify the oppression and spatial segregation of “non-compliant bodies” belonging to African Americans, gay men, and the disabled who were perceived as inherently contaminating.   

• COVID-19 + Social Equity: We must design post-pandemic spaces that meet the needs of all bodies, not just ones that society considers mainstream or normal.  Moving forward, clients must work with designers to invest money in the design and construction of safe, hygienic and accessible spaces for ALL in existing and new buildings.  Public health and social equity are intimately related.

COVID-19 Space Planning for Social Distance and Touch

The following MIX/COVID-19 space planning principles are a work in progress. It is premature to come up with definitive solutions this early in the pandemic. They are based on thinking about how proxemics-- the study of the human use of space and the effects that population density has on behavior, communication, and social interaction— might be a useful tool to respond to a fundamental challenge posed by COVID-19: balancing the need for individuals to engage with one another and with the built environment while considering the public health imperative to restrict individuals from having physical contact with other individuals (social distancing) and from touching the contaminating surfaces of the built environment.

Space planning for Social Distance and Touch needs to account for the dynamics of human occupation and socialization for bodies both in motion (circulating from one place to another) and at rest (occupying a place to perform programmed and unscripted activities). These are governed by dynamic inter-related variables that are both quantitative and qualitative. 

• Human Density 1) Density: number of occupants per area, 2) Volume of enclosed space, 3) Viral Exposure Time, 4) Airflow, 5) Time of day and season.

• Environmental Stressors: For people to feel safe but connected, they need public spaces designed to minimize environmental stressors induced by 1) Disorientation (confusing spaces that lead to unintended contacts with people or building surfaces, equipment and fixtures) 2) Overstimulation (triggered by noise, light, and crowds) especially for people on the autism spectrum. This can be achieved through sensory cues that make people aware of the presence and activities of others, especially in unfamiliar places.

• Touch: MIX is researching and developing a catalogue of materials, finishes, fixtures and equipment that will allow people to have safe contact with other people and sanitary things whether by intention (choice) or unintentional (accident or necessity).  Examples include choosing to sit in a lobby chair or needing to use a handrail. This catalogue will draw from researching materials and products, both existing and being developed in response to pandemic, that includes touch free fixtures and equipment including sanitizing stations, ID readers, toilet room fixtures as well as antimicrobial, easy to clean-and-disinfect wall finishes, upholstery and furniture, both built-in and freestanding.