In a competition , the city of Stuttgart, Germany, was looking for innovative ideas for the for the use of the vacant space directly adjacent to the new main railway station. In collaboration with Julio Gil Fariña from OLE (Office for Local Experiences) , the Designinstitut für Gesunde Gestaltung submitted an entry: a space that combines human and planetary health.

Our vision: A inviting and inspiring space that integrates the city's unique identity and fresh impulses, right at the heart of Stuttgart. A haven for Stuttgart residents and travellers alike. A flagship for healthy, innovative and sustainable city life.

Background: In our contribution, we address two major challenges that we currently face as a society: 1. to maintain physical and mental health of a growing population, 2. to maintain environmental health within the planetary boundaries. The past years show that human health is onlny possible in an intact natural environment (“One Health Approach”, WHO).

We transfer this concept to the built environment. "Building One Health" implies process and result: tailored to the needs of humans and nature. To that aim, we integrate principles of human-scale, psychosocial support and sustainable construction.

We differentiate three conceptual levels:

1. Healthy planet:

• Sustainable construction (e.g. rain retention through storage, rainwater harvesting, recycled concrete, CO2-reduced cement, locally sourced wood)2-reduzierter Zement, lokal gewonnenes Holz)
• Energy generation (e.g. photovoltaic system)
• Plants (e.g. roof garden, drought-resistant plants, sedum instead of grass)
• Animals (e.g. insect-friendly lighting, nesting aids for birds and insects, insect-friendly plants)
• Circular economy (e.g. shelves for sharing books and other things, modular building principles)

2. Healthy society:

• Café with traditional Swabian cuisine and other organic goods at fair prices
• Low-threshold opportunities for social interaction (e.g. intergenerational playground)
• Health education services

3. Healthy individual:

• Consumption-free resting places
• Opportunities for physical activity throughout the building and the roof garden
• mindfulness based offerings for all senses (e.g. aromatic plants)
• Strengthening identification and belonging (e.g. small exhibitions to showcase citizens' everyday objects with special meaning to them)

The concept encompasses a built structure that blurs the line between inside and outside. It extends the adjacent park and builds a connection to the Europaquartier. It offers protection without shutting off from society and nature. Various activities, qualities of spaces and materials motivate to explore the structure. The geometry of the roof of the underground station continues into the building, which results in small hills.

For our concept, we developed three personas:

Amina, who loves to come here for the variety of activities and to meet new people.

Sabine, who enjoys to come here with her grandson Anton when visitting Stuttgart at the weekend.

Werner, who feels left behind by society, but finds new hope because he can belong here.

The concept "Building One Health" illustrates a holistic perspective on public space and its health-promoting potential for people and environment. This idea can be transferred to other contexts, as well. The key aspect here remains that solutions must always be tailored to the immediate contextual factors and individual needs of the users. A methodological framework for this is provided by our Systemic Evidence-based Approach of Health-promoting Design.

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