HomeForest, an app that uses smart devices to bring the restorative effects of nature into the home, has been named as the winner of the inaugural Davidson Prize . The contest called for ideas for how the home can adapt in response to the rise of home-working, following the Covid-19 pandemic. Selected for the £10,000 prize ahead of two other finalists, HomeForest explores how technology can be used to bring the wellbeing effects of biophilia into the home, particularly for people who are living in cities with limited access to green space. It aims to recreate the experience of "forest bathing", a practice of walking in nature to restore mental wellbeing, known in Japan as "shinrin-yoku". HomeForest offers the experience of biophilia to those living in cities The project was developed by architects Haptic , visualisation studio Squint/Opera , sound designer Coda to Coda , bio-design specialist Yaoyao Meng and poet LionHeart . Their concept imagines a "digital toolkit" that works with mobile and connected home devices, mapping a user’s home and their daily habits in order to create a digital twin of their living and working environment. It then overlays sensory experiences "such as the call of birdsong, […]
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