THE ENVIRONMENT

Designing from the Inside Out: The Positive Impact of Sustainable Interior Design

Interior design is often misunderstood as mere decoration or aesthetic styling. In truth, it is one of the most powerful tools we have for responding to the environmental crisis, improving human health and wellbeing, fostering social connection, and building an economy that respects both people and planet. Good interior design is not a luxury. It is a responsibility.

Interiors and the Environmental Crisis

The environmental crisis is stark. Globally, the built environment is responsible for around 37% of energy-related CO₂ emissions (UN Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction, 2022). While much attention falls on new construction and operational energy use, interiors themselves have a significant and often overlooked impact.

Embodied carbon in fit-outs and furnishings can account for 30–50% of a commercial space’s total carbon footprint over its lifetime, as RIBA’s 2030 Climate Challenge guidance highlights. Frequent strip-outs and refits—often every 5 to 7 years in commercial contexts—generate vast material waste. In the UK, the construction sector, which includes interiors, is responsible for approximately 60% of total national waste, much of it from discarded fixtures and finishes.

Good interior design has the potential to radically reduce this footprint. Careful selection of low-carbon, renewable, or recycled materials, designing for disassembly and reuse, prioritising longevity over short-lived trends, and sourcing locally can all reduce emissions and waste. These strategies help clients meet national and international climate commitments, such as the UK Government’s Net Zero Strategy or RIBA’s 2030 Climate Challenge, while also delivering long-term economic value by reducing replacement costs and waste fees.

Health and Wellbeing: Beyond Carbon

But designing with the environment in mind is not only about carbon emissions. It is fundamentally about human health and wellbeing. The World Health Organization has long recognised that our immediate environments are critical to physical and mental health.

Poor indoor air quality contributes to respiratory illnesses and allergies. Inadequate daylight and absence of natural elements increase stress, disrupt circadian rhythms, and reduce productivity. Overly sealed, synthetic interiors can worsen conditions such as Sick Building Syndrome.

Sustainable interior design directly supports health by specifying natural, low-emission materials such as lime plasters, natural paints, and untreated woods that improve indoor air quality. Careful daylight design reduces reliance on artificial lighting and supports psychological wellbeing. Thoughtful acoustic strategies reduce stress and improve concentration. Passive heating and cooling enhance thermal comfort while cutting energy use. The integration of biophilic design—bringing natural forms, materials, and plant life into interiors—has been shown in studies by Stephen Kellert and Terrapin Bright Green to reduce stress, improve mood, and increase cognitive performance.

Fostering Social and Economic Sustainability

Moreover, interior design shapes how people interact with one another and with the wider community. It is central to social equity. High-quality, sustainable interiors can support inclusive, dignified housing, public buildings that serve all users comfortably and accessibly, and workplaces that respect workers through ergonomic, healthy environments.

Economically, well-designed sustainable interiors are not a cost burden but a strategic investment. Longer-lasting materials reduce the need for frequent replacements. Energy-efficient lighting and HVAC strategies lower operational bills. Healthier indoor environments can reduce absenteeism and boost productivity, delivering clear returns on investment, as demonstrated by the World Green Building Council’s research on green interiors.

Reconnecting Humans with Nature

Beyond health, social equity, and economics, interior design also plays a vital role in restoring our relationship with nature. Modern interiors often cut us off from natural rhythms and materials, contributing to a sense of alienation and environmental disregard.

Designers can help repair this connection by using natural materials that age honestly, framing views of nature, integrating indoor planting, designing to respond to daylight and seasonal changes, and introducing patterns and textures inspired by natural systems. This is not merely an aesthetic gesture but a psychological and cultural imperative. As biologist E.O. Wilson’s biophilia hypothesis argues, humans have an innate need to affiliate with nature. Meeting this need within our built environments supports mental health and can inspire more sustainable behaviour outside the building.

Policy and Professional Guidance

Professional guidance and policy frameworks increasingly recognise these responsibilities. RIBA’s 2030 Climate Challenge includes targets for reducing embodied carbon in interiors and fit-outs. Certification systems such as LEED, BREEAM, and WELL demand rigorous attention to materials, air quality, lighting, and occupant health.

The UK Government’s Net Zero Strategy and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), make clear that interior design practice is directly implicated in our collective sustainability goals.

Design as Positive Force: Lessons from Thought Leaders

Thought leaders around the world have issued compelling calls for change. William McDonough’s Cradle to Cradle framework challenges designers to move beyond reducing harm to creating regenerative systems. Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics argues that design must meet human needs within ecological limits. Michael Pawlyn advocates biomimicry, learning from nature’s closed-loop, low-energy, resilient systems. Meanwhile, climate activists such as Greta Thunberg remind us of the ethical urgency to change our systems fundamentally rather than superficially.

These perspectives remind us that every interior design decision—from the materials we specify to the ways we organise space—has systemic consequences for people and the planet.

Conclusion: Our Responsibility as Interior Designers

Interior design is not neutral. It shapes what and how much we consume, how we feel, how we connect with each other, and how sustainably we live. Good interior design reduces environmental impact through low-carbon, circular strategies. It improves health by supporting clean air, daylight, and safe materials. It promotes social equity by delivering dignified, inclusive, and accessible spaces. It generates economic value through lifecycle efficiency. And crucially, it reconnects us to the natural world in ways that can foster a culture of stewardship and care.

As designers, our responsibility is not simply to make spaces look good. It is to make them truly good—for people, for communities, and for the planet. This is not a constraint on creativity but its highest calling