Beyond energy saving: what makes a home healthy?
Roberto Sacchi: In your professional career you have combined various technical and other disciplines, such as green building, energy efficiency and Feng Shui, all oriented towards the pursuit of personal well-being. Today we talk a lot about ecological, sustainable and green buildings, but often we limit ourselves to discussing energy consumption. In your opinion, when can a house be truly considered “healthy” and what are the elements that make the difference in the quality of life of those who live there?
Donatella Magni: Today we tend to identify a “green” house with a house that consumes little. It is certainly an important aspect, but the well-being of those who live there depends on much more. Over the years I have realized that a healthy home is not simply a home that consumes little. It must certainly be efficient, but also offer healthy air, thermal and acoustic comfort, materials that do not release harmful substances and good natural lighting.
But there is also a less measurable aspect: how that space makes us feel! This is exactly where my different experiences meet. Green building, CasaClima and Feng Shui deal with different themes, but they have a common objective: putting the person at the center of the project. Because a home must not only consume little, it must also make us feel good, help us recover energy and become a place in which to live with greater balance every day.
We spend most of our day at home. This is why the quality of air, light, materials and spaces affects our well-being much more than we imagine. Often we only notice it when something isn’t working.
Between measurable performance and perceived well-being
Roberto Sacchi: In your profession you apply certification tools such as CasaClima and the ITACA Protocol, which measure the performance of buildings according to rigorous criteria. Do you think that these protocols are also able to evaluate the well-being perceived by the occupants or are there less measurable but equally important aspects that the design should consider?
Donatella Magni: Protocols such as CasaClima and ITACA are fundamental tools because they have taken the concept of building quality beyond simple energy saving, introducing aspects such as comfort, air quality and the sustainability of materials.
However, a person’s well-being cannot be completely captured in a scorecard or number. There are elements that are more difficult to measure, such as the perception of spaces, the relationship with natural light, the proportions of the rooms or the sense of harmony that a house can convey. I happened to enter buildings that were perfect from an energy point of view but not very pleasant to live in, and in simple houses that immediately conveyed a feeling of well-being. I believe that a good project must be able to combine both things.
I believe that the best design arises precisely from the union between objective data and design sensitivity. Certifications are a precious compass, but the project cannot stop at numbers. In the end, what matters is whether entering a home feels really good. Energy efficiency is a means, people’s well-being is the real goal.
Feng Shui as a key to understanding urban spaces
Roberto Sacchi: For many, Feng Shui is still associated above all with the study of the interiors of a home, but the urban-scale project you are developing demonstrates that it can also become a tool for reading and designing the city. When an urban fabric is observed with Feng Shui criteria, what concrete elements are analyzed and how can these characteristics influence the well-being and quality of life of citizens? In other words, is it possible to identify, with objective criteria, those “places that make you feel good” and translate this reading into useful indications for urban planning?
Donatella Magni: Traditional Feng Shui was born from observation of the territory, long before dealing with the interiors of homes. It analyzes concrete elements such as the morphology of the landscape, water, the road network, open spaces, buildings, meeting points and the way in which people live and travel through these places. It is interesting to note that many of these aspects coincide with what urban planners and designers today consider crucial for the quality of public spaces: accessibility, safety, presence of greenery, meeting places, orientation and perception of environments.
In the study that we are developing with my working group, we do not try to “superimpose a philosophy” on the city, but to place a different interpretation alongside those already used. Each observation is compared with urban planning data, surveys on the territory and methods of use of spaces. Our focus is to formulate concrete design indications, not abstract interpretations. The objective is to identify strengths and critical points that can suggest interventions capable of making spaces more welcoming, legible and livable.
When we analyze a town we don’t just look at the shape of the buildings. We try to understand how people use spaces: where they stop spontaneously, which routes they avoid, where they perceive safety or discomfort. I was struck by the fact that, very often, these observations coincide with those of contemporary urban planning and environmental psychology. I believe there are places where people naturally feel comfortable. The challenge is to understand why it happens and transform these observations into concrete design indications, so that well-being is not left to chance, but becomes part of urban planning.
Design spaces starting from people
Roberto Sacchi: In your study and life path, disciplines such as Shiatsu, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chromopuncture and Bach Flowers also appear, experiences undoubtedly far from engineering, but which share attention to the balance of the person. How much have these disciplines influenced your way of observing and designing the spaces in which we live?
Donatella Magni: At first they seemed like completely different worlds from engineering. In reality, studying them, I realized that they all talked about the same thing: understanding the person even before the technique. These disciplines have taught me that each person is unique and that well-being always arises from a balance, not from a one-size-fits-all solution.
There is no absolute perfect home, but the most suitable home for those who live in it. The same environment can be perceived differently by different people, with different needs, habits and sensitivities. This approach has changed my way of designing: I certainly start from the technical aspects, which are essential, but I always try to understand who will inhabit that space. Because a well-designed building is not only one that complies with standards and performance, but one that manages to improve, every day, the quality of life of the people who live in it.
Artificial intelligence and designer sensitivity
Roberto Sacchi: After many years of study and lived experiences, what advice would you give to a young technician who is currently involved in design? There are those who are starting to believe that the future of construction will only pass through technological innovation and artificial intelligence to create a vision of living focused on health, comfort and overall well-being. What is your opinion on the matter?
Donatella Magni: I would say never stop being curious. Technical preparation is fundamental, but it is not enough on its own. A good designer should learn to observe people, listen to them and understand how they experience the spaces he designs.
Every technological innovation has changed the way we design. I started by drawing by hand and today I use tools that then seemed like science fiction. This is why I also look at artificial intelligence with interest: not with fear, but with curiosity.
I believe that the future of construction will not be made of technology or humanity, but of technology at the service of man. Artificial intelligence will be a great help and I use it in my work too. But there will continue to be a difference between knowing how to design a building and understanding how a person will live inside that building. This is where, in my opinion, the designer’s sensitivity will always make the difference.
