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UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA professor and workplace consultant Graham Lowe, author of the book, Creating Healthy Organizations: How Vibrant Workplaces Inspire Employees to Achieve Sustainable Success, defines an office as an organic being – just like the people who work within its walls.

“We often talk about healthy individuals as being fit, resilient, thriving and agile. The same terms can be applied to organizations. After all, organizations are human systems,” Lowe said.

From working with sustainable design and construction methods to helping boost the bee population, the possibilities are endless when it comes to creating a positive work environment.

O N YO U R F E E TWith a growing trend to introduce active

design methods at the workplace, there is a variety of sit/stand furniture, height-adjust-able tables and on-desk solutions available at the office. An aligned spine, engaged

core and reduced pain are all benefits of sit-stand desks. London-based furniture manufacturer Belair Office Products recog-nizes the importance of ergonomic, flexible workstations.

“Sedentary work environments are no good – you shouldn’t stay in one place all the time. But if you are standing all day, that’s bad, too. So the real solution is to move around – have an option,” said Scott Vanderform, Belair’s VP design, and development. He cites the manufacturer’s Altitude line of sit-stand and multi-station and workstations, mobile pedestals and L-, J- and U-shaped workstations as examples offering a healthier work environment.

“We see more touchdown points, where teams leave their regular desks to have a quick meeting,” Vanderform said. “It may be a standing-height table or even a group of couches. But we need to remember that wellness is more than just office furniture. It’s proper lighting, atmosphere, colours, and exercise – moving.”

At Sifton’s head office, all desks rise to

allow employees an alternative standing position at their desks. “We did ergonomic assessments after we moved here and con-tinued to do so as we hire employees,” says Angela Siewert, marketing manager at Sifton Properties.

E D U C AT I O N F I R S TLovers at Work in London takes great

pride in its offering of flexible furniture and workstations.

Rodney Lover, director of sales and mar-keting, points to pieces such as “simple standing desks, larger standing work-stations that link up in cubicles, fancier executive styles so standing can be done in posher private offices, and work bars.” The customer’s health comes first, said in-house certified office ergonomics evaluator Chris Hollywood.

“A healthy workplace isn’t about a single product. There isn’t a quick fix desk or chair out there that will prevent all of our work-related discomforts. It requires a holistic approach involving diet, exercise, the right equipment and most importantly, educa-tion,” Hollywood said. “Employers need to understand that providing their employees with a healthy workplace will save them thousands of dollars a year of lost time and increase productivity, all while improving the image of their company to current staff, new hires, and clients.”

N A M A S T E AT WO R KWorkplace stress can be a silent killer. The

World Health Organization defines positive mental health as “a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her potential, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and can make a contribution to his or her community. In the workplace, there can be

WORKPLACE WELLNESS IS ALIVE AND WELL IN LONDONFrom sustainable design to helping to boost the bee population

BY JEFFREY REED

Sifton Properties’ West 5 reception area uses window film designed to bring aspects of nature into the office.

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no health without mental health.”The benefits of yoga are now widely

accepted by the Western world, thanks to its body, mind and spirit cleansing. Prana Yoga Wellness in London brings yoga, as well as other stress management tools like medita-tion and nutrition education, into the office – before 9-to-5 stresses kick in, and during lunch hours. Owner Chantelle Diachina and her seven instructors offer what they call “on-the-mat” and “off-the-mat” teachings to give employees tools they can help us at work and home.

“Everything we teach focuses on stress management,” Diachina explained. “It’s not icing on the cake, but more meat and pota-toes of a workplace, which is exciting.”

B E T T E R B U S I N E S S B Y D E S I G NDesign Matrix Inc. interior design studio

in London buys into the WELL building standards defined by the Canada Green Building Council. WELL is the first building standard to focus exclusively on the health and wellness of the people in buildings, marrying best practices in design and con-struction with evidence-based medical and scientific research. It promotes the harness-ing of the built environment as a vehicle to support human health and wellbeing.

“Designers have always known the value of designing spaces that support the people who use them,” said Design Matrix interior designer Paula Burns, “(but) the trend is employers recognize this need.”

Design Matrix-assisted in the design of Sifton Properties’ Sifton Centre at West 5 sustainable community in London – Ontario’s only Net Zero community which offers advanced and innovative technologies that give it the potential to generate as much energy as it uses in a year. The Sifton office here incorporates a table for group lunches, booths for more private discussions, flexible lounge seating for group activities, improved views and natural light. Also, it features a reception area using window film designed

Top photo: Sifton Properties’ West 5 incorporates a table for group lunches, booths for more private discussions, flexible lounge seating for group activities.Middle: Goodlife corporate office Below: Goodlife corporate office ping pong table meeting room.

PHOTOS: GEOFF ROBINS

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to bring aspects of nature into the office yet keep a balance of privacy. And there are images of the Sifton bog throughout.

WO R K I N G O U T, W E L L N E S S I N S E PA R A B L E

There’s no reason why a home-headquar-tered entrepreneur can’t incorporate exercise equipment into their suburban-based busi-ness. But when you are GoodLife Fitness, you do this on a larger scale. That’s where Square Feet Design owner Lori Ireland came in with a plan to make the new 60,000-sq.-ft. GoodLife corporate office on Proudfoot Lane lives up to its corporate promise.

A warm, friendly, high-energy environ-ment promoting workplace wellness and movement features fitness and activity-based equipment, including treadmill work-stations, basketball hoops, TRX suspension apparatus, spin bikes and a ping pong table meeting room. The 300-plus workstations have height-adjustable desks. The building design fosters teamwork with a variety of space options, both open and enclosed. You can even sit on a hanging basket or exercise ball in a chill room. Of course, there’s a cen-tral staircase – not elevator – below a mas-

sive living wall. And spinning chairs occupy grass turf in a central atrium.

“(GoodLife) is setting the tone at its head office for every member they reach out to at their clubs,” Ireland said. “It’s not just about working out. It’s about overall wellness.”

B U S Y B E E SIt’s not enough for digital marketing

company Arcane to look after employees at its 30,000-sq.-ft. office on Talbot Street. President and CEO Eric Vardon said Arcane is also an official Bee City, part of a North American movement to support pollinator protection.

“We have hives on our rooftop patio and have a water source for our bees so they can navigate locally to pollinate. Our goal is to have a full rooftop garden, with our fruits and vegetables,” Vardon explained.

Dan Heffernan, the owner of Heff’s Hives and Boutique Bees, is a professional bee-keeper and supplier to the local beekeeping community sells or rents hives to compa-nies such as Sifton West5 and Forest City Casting. Hives cost as little as $65 a month. Heffernan says, “There is therapeutic value to watching and working with the bees.”

With hive rentals, the company gets 40 lbs of honey per hive. Heffernan is available to assist his corporate customers with bottling its honey. His slogan? “We take the sting from beekeeping.”

S H A D E S O F G R E E NLondon design firm ReDesign loves to

promote that it is “drunk on design … a pur-suit of passion not bounded by definition, but defined through the crafting of modern structures, spaces and objects that resonate and perform.” No two office spaces are the same, according to co-owner Jerry Banman. That’s why ReDesign lives by its “Shades of Green” philosophy.

“Green design is a buzz phrase – it’s what people want: sustainable design. But while certifications look great on paper and in pro-motional material, every office is unique,” Banman said. “Costs aren’t always practical. You must define the key sustainable strate-gies you can incorporate that fit your cor-porate culture without pushing your budget beyond reason. If you don’t see enough value in promoting health, then it’s going to be tough to justify.”~BL