Regenerative design: The lenses framework for buildings and communities

Sustainability advocates see an immediate, pressing need to move beyond incremental improvements toward profound transformations on pressing economic, social and environmental issues. A framework called LENSES (Living Environments in Natural, Social, and Economic Systems) is presented that can address the type and scale of change necessary. This framework outlines a process to help communities and project teams create places where natural, social and economic systems can mutually thrive and prosper. LENSES is both a process and a metrics tool designed to help teams establish goals and to explore effectively relationships and interconnections in order to create restorative and regenerative places. The strength of LENSES lies in its ability to help groups consider concepts and elements often missing in other frameworks and tools such as inclusivity, financial sourcing, cultural resources, regional context, education, shared authority and governance, and on-going prosperity. LENSES provides a clear path to facilitate movement toward regenerative, place-based solutions in the built environment and beyond.