Society has knowingly compromised on the average area required by a person to be naturally comfortable, in the name of ‘expensive real estate’. We have reduced (compromised) the built-up area of homes to make them affordable and also reduced the footage of area per person in commercial buildings. This has led to densely populated ‘pandemic-friendly’ environments.
People have realized the ill effects of such densely populated living and the hazards of a polluted environment, and many are shifting to a greener and cleaner environment - away from the polluted urban cities, where they can enjoy organic vegetables and cooking oils.
Living in semi-urban environments is catching on.
Work from Home has become the new norm, and technology now allows people to move from place to place, travel, and stay in different zones while continuing to work. This is setting a new trend – people have realized that for work they need not be physically present at the workplace, which is making ‘not commuting to the office’ a new norm.
Hence, the idea of shifting further from urban centres to semi-urban environments is catching on. Real Estate in the outskirts is cheaper and the environment cleaner, and is attracting developers.
Materials with low or no requirements of water will be sought after by the construction industry.
Technology is introducing newer materials and methods of construction. Standardization, speed, and low requirements of labor are the future of construction. The construction industry will look at materials that are not only eco-friendly and made of recycled components, but also materials that will get absorbed by the earth easily once the building is demolished. These materials may be natural or composite, but they decompose rapidly and also avoid further earth fills.
Technology will play a major role in designing spaces, and various gadgets will be incorporated to keep the environment clean.
Architecture will adapt to the changes. Though the house will continue to be the nucleus of activity for the family, it will also have to be planned as an office, a classroom, a space for leisure, and have a green environment. It may also have a sanitization station with a bath facility at the entrance.
Similarly, office spaces will have more cabins and partitions, and socially distanced seating for staff. Automation will be introduced for operating doors, faucets etc; lifts and light switches will be voice activated. The spaces will get de-congested and there could be multi-use workstations as different persons will use the same workstation on different days.
