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Architecture can play a crucial role in supporting ecosystems and reducing biodiversity loss in
urban environments. With predicted urban population increase and a subsequent need for more
housing, how buildings and infrastructure is designed will have a direct impact on surrounding
ecosystems and biodiversity. Therefore, the built environment design should include careful
consideration of how to actively integrate with and regenerate ecosystem services and biodiversity.
Through emulating ecosystems and their functions using an ecosystem services framework, and through
incorporating biophilic design principles, a regenerative design practice may emerge that positively
impacts socio-ecological systems from a health and wellbeing perspective. This research explores this
proposition through a design-led research methodology, combining ecological and environmentalpsychology
knowledge into architectural design practice. The outcomes range from neighbourhood
scales through to architectural, and focus on retrofit and new build design. Wellington, New Zealand is
the site of the design research. New Zealand’s biodiversity is unique, having evolved free from most
land-based mammals before humans introduced non-indigenous species. The research concludes that
through an ecosystem services and biophilic design framework, architecture can have a positive roles in
ecosystems, from both a technical perspective and as an influencer of user behaviour.

Keywords: Regenerative urban development; biophilic design; urban biodiversity; ecosystem
biomimicry.

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