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Building community
Evelyn Sherwood is quick to note that today — perhaps more than ever in the history of humankind — we are all living very isolated lifestyles. Even when we are online utilizing social media for hours and hours a day, we are still extremely isolated, and oftentimes, extremely lonely. That is why, Sherwood believes, it is more important than ever to design buildings, apartments and workspaces with this phenomenon of isolation kept in mind. Sherwood advocates for open spaces, and open floor-plans — but not at the expense of privacy! Just as isolation and loneliness are a societal issue currently, Sherwood believes that privacy concerns are, too. Thus, open floor plans without nixing private bedrooms are often the way to go.
In recent years, there has been a huge upward trend toward people working independently, and this has necessitated creative ways for people to form communities. Building with this in mind, or even gently forcing community building and interaction through real estate design, is Sherwood’s bread and butter.
Takeaway
Ever seen shared community spaces in multi-family buildings? Well, that is where Sherwood believes the future should be heading. We need to foster, not eliminate, opportunities for interaction. We need to build up and not further destruct our social networks and lives.
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