7 February 2019, Bangkok – Dr Naree Phinyawatana, an MQDC consultant and Thailand’s first WELL Accredited Professional (AP), and Dr Sarigga Pongsuwan, AVP of MQDC’s RISC, spoke at the ‘Road to Silver Age’ seminar organized by Thansettakij newspaper at the InterContinental Bangkok hotel.

They shared insights on residential design to suit every generation and provide for “family” and “nature”, which can be seen as the two most valuable elements in everyone’s life.

Dr Naree spoke on residential design for older adults, stressing how people tend to spend about 90% of their day indoors. She presented healthy design principles based on occupational health protection in buildings, wellness, and environmental protection, including a design process based on the health-focused WELL Building Standard, adapted to housing for older adults.

She described how The Aspen Tree is designed for the well-being of older adults in aspects such as indoor and outdoor environments, indoor air quality (IAQ), noise reduction, the color of lighting, and the reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from furniture and materials. The community is also designed to provide an active lifestyle as well as a liveable environment for older people.

Dr Sarigga presented research and design ideas for older adults using 11 variables for well-being: 1. Smart Construction, 2. Materials & Resources, 3. Energy & Water, 4. Nature & Animals, 5. Indoor Environment, 6. Operation & Services, 7. Active Mobility, 8. Education & Discovery, 9. Health & Happiness, 10. Tech & Automation, 11. Community & Intergeneration. 

She also shared statistics on older people in Thailand for 2015-50. A high suicide rate reflects how older adults struggle to adjust to physical changes and challenging environments as they experience alterations in hormones, vision, mobility, and hearing.

Dr Sarigga described The Aspen Tree as a project designed to support older adults and their families in areas such as:

• Movement 
• Colors and clear layouts
• Lighting
• Noise reduction through soundproof tree lines and sound barriers
• Conversation-boosting design
• Design for age-related hormonal changes, such as to encourage sleep
• Proximity of friends in a good environment