MsSarah Backhouse

I am a registered architect with a practice background in strategic design and briefing, designing and evaluating workplaces and learning environments. I have contributed to projects as diverse as Microsoft's Global Workplace Guidelines, the Friends of the Earth Headquarters in London, Central Saint Martins at the University of the Arts London, and the Footscray Learning Precinct.

My long-held interest in how architects create environments for wellbeing led me to complete a Master of Applied Positive Psychology. Since then, my practice and research have focused on the intersection of architects, architecture and mental wellbeing.

The title of my PhD is 'Embedding Mental Wellbeing in Architectural Practice: A Eudaimonic Perspective.' Drawing on interdisciplinary wellbeing science, my research aims to identify evidence-based fundamental principles for helping architects promote mental wellbeing in their workplaces and the environments they design for others. This systems approach to architects' mental wellbeing spans individual, workplace and societal scales towards a flourishing profession.