OUR SUSTAINABILITY VISION
DESIGN WITH A CAUSE
We strive to realise visionary strategies grounded in human-centric design. Guided by our philosophy, “Design with a Cause”, we are committed to enabling responsible economies of scale that benefit All. As an employee-owned research and design studio, our purpose is to create inclusive experiences stemming from diverse perspectives. Embedded within is a commitment to engaging with layers of stakeholders and ground-up communities to co-create participatory phase plans for long-term impact.
OUR APPROACH
WY-TO GREEN COMMITMENTS
WY-TO advances towards holistic sustainability through the pillars of Planet, People, and Places. Our developed 6 Green Commitments are also aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations, and our ‘Well-being for All’ research framework. They frame our design benchmarks for an all-encompassing approach. Accordingly, enabling our Team to take grounded, systemic steps in designing for innovation and project longevity. Informed by Biophilic Design principles, we craft empathetic solutions across scales and typologies to enable urban experiences for life to thrive!
GREEN COMMITMENT #1
URBAN ECOLOGY STRATEGIES
A paradigm approach to design cities of the future.
Strategising our cities through Urban Ecology redefines conventional urban models by prioritising the resilience of natural systems. Held by the three pillars of Urban Ecology – Social, Economic and Environmental – our methodology integrates these into holistic future-ready frameworks. Resulting interventions provide beyond functional benefits and extend to bolster natural and inter-dependent relationships for richer biodiversity corridors and resilient water-sensitive networks. As such shifting beyond the conventional city-making optics and considerations to sprout systemic innovation in urban planning across scales.
GREEN COMMITMENT #2
NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS (NbS)
Designing responsibly for enhanced liveability through nature-inspired processes.
Nature is the foundation of our methodology. We design to protect, sustain and restore natural ecosystems within the urban fabric. Informed by Biophilic Design, our solutions bring Nature meaningfully into cities for the purpose of increasing the health and well-being of our places. Whether through shaping built ensembles that enrich the quality of spatial experiences, or aligning with broader climate agendas, our human-centric approach prioritises liveability outlined by Nature-based Solutions.
GREEN COMMITMENT #3
REGENERATIVE APPROACHES
Championing well-balanced prosperity.
Our methodology also embraces regenerative thinking and practice in achieving positive, enduring space-to-place transformations. Thoughtful human-centric considerations and Planetary Well-being lead every decision in updating brownfield sites and programming for neighbourhood longevity. By reframing everyday routines combined with People-Planet interdependence, we renew multifold narrative design opportunities – culminating in unique self-sustaining Places that reciprocate with vibrant life.
GREEN COMMITMENT #4
WELL-BEING ADVOCACY
Carving active lines of engagement.
Following our involvement in the Conceptual Masterplan of Paya Lebar Air Base – a new city guided by well-being – WY-TO launched a year-long research initiative at the intersections of Urban Planning, Architecture, Urban Health, Sociology and Public Policy. Informed by our background in the tropical built environment, the research publication Well-being for All contributes to communicating our vision for healthy, resilient built environments. Integral to WY-TO’s culture, the developed toolkit enables our projects to reap the benefits of targeted design roadmaps, guided by the 12 Principles of Well-being. Educational design institutions have also adopted our framework as part of their curriculum to promote holistic strategies. Furthering our advocacy, we continue to actively engage different groups with Well-being workshops regionally and in parts of Europe.
GREEN COMMITMENT #5
PROGRESSIVE PARTNERSHIP
Spirited collaborations for innovative interdisciplinary success.
Glocalisation allows built environments to grow while maintaining distinctive place identities. Guided by our philosophy, “Design with A Cause”, we combine research and best practices with global precedents to inspire fruitful engagements with a diverse network of contributors – decision-makers, collaborators and partners, craftsmen and builders, and end-users. This cross-pollination of expertise opens up multichannel opportunities – enabling different actors to innovate, contribute to new possibilities and push design boundaries in cultivating long-term, rewarding partnerships.
GREEN COMMITMENT #6
RESILIENT COMMUNITIES
Creating Happy Hours in the city.
From our perspective, sustainability begins with people. We aspire to transform Liveable Space into Loveable Places by aligning with Urban Ecology approaches. Foundational to that is nurturing resilient communities. Hence, we integrate top-down strategic planning with bottom-up empirical data to shape cultural diversity and inclusive environments. Accordingly, designing purposeful space activation through reasonant placemaking that elevates urban encounters. Thereby empowering Space-to-Place transformation with memorable place experiences and greater greater sense of attachment.
