It could be something as simple as a window to allow light into the workspace. An easy addition, and one now widely understood to fuel happier, less-stressed humans — but the benefit of natural light in building design wasn’t clear until someone risked an unconventional opinion.

“The idea of looking holistically at things, to my mind, is something that’s long overdue,” says Dr. Brian R. Sinclair, PhD, professor of architecture and environmental design, and former dean, at UCalgary.

“Many problems today are super complex, and you simply can’t have a single discipline, single field or single designer determining an outcome — it needs to be broader.”