NBBJ
Amazon is currently constructing three glass 'spheres', which will contain treehouse meeting areas and around 3,000 species of plants. The design is by innovative design practice NBBJ. This will serve as the centerpiece for its new headquarters, set to open in 2018.
© Craig Sheppard
"You start to think of the plants as the clients, rather than some organization. You are trying to design something where the plants will flourish so you have to get everything right, particularly the amount of light, shade, temperature, humidity, etc. It requires a lot of research," said Jim Eyre, a founding director of WilkinsonEyre.
© Craig Sheppard
In 2006, WilkinsonEyre was part of a British-led team that won the design competition for the masterplan for Singapore's Gardens by the Bay. Tasked with designing a horticultural attraction and showcase for sustainable technology, they created the Cooled Conservatory Complex. The two main conservatory structures are among the largest climate-controlled glasshouses in the world, covering an area in excess of 20,000 square meters (215,000 square feet).
Iwan Baan
Opened to the public in late 2014, the new Bombay Sapphire Distillery by Heatherwick Studio straddles the River Test in the village of Laverstoke, England. Two intertwining botanical glasshouses are a highlight of the central courtyard -- one tropical and the other Mediterranean -- housing and cultivating the 10 plant species that give Bombay Sapphire gin its particularity.
Iwan Baan
Heatherwick Studio worked with a team from the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew to create the unique ecological environments required within the two structures. The glasshouses are made from more than 10,000 bespoke components.
© Helene Binet
The project that arguably led to WilkinsonEyre winning their part in Gardens by the Bay was the Davies Alpine House at Kew Gardens. When it opened in 2006, it was the first new glasshouse to be constructed there for more than 20 years.
Royal Botanic Garden, Kew
Kew Gardens houses one of the most important iron and glass structures in the world. Designed by Decimus Burton and engineered by Richard Turner, it was built between 1844 and 1848 to accommodate the exotic palms being collected and introduced to Europe in early Victorian times. The engineering techniques to build with wrought iron were pioneering -- borrowing from the shipbuilding industry -- and from a distance the glasshouse is said to resemble an upturned hull. It was the first time that the large-scale use of this material was demonstrated.
Kurt Bauschardt
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, this impressive structure in Austria consists of 5,000 sheets of glass and is the largest glass house in continental Europe. It is also the last of its type to be constructed on the continent. Its three pavilions contain different climate zones and are linked by tunnel-like passages.
Mark Boyce
This huge structure, which opened in 2007, covers an area equal in size to 10 tennis courts and rises to 12 meters (40 feet) in height. It has three climatic zones, recreating tropical, moist temperate and dry temperate habitats.
Belfast Botanic Garden
Designed by architect Charles Lanyon and built by ironworker Richard Turner (who would go on to build the Palm House at London's Kew Gardens), it is one of the earliest examples of curvilinear cast iron glasshouses in the world.
Alan & Flora Botting
These modern glasshouses, iconic to the Canadian city, were designed by award-winning architect Peter Hemingway and opened in September 1976. Each of the four pyramids contains a different climate, collectively preserving and growing one of Canada's largest botanical collections.
Robin Smith/The Image Bank/Getty Images
Another modern structure, this Australian glasshouse was built in 1988 by Guy Maron. The largest single-span conservatory in the Southern Hemisphere, it was built as part of the celebrations for the Australian Bicentenary.
Lee Mawdsley
The second biggest conservatory in London, the Barbican Conservatory has experienced renewed popularity in recent years. Open to the public, it is often used as a wedding venue and for various fashion shoots for the likes of Paul Smith, Rita Ora, Jean Paul Gautier and Agent Provocateur.
fotoVoyager/E+/Getty Images
Of the 27 glasshouses in Copenhagen's Botanical Garden, the Palm House is the most famous. It was built by Carlsberg Breweries founder J. C. Jacobsen in 1874.
CNN  — 

“The yearning for nature is really strong, and particularly if you’re a city dweller, it’s even more important.”

Jim Eyre, one of the founding directors of WilkinsonEyre, speaks as an architect who can attest to the power of nature within an urban environment.

He is part of the team responsible for creating the Cooled Conservatories at the award-winning Gardens by The Bay urban planning project in Singapore, one of the more recent examples of the enduring appeal of botanical glasshouse structures in modern architecture. Eyre says after the success of Gardens by the Bay, the firm has received requests for similar projects, which may be emblematic of a wider trend.

Safdie Architects plans for Jewel Changi Airport, scheduled for completion in 2018, promise a 40-meter (131-foot) waterfall and indoor landscape of trees and shrubs, and walking trails for visitors, are underway.

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And in downtown Seattle, Washington, Amazon is constructing three glass spheres as the centerpiece for its new headquarters. Also set to open in 2018, they plan to use nature to inspire their workers, with treehouse meeting areas and around 3,000 species of plants contained in these structures.

“There’s a lot of interest in creating that kind of environment, I think particularly because people recognize the draw that it has. Gardens By The Bay has got extraordinary visitor numbers [25 million since opening in 2012] – so it has a lot of potential,” Eyre says.

Opening date set: Singapore airport officials have announced that the new "Jewel Changi Airport" complex will open to travelers on April 17. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the project is the Rain Vortex, pictured. At over 130 feet high, it's the world's tallest indoor waterfall.
A central hub: Conceived by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie as a new "magical garden," Jewel Changi Airport is first and foremost a central hub, connecting three of Changi Airport's current four terminals. Click on for a selection of previously released Jewel design renderings.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Exterior view: Jewel will have a total of 10 stories -- five above ground and five below -- filled with various attractions, gardens, 280 retail and F&B outlets and a 130-cabin YOTELAIR Singapore Changi Airport hotel.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Steel-and-glass doughnut: The steel-and-glass donut complex it set to become a destination in itself.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Forest Valley: Jewel's two centerpieces are Forest Valley, through which passengers will be able to hike, and Rain Vortex, a gigantic cascade of water from the roof.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Rain Vortex: The Rain Vortex will be transformed by a light and sound show at night.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Canopy Park: The 14,000-square-meter Canopy Park will include gardens, walking trails, playgrounds and restaurants.
Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Canopy Bridge: Suspended 23 meters above ground, the 50-meter, glass-bottomed Canopy Bridge will be the best viewing point for the Rain Vortex show and the Forest Valley. It's due to open in mid-2019.
Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Sky Nets: There will be two different kinds of suspended walking nets -- a 250-meter bouncing net and a 50-meter walking net. These too won't open till later in 2019.
Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Discovery Slides: Also coming later this year, the planned large-scale art piece features four integrated slides and a 6.5-meter-high viewing platform, from which travelers can see the Forest Valley.
Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Mazes: There will be two mazes, both designed by famous maze designer Adrian Fisher -- including the largest hedge maze in Singapore.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
A shopaholic's dream: More than 200 retailers from local and international brands will set up shop in the Jewel.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Al fresco indoor dining: Changi's new leisure complex will have a wide selection of food and drink outlets, some with patios offering views of the waterfall.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
Gateway gardens: Four different gateway gardens will feature unique landscape elements. The north, east and west gateway gardens will lead to terminals 1, 2 and 3, respectively.
Courtesy Jewel Changi Airport Devt.
'Multi-modal transport lounge': Jewel's "multi-modal transport lounge" will offer ticketing and boarding pass and baggage transfer services, as well as early check-in facilities.

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But explaining exactly people enjoy seeing plants behind glass proves challenging.

“It’s hard to put your finger on it but I think first of all nature; people love to see plants and gardens. But then you combine that with climate,” he says. “It’s just a lovely space to be in – you’ve got the light and the plants together and a lovely piece of architecture.”

As space dwindles and urban environments sprawl, it seems only natural that we find new ways to bring the outside in.