The Spaces That Make Us: Why Design Is Broken and How We Can Create a Happier, Healthier World

Create a better life by creating better design.

Have you ever wondered how. . .

. . . the arrangement of your living room could improve your relationship with your partner? . . . the layout of your child’s classroom might impact their test scores? . . . the design of your hospital room is taking a toll on your physical health?

We are in a symbiotic relationship with the design around us, and the hard truth is, we are living in a suboptimal world. But the good news is we can redesign it. For the past twenty years, architect and designer Danish Kurani has been transforming design to improve people’s health and happiness for places like Google, New York City, and for communities across four different continents.

The Spaces That Make Us offers you:

• An easy-to-follow philosophy that you can apply to any space, whether it be your home, a school, a hospital, or a city block. • Evidence-based research to identify how design impacts your emotional, physical, and social wellbeing. • An engaging historical assessment of what’s not currently working in our architecture and design. • A compelling vision for the future and clear motivations to change the fundamentals of design as we currently understand it • Practical strategies to implement health-based changes at any budget level.

In The Spaces That Make Us, Kurani unveils his lifechanging design philosophy, Baaham (pronounced BAH-hum). The word comes from his native language of Urdu, and it describes two interconnected things working in harmony. Baaham takes into account psychology, sociology, anthropology, and evolutionary biology. For any design decision you might make, whether for yourself or for others, at the level of a bedroom or a city block, Baaham is a roadmap to improving your health, forging deeper relationships, and finding greater fulfillment. It’s more than a philosophy; it’s a way of life.

With seven core principles, Baaham can help anyone from a budget-conscious college student to a real-estate tycoon create environments that are functional, beautiful, and life-changing. This book doesn’t tell you what to design. It teaches you how to design, so that you can build the life you want. Engaging illustrations are included throughout every chapter, to illuminate the principles within and guide you through Danish’s thoughtful teachings.

The Spaces That Make Us will transform your understanding of the world, opening your eyes to what’s not working. Discover how to remake the spaces around you for a happier, healthier life.

© 2026 Harper Celebrate (Audiobook): 9781400249152

Release date

Audiobook: 10 February 2026