Before I wrote the following, I sensed from A Pattern Language that the alcove-or-niche idea was important. I did not know how it related to the bigger question of redefining the mission of environmental design and architecture. But it captured my imagination. Fortunately, I found the answer as I continued to pursue an escape from European cultural hegemony.

SEN introduces the concept of 'socio-ecological imagination,' offering a new way to envision environmental design and architecture by combining the two ideas.

By treating all as both social and biological participants, this form of imagination, drawing from the social sciences and the humanities, demands that we better understand the complex and sometimes unexpected roles that non-human species play in today's human environments.