Hey biomimics What a mind-blowing two days at the #BiomimicryConfluence! Learn Biomimicry and I are feeling deeply moved by the magic the Biomimicry Confluence collectively generated.  As we flow out into the ocean from the first Biomimicry Confluence, this article aims to share the wave of nostalgia and reminisce on the highlights and lessons learnt from the Biomimicry Confluence Day One and Day Two! Confluence Day One - Highlights ? On the first day of the Confluence, the theme revolved around (re)connecting the Global Biomimicry Network. Some of the highli ..read more

Today, I want to share with you an inspiring story of biomimicry in action - one that is close to my heart — a tale of how a small yet passionate startup is using biomimicry to tackle the global challenge of food waste.  This is the journey of GreenPod Labs, and its founder, Deepak, who has harnessed the language of plants to extend the life of fruits and vegetables, and can potentially revolutionize the way we preserve food. Deepak's story begins with a profound respect for nature and a clear-eyed view of the problem at hand. "Globally, about one-third of the food produced is lost before ..read more

If you’ve been hanging around the biomimicry space for a hot sec — you might have heard of the variety of ways in which biomimicry can be applied.  You might have heard things like what can we learn from studying a plant, a fungus, an alga, or the human eye? It's true, we can be inspired to innovate in a million and one different ways, but also - we can learn from others practising life-centred design too. So we set off to find the top ten biomimicry product examples to discover the secrets of biology's brilliance.   Let's dive in 1 ..read more

From entrepreneur to eco-innovator, these are the five leading biomimicry incubators / accelerators from around the world. They are all unique, but share one thing in common - they’re all focused on the overlap - where business innovation meets nature's brilliance. Whether you're an entrepreneur, a biology nerd (like me), scientist, or an eco-conscious inventor, these programs promise more than just guidance—they offer an immersive journey to transform the trajectory of your biomimicry business venture. Here’s who made the top 5: The Ray of Hope Prize Built by Nature Prize The Launchpad ..read more

Dear designer,  Some lucky individuals just have it.  They can dance to the music of nature. Without a fuss, and to the beat.  That's Michael Pawlyn, a pioneer of biomimicry, nature-inspired design extraordinaire… and someone who was born to design to the music of nature. He’s also building the future.  By now, we’ve all seen the futuristic projections and solar-punkish imagery of green cities, forested skyscrapers, and flying cars. But is that what the future truly holds? Is that what we’re building?  In his book, Biomimicry in Architecture, Michael Pawlyn invites us ..read more

Structural color is a natural wonder. Sadly, this nature-inspired innovation has yet to fully see the light of day. We’re striving to change that through sharing the best of what nature has already figured out.  This article explains what structural color is, how it was discovered, and what nature-inspired innovation offers us. Lastly, we’ll share biomimicry examples of structural color in action. Lights. Color. Action.  What is Structural Color? Structural color is color that is created by nanoscale structural surfaces fine enough to reflect specific wavelengths of light ..read more

With our world now in crisis, planetary debates suggest we choose between capitalism and the planet.  What about the third choice?  ‘Either or’ debates distract us from what is so desperately needed… action. The stoic philosopher in me is drawn to the single most important practice: differentiating between what we can change and what we can't. What we have influence over and what we do not. An opportunity has presented itself for our generation and next, how do we practice changing what we can by building better businesses? The beauty of biomimicry is that it imagines another way for ..read more

It’s no secret. Honeycombs are the poster child of biomimicry design. An effective design like no other, made with love by nature’s sweet (and buzzy) six-legged engineers. Slap the honeycomb structure on any design—and voila, you just made it stronger, possibly sustainable, and even improved the look of your design too. Within this article, we cover two things: Why the hexagon is a genius construction shape, PLUS a new discovery that makes it even more awesome, and applicable. 1. What makes hexagons awesome: They are a genius shape for construction, because of two fundamental princi ..read more

If Imitation is the sincerest flattery, humans have been applauding the natural world for a good while now, perhaps since its inception. Emulating nature for designs that work is not new, and biomimicry (or biomimetics) is a (re)emerging discipline of ancient practice found within the majority of indigenous cultures. Then we forgot. We seemed to have lost this innate practice after the agricultural, industrial and scientific revolutions. What happened, and how did it come that biomimicry would re-emerge once again? Biomimicry Across Ages: From Inventor Sparks to a Bonfire Movement History reve ..read more

Whether you start with biological inspiration that leads to a design, or whether you start with a challenge and then look to nature for design solutions, there are 4 key phases/steps in the practice of biomimicry. Biomimicry is fundamentally a translation between nature and design, and in today’s article, we’ll focus on the two design frameworks for applying biomimicry. Biomimicry Design Frameworks Also known as Biomimicry Thinking and the Biomimicry Design Methodology The 4 key stages in the Biomimicry Thinking / Design framework are: DISCOVER: Discover the strategies and mechanisms. EXPLOR ..read more