BioInspired! So What? Now What!

In the Nature Inspired Design project, we learned from ten Dutch companies at the forefront of Biomimicry, cradle to cradle and design for the circular economy – which we shall from now on jointly call “Nature Inspired Design”. How to translate inspiring design principles into tangible results – and not just into a conceptual product with no actual follow-through? Which disciplines do you need and how can they work together? In short: how can you widen the scope without losing the plot?

We researched what works for our pioneering companies, and boiled down their best practices into one comprehensive method with carefully selected tools for designers, available to you in the form of this book.

This white paper provides an overview of "bioinspired innovation" (which includes both bioutilization and biomimicry) and explores how it can deliver disruptive innovation that "can increase revenues, reduce costs, and meet global needs" and "also increase their environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) rating".  It includes an infographic organizing an extensive list of innovations by cross-sector topics (carbon, water, materials, energy conversion & storage, optics & photonics, thermo-regulation, fluid dynamics, data & computing, systems), market readiness and affected industries.  The online version is interactive and displays details of each innovation. 

After a report on the potential economic impact of bioinspired innovation prepared by the Fermanian Business & Economic Institute, the white paper explores selected innovations in each of the cross-sector topics mentioned above (online version links back to the infographic) and an extensive list of references.  The PDF includes a table that summarizes the information displayed within the interactive online infographic. 

In addition to exploring the wide range existing breakthrough biologically-inspired products, it also describes the vast, largely untapped market potential of a bioinspired approach to innovation.

In addition to two overview sections on the concept and Biomimicry 3.8, the article provides images and short descriptions of Velcro, Shinkansen Bullet Train, Boats, Hospitals Don Sharkskin, Harvesting Desert Fog, Nature's Water Filter, Experimental Fish Car, Hive Mind Manages the Grid, Fin to the Wind, Watercube, Gecko Feet Adhesives, Spider Web Glass, A Very Fishy Wind Farm, 'Candy-Coated Vaccines' and Firefly Lightbulbs.

Unfortunately, the article does not provide references to allow verification of claims or for further information.

The Biomimicry Center is a joint effort between Arizona State University and Biomimicry 3.8 (B3.8) that facilitates education and research endeavors to create sustainable solutions by emulating biological forms and strategies. The Center fuses the intellectual disciplines and work of biologists, designers, engineers, business professionals, communicators, material scientists, chemists and others to address system-level opportunities and challenges.

In addition to coordinating broad sustainability initiatives related to biomimicry, the Biomimicry Center also will offer the first-ever Master’s of Science in Biomimicry and the first-ever Graduate Certificate in Biomimicry. These online programs are accredited versions of professional training programs developed by Biomimicry 3.8 since 2008.  Both the master’s and certificate programs have begun accepting applicants through ASU Online, and development of an on-campus master’s program is underway.

Biomimicry UK is as a collaborative platform to provide nature-based solutions to understand and solve the challenges we are facing in the 21st century.

What is unique to our approach?

Our goal is to enable the cross-fertilisation from industry to academia, to participate effectively in finding nature-based solutions to provide social, environmental and economic benefits whilst protecting the ecological backdrop of our planet.

We are drawing the iterative design processes found in nature (evolution) over billions of years to find innovative solutions. The focus is not just on the end result but by promoting the creative process, from initial challenge, through to the final concept.

Biomival Project: complex solutions through innovative, low-cost methods.

The video clip referenced above (in Spanish with English subtitles available by clicking on the CC button below the progress bar) describes the approach and business model of the Biomival organization located in Valencia.  The clip also mentions the bidirectional turbine (Spanish) inspired by the beak of the flamingo (see AskNature for a brief description in English).

2013/08/03 attachment uploaded again - 'magically' disappeared early on August 2nd

As part of his 2009 doctoral thesis at the Graduate School of Design Research, Kobe Design University, Carlos Alberto Montana Hoyos explored ways to "... develop, test, evaluate and refine an integrative and cross-disciplinary teaching method for DfS [Design for Sustainability] applicable to undergraduate ID Education. This method is based on the integrated study of nature, human society and design.  It focuses on the use of biomimicry, combined with ecodesign tools and theories of human needs analysis."  Attached is a summary of his thesis.

Public attachment: 

BIO-ID4S-summary paper.pdf

Our Mission

learning from nature, cross-pollinating innovative ideas, inspiring locally attuned design, and accelerating the path to a more sustainable Chicago

About Us

• Lindsay James, Director of Sustainability, Interface
• Amy Coffman Phillips, Founder, The B-Collaborative
• Colin Rohlfing, Sustainable Design Leader, Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum Inc.
• Peter Nicholson, Executive Director, Foresight Design Initiative

Ille Gebeshuber got interested in how we can address global challenges through the Alpbach Conference.  As shown by the work of the Millennium project, the top fifteen challenges are highly interconnected.  We need to combine our specialized/linear ways of thinking with the generalist/holistic Aristotelian approach that integrates knowledge across fields and cultures.  Ille has being running courses in the Indonesia rain forest helping students representing a broad range of disciplines to gain a deeper understanding of how things are connected in nature.  Her talk includes several examples of structural color, the slime mold life cycle, beetle-inspired robots and bio-mineralization of glass in water.

See also their Facebook page which contains additional and more dynamic content.

Vision

Inspiring innovation in Oregon by emulating nature’s genius.

Mission

Biomimicry Oregon seeds life-friendly innovation by inspiring people to put nature’s genius to work in organizations by:

• connecting people from all sectors with biomimicry resources and each other,
• increasing awareness of the value and practice of biomimicry, and;
• catalyzing projects and celebrating successes.