Biomimicry
Associated with Janine Benyus, biomimicry treats nature's evolved strategies as a source of design solutions, functioning both as an observational tool for understanding sustainability and as a material-choice principle for ecological integrity.
The principle of Nature as Mentor, a concept masterfully articulated by Janine Benyus through the discipline of biomimicry, which compels designers to engage with the natural world as a vast and ancient repository of wisdom, innovation, and resilience, meticulously studying nature's time-tested strategies, perfected through billions of years of evolutionary refinement, to unlock solutions ranging from sustainable energy production to resilient infrastructure design. Elsewhere described as a powerful approach that involves deliberately emulating the time-tested and remarkably effective strategies observed in the natural world, serving as an exceptionally valuable observational tool for gaining deeper insights into sustainable solutions, and, at the level of the design Outcome, as one of the material choices (alongside circular economy principles) that must prioritize ecological integrity from sourcing to end-of-life.
Related in Community
Entries this one is tied to through the book.
Examples
- Room for the River · both placed under Nature as Mentor, Stakeholder and Co-creator
- Al-Azhar Park · discussed together in section 142
- Chinampa system · discussed together in section 043
- Cradle to Cradle (book by William McDonough and Michael Braungart) · discussed together in section 010
- IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) · discussed together in section 010
- Mana Whenua Design Forum · discussed together in section 142
- Three Sisters Agriculture · discussed together in section 043
Methods
- Indigenous Design Practices · both placed under Nature
- Regenerative Design · both placed under Nature
- Anti-Racist Design · discussed together in section 155
In the Framework
- Partners Component
- Environment (Ecological Niche)
- Nature · element
- Observations Component
- Sustainability
- Outcomes Component
In the book
- Chapter 12, section 119 · Alignment with the Four Mottos
- Chapter 14, section 142 · Environment Dimension
- Chapter 16, section 155 · Alignment with the Four Mottos
Mentioned in
Methods