The term biomimicry has shown up in a number of posts and served as a central theme in Paul Hawken’s The Ecology of Commerce. However, it remains somewhat nebulous as a concept. The December/January issue of National Wildlife contains an article titled “Mimicking Mother Nature.” Covering a range of inventions that mimic nature, the article espouses the concept of biomimicry – which the spell check on the word processor does not recognize. Literally meaning to imitate nature, biomimicry is widely taken to mean looking to adaptations of organisms when designing products.
One of the most famous examples of designing products based on observations of the natural world is Velcro. Patented in 1952, the now ubiquitous material was developed after George de Mestral noticed how burrs became entangled in his dog’s fur. The microscopic hooks served as inspiration for the new invention.
The Biomimicry Institute provides a wealth of resources and information on the topic of biomimicry. On their site, they have a page dedicated to case studies of designs and applications of biomimicry in everyday life. Their project, AskNature, also contains research and links dedicated to the topic. The consulting arm of The Biomimicry Institute, Biomimicry Guild, “has been helping companies and communities find, vet, understand and emulate life’s time-tested strategies” since 1998. “By emulating 3.8 billion years of well-adapted technology, we help innovators design sustainable products and processes that create conditions conducive to all life.”
For the regenerative economy to prevail, looking at the way nature has evolved to deal with infection, heating and cooling, hydrodynamics (as in the case of a whale’s flipper) may provide the next great innovative push.
[image source: Biomimicry Institute]
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