Biomimicry
Biomimicry is a multidisciplinary scientific design discipline where patterns and strategies found in nature are emulated/mimicked to find sustainable and better solutions to human challenges. Though an ancient practice, today it is an ‘emerging discipline’ as biomimicry has not been taught formally as a subject. Biomimicry is relevant and applicable across sectors and at various scales, whether it be learning from additive zero waste manufacturing in nature, self-organisation and swarm intelligence of honey bees, non-toxic adhesives that emulate the micro-structure of hair on a Gecko’s foot, to a high-rise building that emulates a termite mound's ventilation system for thermal regulation and to urban scale systems/smart cities that mimic forest eco-systems.
There is growing awareness and demand for products, processes and policies which are environmentally sustainable among the people, and governments are continuously bringing policies to encourage the same. Industry and businesses need to understand and address the new innovation challenges not only for current sustenance, but also to be future ready. The current mechanical thinking and innovation paradigm/process will not be sufficient for developing the kind of environmentally sustainable innovations that industry and businesses require to be future ready. Biomimicry approach has already helped many industries and businesses to create innovations which are not only sustainable, but also profitable while at the same time mitigating risk and reducing costs.