Biomimicry: Applying Nature's Wisdom to Human Problems
The Great Simplification #135 with Janine Benyus
Although artificial intelligence tends to dominate conversations about solving our most daunting global challenges, we may actually find some of the most potent ideas hiding in plain sight in the natural world around us.
In this episode, I’m joined by Janine Benyus, who has spent decades advocating for biomimicry – a design principle that seeks to emulate nature's models, systems, and elements to solve complex human problems in ways that are sustainable and holistic.
What would our social and technological innovations look like if we started from the foundational requirement that they create conditions conducive to life? In what ways has biomimicry been inspiring projects for the last few decades, revolutionizing everything from energy production to food storage? How can we take biomimicry to a deeper level, changing the way we design and build to be attuned with local habitats and ‘return the favor’ to nature – helping foster cleaner and more resilient ecosystems?
In case you missed it…
In last week’s Frankly, I broke down seven factors contributing to humanity’s increasing overshoot – which is defined as the point at which species’ use of ecological resources and services exceeds what Earth can regenerate in a given time period – as well as some things that might engender a retreat from current overshoot levels.
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Absolutely loved the biomimicry podcast and in keeping with her exhortation to look to nature’s successes I’d highly recommend Zoe Schlanger’s new book The Light Eaters…how the unseen world of plant intelligence offers a new understanding of life on earth. A discussion with her would be a great follow up podcast to today’s excellent podcast. BTW she’s already been on several podcasts recently if you want to check her out.
Wonderful work and bravo for this truly inspiring and educational episode. I would like to share an idea which concerns both « Goldilocks technology » and also circular local networks relative to waste. Do you know about Humusation ? Rather than cremation or embalming and burial in cemeteries, one’s corpse is composted and thanks to the work of accelerating bacteria becomes useful humus which can be used as fertilizer. I understand that this is legal now in numerous states in the US. I live in France where the practice has not yet been legalized. I case anyone is interested, I’m including a link to a French nonprofit working on making this practice a reality here in France. It’s slowly gaining some momentum. http://humusationfrance.org/