Introducing Biomimicry

Introducing biomimicry to students is a joy, because you get to see students learn about this amazing idea for the first time. Here are some general tips and resources for making a great introduction.

• You can also refer to the first section of the  YDC Instructional Storyline for a sequence of lessons introducing biomimicry and the Youth Design Challenge. (Registration and log-in required to access this resource.)

Where to Begin

A good introduction to the idea of biomimicry starts with defining the word in a few simple sentences, such as:

“Biomimicry comes from joining two Greek words, bios, which means "life," and mimesis, which means "to imitate." Biomimicry is an approach to design and technology in which inventors look to nature, at the living world around us, to develop innovative ideas.”

In order to further explain this idea, provide your students with examples of biomimicry: create a presentation, show them videos, and/or direct them to websites that show examples of biomimicry in action.

Tips for selecting biomimicry examples:

• Pick examples to which students can relate. What’s familiar to them? What do they care about?
  
  
• Include diverse examples that demonstrate how biomimicry is used in a wide range of applications. Biomimicry has been applied in challenges from automotive engineering to agriculture, health, architecture, fashion design, cosmetics, sports, and much more.
  
  
• Include examples that demonstrate the breadth of biological models that are used in biomimicry. These include organisms (e.g. animals, plants, fungi, and microbes), sub-organismal models (e.g. organs, tissues, and cells), and supra-organismal models (e.g. biological communities and entire ecosystems).
  
  
• Include examples that demonstrate different conceptual “levels” or “scales” at which biomimicry can be applied.  When we look broadly at the various examples of biomimicry, they tend to fall into one or more of three scales of application: forms (shapes and structures), processes (behaviors or how something is done), and systems (relationships and connections).  For more on the concept of "scales" of biomimicry, see page 14 of the resource Sharing Biomimicry with Young People, described below.)

Examples of Biomimicry

• Biomimicry Institute website: Biomimicry Examples 
• AskNature: Innovations - The Innovations ("Inspired Ideas") section of the AskNature site catalogs the stories behind realized and conceptual products, services, and systems that have been inspired by living things.

Resources for Teachers

• Biomimicry Institute: Sharing Biomimicry with Young People - This document provides an orientation to biomimicry for K-12 educators, describing the what and why of biomimicry with teaching suggestions for several core concepts. It is available to download from AskNature.
• AskNature: Resources - A diverse library of resources for teaching and learning about biomimicry. The collection can be filtered by resource type and audience. 

Resources to Share with Students

Videos

• Vox and 99% Invisible: "The world is poorly designed. But copying nature helps." (2017) - This six minute video introduces biomimicry, the application of biomimicry at different scales, and connections to the circular economy.
• Fast Company & Earth Sky: What is Biomimicry? (2011) - In this short and sweet two minute video, author and biomimicry pioneer Janine Benyus provides a succinct description of biomimicry.
• TED Talks: Michael Pawlyn - Using nature's genius in architecture (2010) - Michael Pawlyn describes three habits of nature that could transform architecture and society: radical resource efficiency, closed loops, and drawing energy from the sun.
• TED Talks: Janine Benyus - Biomimicry's surprising lessons from nature's engineers (2005) - The founder of the Biomimicry Institute discusses developments in nature inspired innovation.

Other Resources

• AskNature - AskNature is the Biomimicry Institute's online library of information about biomimicry, including biological strategies, inspired ideas, and resources for learning about the discipline.
• A Biomimicry Primer, by Janine Benyus - An essay describing biomimicry and the discipline's place in sustainable design. It is available to download from AskNature.