RichMacCowanRethinkingnature

Re-thinking Nature Richard James MacCowan Biomimicry UK richard@biomimicry-uk.org @Biomimicry_UK

overview Part 1: 21st century challenges Part 2: Learning from Nature Part 3: Research Part 4: Development

Image source: anthropocene by Tau Zero CC 2.0 flickr.com

Cover source: New plant, small in dark soil copyright www.assadsaif.com

“How many people think twice about a leaf? Yet the leaf is the chief product and phenomenon of Life: this is a green world, with animals comparatively few and small, and all dependent upon the leaves. By leaves we live.”

– Patrick Geddes

Image source: Fall colors by Jose Maria Cuellar CC 2.0 flickr.com

Part 1

question Is there a need to change?

Image source: Blue Marble (Planet Earth) by woodleywonderworks CC 2.0 flickr.com

54% 7 Billion

Image source: Pollution by ribarnica CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: garzweiler.bagger by Tobias Mandt CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Hoover Dam and Power House by kla4067 CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Flooding at North Bridge by CorpsNewEngland CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Earth Day by pbruch CC 2.0 flickr.com

“Resilience is the long-term capacity of a system to deal with change and continue to develop.”

– Stockholm Resilience Centre (2013)

Image source: 'Needle in the Hay', United States, New York, New York City, Uptown Looking Downtown, East Side by Chris Ford CC 2.0 flickr.com

“Resilience thinking…..belief that humans and nature are strongly coupled to the point that they should be conceived as one socialecological system.”

– Stockholm Resilience Centre (2013)

Part 2

So what is biomimicry?

BIOMIMICRY is the mimicking of nature.

It is NOT the solution, but a way to FIND solutions.

Image source: Damien Newman, Central Office of Design - CC 3.0

Image source: Evolution by possan CC 2.0 flickr.com

Design

Evaluate

Implement

FORM Image source: bamboo cane by Darwin Bell CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Interior of tropical biome, Eden Project Wikimedia Commons 3.0

PROCESS Image source: Hungarian wetland Wikimedia Commons 3.0

Image source: copyright www.livingmachines.com

MATERIAL Image source: Bird by possan CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Bio concrete Wikicommons 3.0

FUNCTION Image source: Termite Mound by Potjie by CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: Eastgate Centre, Harare, Zimbabwe by unknown Wikimedia Commons 3.0

SYSTEM Image source: Riparian habitat by U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Northeast Region CC 2.0 flickr.com

Image source: New York City by Tony Shi Photos CC 2.0 flickr.com

Part 3

Image source: www.biomimicryalliance.eu/.

Improved Risk Management + Resilience Restoration of Degraded Ecosystems Climate Change Adaptation + Mitigation Sustainable Urbanisation Image source: Google Maps copyright 2015

Part 4

Lloyds Crossing, Portland

Image source: copyright http://mithun.com/

90% 54 acres Image source: Mixed conifer forest Ochoco Mountains OR by Wayne Weber CC 2.0 flickr.com

30%

35-block area

wildlife corridor ecological sensitivity reduce CO2 emission stormwater treatment

Lavasa Hill Station, India Image source: Lavasa Masterplan copyright www.hok.com

Image source: Indian Harvester Ant Nest Wikimedia Commons 3.0

Image source: Copyright www.lavasafuturecities.com/

70% 65%

50,000

30%

95%

12,500acres 5 villages Image source: Copyright www.lavasafuturecities.com/

future‌.

Image source: copyright openstreetmap.org

improve ecological status

resilience

biodiversity

habitat connectivity Image source: copyright Google Maps 2015

Image source: Alloa Borealis by delphwynd CC 2.0 www.flickr.com

Image source: Alloa Harbour - rephotograph by delphwynd CC 2.0 www.flickr.com

City Resilience Framework November 2014

City Resilience Index

City Resilience Framework April 2014 Š Ove Arup & Partners International Limited 2014

Image source: XXXXXXXXXX

Bristol, England

Chronic Energy Shortages, Flooding (Coastal and Rainfall) Food Shortage Infrastructure Failure Poor Health Infrastructure

Image Source: 100resilientcities.org

Earthquake Flooding Poor Transportation System Tsunami

Porto Alegre, Brazil Image Source: 100resilientcities.org

architecture materials

government

ecology

CHANGE NEEDED

engineering

finance

economics landscape

“If I were given one hour to save the planet, I would spend 59 minutes defining the problem and 1 minute solving it�

- Albert Einstein

Image source: Einstein Wikimedia Commons 3.0

Richard James MacCowan richard@biomimicry-uk.org @Biomimicry_UK

www.biomimicry.uk.org