SXSW Eco 2015: Evolution as R&D

For centuries, it's seemed like technology and growth have been wholly antithetical to the natural world. Yet the emerging field of biomimicry is taking clean green tech to a new level, by designing new technologies that emulate what nature already does.

It all comes down to a simple idea: birds had wings before aeroplanes. Erin Connelly, communications manager for the Biomimicry Institute, described biomimicry as "an innovation approach, where you're looking at the natural world for certain strategies and processes, and applying them to human problems." The thinking behind it is simple: "Living organisms have already figured out how to do things that we're struggling with, but they do it sustainably and within planetary limits and without creating toxic chemicals."

With the entity's 10th anniversary imminent, the institute and its partner, commercialization and consulting group Biomimicry 3.8, will be sponsoring a whole track at SXSW Eco, with multiple panels and speakers to attract even more innovators and intellects. One of the major components will be the design challenge, with eight finalists selected to come to Austin to pitch their ideas. The winner will walk away with a $100,000 grand prize, "and along the way they'll have access to biomimicry experts, agriculture experts, business and venture capital, all in an effort to not just teach people about biomimicry, but encourage them through that long process to commercialization."

The idea of biomimicry really began in 1997, with the publication of Janine Benyus' book Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. Nine years later, Benyus and Bryony Schwan founded the institute to gather researchers and designers from diverse fields: Now, it's spawned a network of 31 regional organizations, bringing together technologists, biologists, and environmentalists to create a truly interdisciplinary approach to this new form of problem-solving.

In fact, problem solving is a lot of what the group does, asking participants to come up with innovative biomimicry-based solutions to a sustainability challenge. Connelly said, "This not only provides a platform for learning by doing, but there are all these great solutions that come out of it, which we are then working to bring to market." For example, the institute, 3D printer company Autodesk, and the green chemistry course at UC Berkeley are collaborating to research create less toxic 3D printing resin, based on naturally occurring materials.

Connelly argues that companies already understand that biomimicry makes "intuitive sense," but then struggle to integrate it into their business practices. That's why they have projects like AskNature (www.AskNature.org), a searchable archive of problems to which nature has already come up with a solution. Connelly said, "You can ask, how would nature attach?, and you get information on the science behind gecko feet, or how mussels attach in the ocean."

It's not just about raiding nature for design prototypes, but creating a more environmentally aware business culture. Connelly said, "It's not enough just to copy these clever design strategies. It's important to have a respect for the natural world. If you emulate something, but build it out of chemicals that are incredibly toxic, that's not quite biomimicry."

Connelly sees biomimicry gaining traction, with "more and more companies implementing it into R&D processes." City planners and architects are amongst the thought leaders, through issues like rainwater collection, and that's now spinning out into the materials used. She said, "People see the incredible potential to redesign our world, not just in a sustainable way, but in a regenerative way. We're not just looking at what we're creating, but at how what we build can give back to the eco-system."

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SXSW Eco runs Oct. 5-7 at the Austin Convention Center, 500 E. Cesar Chavez. More info at www.sxsweco.com.