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Upcoming Events
 
Greenbuild 2011, Toronto, Canada, Tim McGee and Taryn Mead
October 4-7, 2011

Designed from Nature NightLife, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco
October 13, 2011

How Biomimicry Can Revolutionize Education, Bioneers, San Francisco,
Dayna Baumeister, Megan Schuknecht, Sam Stier
October 17, 2011

Eindhoven biomimicry exhibit
, Milieu Educatie Centrum, Genneperweg 145 Eindhoven
July 18-October 31, 2011


Backyard Biomimicry Workshop with biomimicryNL, Leiden, The Netherlands
November 9-11, 2011

2012 Biomimicry Specialty Certificate Program
, Applications due
November 11, 2011

2012 Biomimicry Professional Certificate Program, Application Period Opens
November 14, 2011

 
 
 


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The Biomimicry Institute Newsletter - September 2011

Our Next Evolutionary Leap - Biomimicry 3.8
 
Watch a video of Janine Benyus describing the new structure.
We are excited to announce that we are now a vital organization within a new social enterprise, Biomimicry 3.8. The name refers to the number of years that life has been adapting and evolving to changing conditions on Earth, and it brings together The Biomimicry Institute, the Biomimicry Guild, and Professional Pathways under one new framework.

We will continue to produce biomimicry curricula and resources, hold educator workshops and student design challenges, and provide opportunities for educators to network with one another. Over the coming months, you may notice some aesthetic changes as we develop new materials and make enhancements to our websites, including AskNature. Learn more about how and why we are making these changes in the video by our president, Janine Benyus, above.

TBI Founder Receives Prestigious Award
 
Congratulations to Janine Benyus for receiving a $100,000 Heinz Award! This prestigious award recognizes Janine for her work as a biomimicry innovator who has inspired students, educators, and professionals across the globe to look to nature for solutions to their design problems. Now in its 17th year, the Heinz Awards honors visionaries who have made extraordinary contributions to the environment, a life-long area of commitment for the late U.S. Senator John Heinz. Janine and nine others were recognized for their significant efforts benefiting the environment.

Student Design Challenge Registration Open


We're looking for undergraduate and graduate student teams from around the world to participate in our Biomimicry Student Design Challenge. Registration has been extended to October 14. Learn more and register online today!

Biomimicry on Display in Europe
 
AskNature, our online database of nature's design strategies, is featured in three displays in Europe this year. As one of the winners of the 2010 Earth Awards, AskNature, was asked to create a display for HRH The Prince of Wale's annual Start Festival, an initiative to promote and celebrate sustainable living. Our display featured four biomimetic products that will contribute to an environmentally sustainable future: SMIT's Solar Ivy, Shark Paint, Calera Cement, and Interface Carpet Tiles.

In Eindhoven, The Netherlands, we are part of the biomimicry exhibit "Innovation Inspired by Nature: Our Epic Journey" at the Milieu Educatie Centrum (Environmental Education Center). Some featured biomimicry stories there include the Pangolin backpack, Groasis waterboxx, Sharkskin swimsuit, and Sharklet technology.
As a finalist for the INDEX: Awards 2011, AskNature is part of a worldwide exhibition traveling for the next 18 months. Our display highlights ORNILUX Glass, PureBond, and the Vitalis water bottle. Although AskNature did not win an INDEX: Award, we were honored to be a finalist. Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to all who voted for AskNature in the People's Choice category.
 
A "Peeing" Car Can Only Mean One Thing: Middle School Biomimicry Science Fair
 
Click to view larger image
Ginny Stern, science lab instructor at Sunnyside Environmental School in Portland, designed their annual Invention Convention to foster collaboration between students and their families, and encourage innovation inspired by nature.

TBI board member Mary Hansel attended this year’s biomimicry-themed Invention Convention, and was impressed by what she found. “I was blown away by the projects – houses for Haitian earthquake survivors inspired by wasp nests, a car that "pees" to keep cool based on birds that urinate on their legs, and my favorite…tents for the homeless that shed water like evergreen needles.”

Interested in bringing a biomimicry invention convention to your middle school? Consider participating in our Biomimicry Youth Design Challenge. Primary and secondary school students can explore biomimicry and learn the science involved in design inspired by nature. The Challenge combines standard curriculum (science, technology, engineering, etc.) with rigorous and exciting experiential learning. Learn more.


Veracruz Biomimicry Workshop Attracts Diverse Crowd

What do a circus performer and an architect have in common? Biomimicry, of course! More than 30 participants from across Mexico came together this summer for our fifth annual Biomimicry & Design Workshop. This year, architects, designers, and biologists rolled up their sleeves alongside a circus performer, urban planners, and a therapist to explore and learn from the varied ecosystems of rainforests, grasslands, and deserts. The diversity of people and landscape creates a rich environment for learning and networking. Over the past five years, more than 130 participants from 20 different professional disciplines and six countries have traveled to Veracruz, Mexico to learn life’s principles and practical tools on how to integrate biomimicry into the classroom and the boardroom. Special thanks to Biomimicry Fellows Valerie Auvinet, Delfin Montañana, Tom McKeag, and workshop coordinator Raúl de Villafranca for co-instructing. See photos from the workshop.

Watch our Education Summit Highlight Reel
 


We are so excited by the success of the 2011 Biomimicry Education Summit, we wanted to share this highlight video with you. Save the date! The 2012 Summit will be held in Portland, Oregon on June 21-24.

Newsletter Survey Results Are In
Nearly 100 of you completed our newsletter survey, which provided a wealth of great feedback that we will integrate into the newsletter in the coming months. A few highlights:
  • For those of you who use social media to connect professionally: 71% use Facebook, 46% use LinkedIn, and 16% use Twitter
  • 86% of respondents said the length of the newsletter articles are "just right"
  • 68% of respondents would like to see more videos on biomimicry in the newsletter
Thank you to all those who participated in the survey! As a result, we donated $100 to the conservation organization Vital Ground. If you have any more thoughts on the newsletter, you can email info@biomimicryinstitute.org


Remembering Ray Anderson

One of the world's most charismatic, inspiring, and generous innovators of our time passed away on August 8. Ray Anderson, founder and CEO of Interface became a sustainability champion after reading Paul Hawken's Ecology of Commerce. He also integrated biomimicry into Interface's business model, ultimately creating several successful product designs that resulted in the elimination of toxic chemicals and reduced excess carpet waste. Ray was a dear friend and will be missed by many, including all of us at The Biomimicry Institute. You can read more about Ray's life here.

Image courtesy of Interface, Inc.
 
AskNature Featured Product
 
The Biomimicry Institute's Student Design Challenge starts this month, with an energy-related theme. It's only fitting that our featured product this month on AskNature is about harnessing two types of freely available energy--solar and wind. Solar Botanic is developing Solar Botanic Trees. The trees are fitted with Nanoleaves, a combination of nano-photovoltaic, nano-thermovoltaic, and nano-piezo generators that convert light, heat, and wind energy, respectively, into electricity.

Biomimicry Research and Design News
 

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