Biomimicry Fireside Chats:
Reconnecting with
Nature Together

Next Fireside Chat:

Stay tuned!

Join us for virtual meetups with special guests to explore topics relevant to biomimicry. Together we’ll talk about finding our place in nature, learning from nature’s wisdom, and designing a regenerative economy. 

Bring your curiosity and imagination to this interactive forum. We look forward to connecting with you for this virtual field guide bringing nature-inspired innovators together worldwide.

From a Meme to a Movement:
25 Years of Biomimicry

Friday, May 20, 2022

Listen to a conversation with Janine Benyus and Lex Amore as we celebrate 25 years since the seminal book Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature was published. We looked at Nature as Model, Nature as Measure, and Nature as Mentor, hearing stories from Janine as a cultural commentator of the field and witnessing the last 25 years of biomimicry evolution. Tune in to hear about the origins and forecast to the future to what we hope to see in the next quarter century of nature-inspired innovation.

All past Biomimicry Fireside Chat recordings are accessible below.

The Nature of Fashion: Design for Decomposition

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

Listen to a conversation on designing for decomposition and how an ambitious initiative is aiming to avert some of the worst effects of the global fashion industry that produces 100 billion garments each year for a population of 7.5 billion. You’ll learn from the laws of nature and discover that to fix the leaky loops, we must design for decomposition. Our guest experts include Karan Kumar, Programme Officer of Materials at Laudes Foundation, Savanna Browne-Wilkinson, Researcher at the Metabolic Institute, Branson Skinner, Co-Founder and Producer at The Or Foundation, and Beth Rattner, Executive Director of the Biomimicry Institute.

Envisioning a New Path Forward: Healing with Biomimicry

Thursday, December 17, 2020

Watch this final Biomimicry Fireside Chat of the year with special guests Janine Benyus and Azita Ardakani. We kicked off this series in May to navigate these challenging times and offer genuine conversations about biomimicry’s promise of hope and solutions. These two visionary women helped set the stage for what would be an engaging series in looking to nature’s wisdom to reconnect with our place, our purpose, and our pursuit of regenerative living. We are honored to have them close out the year with us as we together discuss how we can move forward in a way that heals ourselves and our shared home on Earth.

The Full (Eco)System Approach:
Integrating Biomimicry into Soil Regeneration

Thursday, November 19, 2020

Watch this candid conversation on the amazing complexities of soil ecosystems and how we can restore Earth’s natural balance by using the biomimicry lens at every design table. Explore nature’s wisdom and the possibilities of regeneration with Don Smith, a Healthy Soil Advocate from Kiss the Ground, and Lex Amore from the Biomimicry Institute.

The Nature of Fashion: Moving Towards a Regenerative Model

Thursday, October 22, 2020

The future of fashion is not in petroleum. What can the fashion industry learn from nature’s circularity and how can industry switch to a regenerative model that builds soil, boosts biodiversity, supports community, and cleans up existing pollution in the process? Watch this conversation on regenerative agriculture and how natural fibers (“performance naturals”) can adapt and scale to meet the current market need. Our guest experts include Rebecca Burgess, Executive Director, Fibershed; Ricardo Garay, Agraloop Project Coordinator, Circular Systems; Chris Kerston, Chief Commercial Officer, Land to Market Program, Savory Institute; and Beth Rattner, Executive Director, Biomimicry Institute.

From Founding to Funding:
Bringing a Biomimetic Startup to Market

Thursday, September 17, 2020

For September’s Biomimicry Fireside Chat, we were joined by special guests for a candid conversation on how nature-inspired companies can learn from each other, measure success, and address roadblocks to becoming a startup. Our guest panel includes Dr. Shimrit Perkol-Finkel, CEO and Co-Founder of ECOncrete — this year’s Ray of Hope Prize® recipient; Hannah Davis, Techstars Sustainability Accelerator, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy; and Jared Yarnall-Schane, Entrepreneurship Director of the Biomimicry Institute.

Transforming Education:
Fostering Students’ Reconnection with Nature

Thursday, August 27, 2020

Nature-inspired design can revolutionize education, offering teachers a dynamic new way to teach environmental and sustainability issues, STEM, creative problem-solving, and systems thinking. While biomimicry curricula can help teachers achieve standards and educational requirements, in both physical and virtual classrooms, it also emphasizes what students can learn outside the classroom. Learn how to make nature-inspired science education fun and rewarding for K-12 students and where biomimicry education is headed in the future.

This special guest panel includes elementary teacher and author Karen Ansberry, Biomimicry Professional and Wildlife TV Host Billy Almon, Co-founder of the Xploration Centre Sukhi Bal, and Biomimicry Professional and educator Daniel Kinzer.

Start Where You Are: A Conversation on Uprooting Racism and Creating Systemic Change in STEM

Thursday, July 16, 2020

Listen in on an honest interdisciplinary conversation on racism, being Black in the sciences, and how removing blindspots is essential for the work ahead.

This discussion features Black professionals working in the sciences and sustainability movement, advocating for diversity, inclusion, and making nature a safe space for all. Biomimicry Professional and Wildlife TV Host Billy Almon leads us through a candid conversation on lessons of the moment with world-renowned Carnivore Ecologist Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant, #Blackbirdersweek Co-organizer Corina Newsome, Engineer and Entrepreneur Aaron Shepard, and acclaimed Wildlife Photographer Tsalani Lassiter.

Getting Unstuck:
Tapping Into Nature for Problem Solving

Thursday, June 18, 2020

For our second Biomimicry Fireside Chat, we’re joined by special guests Prof. and Researcher, Jeffrey Karp and the Institute’s Science Director, Alexandra Ralevski. Watch us explore how to use biomimicry to solve problems, address some of the challenges experienced in looking to nature for solutions, and how to overcome them. We’ll take some examples specifically from the medical industry, but focus on the biomimicry process which transcends industries.

Inaugural Fireside Chat with Janine and Azita

Thursday, May 21, 2020

As many of you know, Janine Benyus is a biologist, author, innovation consultant, world-class nature nerd, and co-founder of the Biomimicry Institute. In Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature, she named an emerging discipline that emulates nature’s designs and processes (e.g., solar cells that mimic leaves) to create a healthier, more sustainable planet.

Since the book’s 1997 release, Janine has evolved the practice of biomimicry, speaking around the world about what we can learn from the genius that surrounds us.

Azita Ardakani is an Iranian immigrant who was raised in Vancouver, BC and now resides in NYC. She is a serial entrepreneur with a lifelong curiosity about how to mend the fragmentations caused by modern society. Azita started an award-winning creative advocacy agency at the age of 21 called Lovesocial which served across many environmental and social causes. She is now deepening her understanding of the field she loves: biomimicry, so that the quiet intelligence of nature is better integrated into anything she touches moving forward. She is now completing her Masters in Biomimicry at ASU and is an advisor to AskNature.org.

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Imagine a world where everything we make is inspired by the natural world. By supporting the Biomimicry Institute you:

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