Biomimicry and the environment: knowledge for better protection

1 in 8 species, animal or plant, is threatened with imminent extinction and 92% of the world population breathes excessively polluted air. The causes? Pollution, destruction of nature and global warming. It has become essential to reverse this trend and find solutions for decarbonisation, remediation, and the use of eco-responsible materials to preserve our environment.

DIAGNOSTIC

The continuously growing global demographics and the general rise in the level of comfort of populations have a very strong impact on our environment. This situation generates a very strong and continuous increase in demand and therefore in its corollary, production: more electricity, gasoline, food, housing, electronic devices, etc.

The expansion of cities and concretisation lead to the artificialisation of soils and the destruction of natural habitats in which intensive agriculture contributes just as much. Cities and factories generate pollution: air through the emission of greenhouse gases and fine particles, water through the release of toxic products and plastic waste and soil through insufficient treatment of dangerous waste from factories and sewage treatment plants.

The stakes are high if we are to meet the growing needs of the population while preserving the environment. Biomimicry is a research and development approach which consists of drawing inspiration from the ingenuity of life to meet the needs of industries. This is a relevant solution for developping effective technologies and strategies to protect our environment.

Biomimicry and the environment:

Bioxegy helps you discover the incredible solutions that living organisms can provide to meet these challenges.

Through evolutionary mechanisms, living beings are the result of 3.8 billion years of R&D and innovation. Currently living organisms therefore endowed with extraordinary capacities of adaptation, performance and inspiration.

Life has been able to colonise its environment and adapt to it: nature is therefore very effective in responding to various challenges, in particular the management of flows, waste, remediation, or the recycling of resources.

Living organisms can inspire technologies, methods or strategies in several ways: by reproducing complex and unique mechanisms and structures, or by transposing natural behaviors and strategies. And the possibilities are endless!

For example, the use of bio-sourced, recyclable or biodegradable materials is a first step towards sobriety and preservation of the environment. Capturing CO2 by natural chemical reactions or the remediation of soils by plants and fungi are all solutions that nature can offer. We can also draw inspiration from insect colonies or certain amoebas, for example, to develop resilient waste management or optimised transport networks.

Examples of technical fields related to the preservation of the environment for which biomimicry is relevant: