Nature's inspiration: Solving sustainability challenges

Abstract

Purpose

Many believe biomimicry – whereby an innovation to solve human problems is inspired by or comes from imitating nature – is a field whose time has come. Anyone doubting the economic and development value of the natural world need only sift through the extraordinary number of commercially promising inventions now emerging as a result of understanding and copying nature's designs. And to highlight this approach's potential to solve growing “sustainability” challenges, the Natures 100 Best Initiatives has been established. This paper aims to investigate this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper looks at developments in the field of biomimicry.

Findings

The paper finds that biomimicry is science at the cutting edge of the twenty‐first century economy. Indeed the way nature makes novel substances; generates energy and synthesizes unique structures are the secrets to how humans can survive and thrive on this planet.

Originality/value

The paper provides useful innovation on recent inventions to solve human problems that have been developed using biomimcry.

Citation

(2008), "Nature's inspiration: Solving sustainability challenges", Strategic Direction, Vol. 24 No. 9, pp. 33-35. https://doi.org/10.1108/02580540810897111