Architects take inspiration from nature to build sustainable future

illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece from Lombard Odier here or enjoy below! 

🗞️ Driving the news: Biomimicry, a design approach inspired by nature, has the potential to reduce a structure's environmental impact and reverse ecological damage caused by construction

🔭 The context: Buildings contribute nearly 40% of global carbon emissions, stemming from the embodied carbon of materials and emissions from construction and ongoing operations
• The construction sector's hefty carbon footprint has prompted architects, scientists, and designers to seek sustainable solutions through biomimicry,  a practice that learns from and mimics the strategies found in nature to solve human design challenges

🌎 Why does it matter for the planet: By integrating principles from nature's ecosystems, processes, and organisms, buildings can become extensions of the wider ecosystem
• For example, successful projects inspired by nature, such as Zimbabwe's Eastgate Development and Melbourne's 'Council 2' building, have achieved energy savings of up to 90% by mimicking termite ventilation systems

⏭️ What's next: Prodded by net-zero targets and regulations, Biomimicry has seen an exponential increase in popularity and investments in the past few years, epecially by  companies seeking help to transform their buildings

💬 One quote: "The big picture view is that we need to learn to integrate everything we do as humans into the web of life that supports us." (Michael Pawlyn, Founder of Exploration Architecture)

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