Calling Biomimicry Educators!

Do you know about the Biomimicry Global Design Challenge? The annual Challenge has a $100,000 prize and is focused on creating nature-inspired innovations (a product, service, or system) that combats climate change.

The current Challenge ends May 1 but now is the time for biomimicry educators to think about the next Challenge, which will run September 1, 2018 - May 1, 2019 with the same Climate Change theme.

About the Biomimicry Global Design Challenge

The Biomimicry Global Design Challenge mobilizes university students and professionals worldwide to tackle climate-related challenges using biomimicry. Participants are encouraged to use nature-inspired design to create solutions to address energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, food systems, transportation, water management, deforestation—anything that has a connection to reducing greenhouse gases or mitigating climate change impacts. Participants in the Challenge have access to biomimicry experts and mentors, can win cash prizes, will compete for the Ray C. Anderson Foundation $100,000 Ray of Hope Prize®, and get the chance to join the Biomimicry Launchpad to learn how to bring their design to market.

Why participate in the Challenge?

• The Challenge is an opportunity for students to learn next-generation skills in action, so that they can enter the workforce with the tools to tackle our planet’s mounting sustainability problems and a sense of hope for what is possible.

• It offers a compelling, flexible framework for teaching biomimicry, encouraging interdisciplinary, team-based learning and providing educators with a fresh way of engaging students using real-world applications.

• It provides a pathway to entrepreneurship for students, offering finalist teams media exposure (including recognition for their universities), business and biomimicry mentorship, and the support to bring their innovations to market.

Calling all Biomimicry Educators!

We want to reach more biomimicry educators who might be interested in incorporating the 2018-2019 Challenge into their design, engineering, architecture, biology, chemistry, or entrepreneurship courses, or else serving as advisors to teams in student clubs or doing independent study.

I have been involved with biomimicry design challenges since the Biomimicry Institute launched a small-scale version a decade ago and have been a Challenge judge for the past 6 years. Today, the Challenge receives hundreds of submissions from students and professionals from around the world. However, we'd like to see more and higher quality submissions in the future. We believe that the best way to garner high caliber submissions is to better support biomimicry educators.

 How to get started

• Check out supporting resources. There are loads of teaching resources offered for FREE by the Biomimicry Institute including the Biomimicry Toolbox, educational webinars and, of course, AskNature – a massive database of nature’s design strategies.

• Tell us what you need. We have created a short survey to collect information about instructor needs to best support their efforts to encourage students to enter the Challenge. It won’t take longer than 5 minutes to complete the survey. Please complete the survey by March 11.

• Share the news about the next Challenge with your colleagues. We’re planting seeds early in the year to ensure that the Challenge can be incorporated into your future courses; please spread the word! (Fill out the survey to request posters for your school.)

Thank you for your time and participation. We look forward to seeing your students' submissions in 2019!

Image courtesy of PhotoStockEditor on Unsplash.com