The Biomimicry Revolution: Learning from Nature How to Inhabit the Earth

The book explores the concept of biomimicry, which involves applying nature's strategies to develop artificial products and systems. It argues that biomimicry can serve as the basis for a new environmental philosophy that radically alters how we understand and relate to the natural world.

Format: Hardback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 14 March 2023
Publisher: Columbia University Press

The foundation of modernity rests upon the notion that the world we have constructed is a human creation, distinct from nature. However, the ecological ramifications of this belief have been catastrophic, resulting in the devastation of natural ecosystems and their replacement with fundamentally unsustainable human designs. As time grows short to address the pressing environmental crises we have inflicted, our best course of action is to seek guidance from nature itself.

In his book, Henry Dicks delves into the philosophical significance of a groundbreaking approach to sustainable innovation: biomimicry. The term encompasses the application and adaptation of natural strategies to the design of artificial products and systems, such as passive cooling techniques modeled after termite mounds or solar cells inspired by leaves. Dicks contends that biomimicry, often perceived as merely a design strategy, can also serve as the foundation for a new environmental philosophy that profoundly transforms our understanding and relationship with the natural world. By demonstrating how we can imitate, emulate, and learn from nature, biomimicry points us toward a truly sustainable way of inhabiting our planet.

The Biomimicry Revolution, rooted in philosophy, holds profound implications that extend across various disciplines, including natural sciences, design, architecture, sustainability studies, science and technology studies, and the environmental humanities. It presents a comprehensive reimagining of what philosophy can be and presents a powerful new vision for terrestrial existence.

Weight: 590g
Dimension: 162 x 243 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231208802