Ode to the Biomimicry Institute (answers to the Specialty Program Application)

When/how did I learn about Biomimicry, what was my first responsive action?

I observed the biomimicry movement at a distance for several years (read the newsletter, joined AskNature, and read Janine Benyus's book).  It wasn't until late 2009 after attending a talk by Dr. David Hammond at the Palo Alto Research Center that I became connected to the Bay Area Swarm.  I soon after connected with Diana Lee and became a TBI barnacle. Through the 2010 SF Education Summit, the 2011 SF Educators Workshop, the 2011 International Bionic Engineering Conference in Boston, and numerous speaking events and swarm networking events, I've met a majority of the TBI board, staff and other networkers worldwide. I also began sprinkling biomimicry into my biology classes, published an article through our local PBS-affiliate, KQED, and created a twitter account devoted to biomimicry (733 and counting). I am currently helping organize the San Francisco Bay Area Regional Network.

Though I have always been enraptured with biology, it was winter quarter of 2003 in undergraduate school I remember consciously recognizing my admiration for the nature's balance and genius – homeostasis reminded me of the way nature balances itself through positive and negative feedback loops. Having studied all the human physiological systems, I later began exploring other animal systems. The more I studied, the more amazed I became at how incredible animals are adapted to their environments, and how those animals shape their environment over time.

At the time, however, I didn't realize how I could use my love for nature's designs (besides for conservation work) and pursued a pre-med degree and eventually my masters in molecular, cellular, and integrative physiology. It wasn't until discovering biomimicry in 2007 that I realized a way for me to transfer my knowledge of biological concepts in a deeply profound way that was both inspiring, practical, and in demand.

Personal goals in completing the program?

My five goals for completing the program are:

1) Be able to speak biology through an engineering and design language

2) Deeply reflect in nature and use my creativity to see a guide of applications to industry challenges (primarily engineering and industrial design)

3) Become more disciplined and practiced using the biomimicry process and life's principles

4) Utilize my resource handbook to greatly enhance and build the San Francisco Bay Area Regional Network

5) Extend my relationships with the Northwest Regional Network to expand our collaborative capacities

How do I envision the program enhancing or advancing my Career?

1) The Specialty Program will provide a practicing knowledge, built relationships, and accreditation with which to build the San Francisco Regional Network. Our regional network aims to provide a biomimicry incubator for Bay Area companies through workshops, partnerships with universities, and connections to venture capital. We would like to eventually serve as a resource bank of biomimicry and interdisciplinary industry experts, as well as market biomimicry to our large, diverse, and intelligent Bay Area audience.   Overcoming innovation challenges in the Virtual Lab will enable me to design workshops which address potential roadblocks for emerging biomimicry technologies.   I will also be more aware of ways in which we can collaborate with others in Northwest Regional Network.

2) The Specialty Program will enhance my effectiveness as a community science liaison because I will gain a form-funciton perspective of biology with a language that is accessible to engineers and designers.  The program will provide resources and ideas for helping others practice the biomimicry process (primarily through formal and informal education).  Having stumbled through biomimicry innovation challenges myself through the program, I will better understand the challenges of developing an emerging biomimicry technology into a product. This Specialty Program will also set me up for future training if I decide to become a biologist at the design table.
 I envision several pathways for my career as a community science liaison.  These pathways my follow one after the other or merge:

1. Inspire lifelong learners about nature's designs and the promise of biomimicry
2. Help train others to use the biomimicry process to solve problems (for education and for business)
3. Make scientific/biologic/biomimetic research more accessible to different disciplines through language translation
4. Help connect emergent technologies in bionics and biomimicry to funding sources for product development
5. Future: Become a B@DT consultant