Biomimicry: Inspired by Mother Nature

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Mother Nature must be blushing a scarlet red. That’s because green technology is striving to emulate its best ideas. Enter “biomimicry,” a new discipline that studies nature’s best attributes and then imitates the design behind them to solve human problems.

Take one of Canada’s most beloved creatures, the beaver, for example. It is teaching us to think about harnessing the enormous energy of water in new ways. Inspired by beaver dams, low-head barriers can create as much power as conventional high-head dams, without critically disrupting fish populations and without flooding land or displacing people.

Click NEXT>> to see other “green-ovations”—just a few of the remarkable discoveries being showcased by the U.S.-based Biomimicry Institute at the Green Living Show—including what sea shells, lotus plants and even termites can teach us about sustainable technology.