Frequently Asked Questions

The Biomimicry Institute is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization founded in 2005 that empowers people to seek nature-inspired solutions for a healthy planet. Explore our website to find out more about our impactful programs and go dive into AskNature.org!

The mission of the Biomimicry Institute is to create a Nature Positive, inclusive, and regenerative world inspired and guided by nature’s genius. We accomplish this by tackling one massive sustainability problem at a time through AskNature.org and the AskNature Hive,  the Ray of Hope Accelerator,  the Design for Decomposition initiative and other programs that inspire, enable and amplify biomimetic solutions.

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There are so many fascinating biomimicry projects out there in the world today and while we would love to help out with all of them, we are a small team and do not have the resources to partner on individual projects. We have a number of free resources available for your use. A good place to start is to check out the For Educators section of AskNature for a list of educational resources on biomimicry.

To look for specific biological inspiration, solve a particular problem, or look at what biologically inspired inventions exist already, visit our AskNature website and use the strategy pages or the search bar to explore what’s out there.

Another great way to practice biomimicry is to learn by doing! We collaborate with POCACITO on the Biomimicry Youth Design Challenge to provide middle school and high school teams an avenue to practice the biomimicry design process under the guidance of a teacher. 

Janine Benyus is unable to respond to individual emails or requests. If you would like to contact her regarding an interview or a speaking engagement, please email media@biomimicry.org.

The AskNature Hive is an online community of people from around the world who are interested in creating more opportunities to practice, share, and learn about biomimicry. You can also discover individuals and groups around the world engaged in the topic in this map from Learn Biomimicry. 

Since biomimicry is a multidisciplinary field, people that do biomimicry come from many different backgrounds. We recommend that students study topics that are most of interest to them, from engineering, biology, architecture, design, green chemistry, and business. The best thing you can do as an undergraduate is to pick a course of study that you truly enjoy, like engineering or industrial design or architecture or biology, where you can then apply biomimicry in practice. Then, continue to read about, discuss, and learn all you can about biomimicry.

Partners of the Institute offering educational programs include: 

Learn Biomimicry. We recommend their Biomimicry Short Courses, as a  great orientation to the biomimetic design process, and are closely aligned to Janine’s perspectives and the Institute’s foundations.

B3.8. We recommend their Training programs to teach professionals how to discover nature’s genius and apply the biomimicry thinking methodology to your career. 

The Biomimicry Institute doesn’t maintain a comprehensive list of training programs, but there are a number of universities worldwide incorporating biomimicry into design, engineering, and innovation programs including the Biomimicry Center at Arizona State University, the Biomimicry Research and Innovation Center at the University of Akron  and the Center for Biologically Inspired Design at Georgia Tech.

Well, there is a great book to read on the subject if you are interested 🙂

AskNature has a wide range of biomimicry videos, books, articles, curricula, and introductory courses in the section For Educators. From there, you can select a resource type and the audience you’re aiming to serve to narrow down your search.

AskNature has a number of great resources to introduce biomimicry to young minds, including free curricula, lesson plans, videos, books, and more. Ask the Planet is the Biomimicry Institute’s award-winning album of children’s music that can be used in both formal and informal learning environments. Free teaching guides for grades 3-5 are available to accompany each song. Additionally, Sharing Biomimicry with Young People is an educator training publication aimed at helping educators establish a general foundation in biomimicry and provide ideas for introducing this way of thinking to students.

Plus there is the Youth Design Challenge, a hands-on, project-based learning experience that provides classroom and informal educators with an engaging framework to introduce bio-inspired design and an interdisciplinary lens on science, engineering, and environmental literacy. It gives middle and high school students a unique STEM experience and empowers them to envision solutions to social and environmental challenges.

The Ray of Hope Accelerator supports a cohort of 10 high-impact nature-inspired startups annually, spanning from Pre-seed to Series A stages and representing various sectors and regions. Each selected startup receives $15,000 in non-dilutive funding and over $50,000 worth of in-kind services. Go to our accelerator page to find out more about the timeline and application process.

To see open positions and internships, please visit our Opportunities page. We will only be accepting resumes for available positions posted on this page.

At the moment, we do not have a volunteer program.

When you donate, you help us reverse harmful industrial practices by accelerating the growth of more nature-inspired startups and entrepreneurs; empower more students and educators to connect with nature in ways that address social and emotional learning; and inspire and educate more people by increasing the number of biomimetic solutions on AskNature.org. Your support helps connect people of all ages back to the natural world and make nature-inspired solutions a reality. Support our mission.

Yes. The Biomimicry Institute is an independent, tax-exempt nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3)status, so your donation  is tax deductible. Our Employee Identification Number is 86-1153859