Sustainability with Biomimicry and STEM
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Sustainability is a critical aspect of addressing environmental challenges and ensuring the well-being of our planet and future generations. Biomimicry and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) are two powerful approaches that can play significant roles in achieving sustainability goals.
Biomimicry is an approach that draws inspiration from nature’s designs, systems, and processes to create sustainable solutions. It involves observing and understanding the strategies that plants, animals, and ecosystems have developed over millions of years to adapt and thrive in their environments. By emulating these strategies, scientists, engineers, designers, educators and students can create innovative, eco-friendly technologies and products.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics): STEM is the foundation for innovation and problem solving to understand sustainability and complex environmental challenges, and to develop effective solutions to everyday life problems.
Here are some ways STEM contributes to sustainability:
Research and Development: Scientists and researchers in STEM fields work to understand environmental issues, climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource depletion. Through research, they develop new technologies and strategies to mitigate these problems.
Environmental Monitoring: STEM plays a critical role in designing and deploying monitoring systems to track environmental changes, assess the health of ecosystems and manage natural resources more sustainably.
Students were asked to create a biomimicry gallery to create designs inspired by nature that would preserve the balance of our planet and contribute to sustainability. Students were asked to make observations using out-of-school learning environments and were asked to identify a problem in everyday life.
Biomimicry and STEM Design Process by Students
First group
Forest fires in recent years have caused us to face many problems such as deforestation, reduction of living species, deterioration of ecological balance and climate change.
Finding a solution to deforestation, which is an existing problem in daily life, with the design process inspired by nature and contributing to nature with reforestation.
My students decided to carry out a study to contribute to nature through reforestation.
Using out-of-school learning environments, a nature trip was organised in autumn. Changes in nature were observed. Acorns were collected and placed in a tube in the classroom. Students were given responsibility for these acorns and they were allowed to observe germination.
Students were given rolls of toilet paper and were asked to design trees without support, glue etc. and create a peace forest. In this work both the design process and the STEM process worked.
On the nature trip they observed maples and did a biomimicry study, inspired by the fact that maple seeds turn as they fall to the ground. They were asked to design a propeller inspired by maple seeds. Some of the student groups designed irrigation with this propeller and some designed a seed ball launcher.
Second group
They researched the structure of the woodpecker’s skull and designed a helmet to provide the best protection.
They used a solid piece of cardboard to create the basic structure of the helmet.
They used sponge, cotton, foam or similar materials for the soft padding to be placed inside the helmet. This helped to make the helmet comfortable and protective.
Third group
Cats’ ability to see in the dark was an inspiration to my students, and they designed reading glasses for themselves using paper circuits.
They designed their own glasses out of cardboard. They added light to these designs using paper circuits and designed reading glasses.
Results
In summary, the combination of biomimicry and STEM can drive transformative change in the way we approach sustainability challenges. By taking inspiration from nature’s proven solutions and applying rigorous scientific principles, we can create a more harmonious and sustainable relationship between human technology and the natural world. These approaches can foster a more resilient and regenerative future for the planet and its inhabitants.
Seçil Gedik Doğaner has been a primary school teacher for 23 years. She has been a Scientix Ambassador in Turkey since 2022. She is an eTwinning teacher. She carries out interdisciplinary STEM and eTwinning projects by integrating technology into the curriculum. She takes part in the promotion of STEAM and Scientix through many activities and projects.
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