Learning from Nature: The Biomimicry Podcast with Lily Urmann

How can billions of years of biological evolution help us navigate today's complex cultural and social crises? In this episode, we sit down with Toby Herzlich , the founder of Biomimicry for Social Innovation and a path-builder in transformative leadership. While biomimicry is often celebrated for inspiring sleek architecture and sustainable materials, Toby invites us to look deeper: what can living systems teach us about building life-friendly human organizations, communities, and movements? In a moment marked by polarization and rapid systemic change, relying on rigid, top-down models simply isn't working. Toby shares how nature’s core operating principles like decentralized networks, community ecology, mutualism, and regenerative feedback loops offer a blueprint for resilient social innovation. Explore The Nature of Trust Toolkit , and register for The Nature of Trust Co-Lab . Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

What if your organization could function as effectively and sustainably as a healthy ecosystem? We explore this question with Ines Garcia , an agile coach, circular economy expert, and author of Nature's Blueprint for Business: Harnessing the Hidden Power of Edges. Listen in and delve into Ines's professional path, the practical application of nature's principles in organizational design, and how shifting from rigid structures to collaborating in "the edges" (the permeable zones where different systems meet) can foster resilience and innovation. Together, let's figure out how to cultivate organizational spaces that embrace the wisdom nature has evolved over 3.8 billion years. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

In this episode, we dive into a surprising but essential topic for a life-friendly future: trade networks and resource sharing. Guest Rana Hajirasouli , circular-economy innovator and founder of the climate-tech startup The Surpluss, explains how nature’s systems can inspire smarter, more collaborative ways for industries to reduce waste, strengthen supply chains, and unlock new forms of value. With experience spanning marine conservation, international law, and manufacturing (as well as recognition from the World Economic Forum and UAE’s Future 100), Rana brings a sharp, systems-level perspective to what circularity can look like in practice. From industrial symbiosis to resource sovereignty, she breaks down how we can redesign our networks the way nature does: with efficiency, reciprocity, and resilience at the core. Tune in for a compelling conversation about what’s possible when we rethink how we share. Learn more about The Surpluss . Note: Host Lily Urmann is welcoming the newest biomimic in January, and will be on maternity leave until June 2026. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

How might emergent strategies of group dynamics in nature inform our own technology and design? In this episode, Dr. Iain Couzin , Director of the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and one of the world’s leading researchers on collective motion in animals, explores how nature’s systems -- from swarming locusts and murmurations of starlings to schooling fish -- coordinate complex group behaviors without centralized control, and what these patterns can teach us about designing human systems that are more adaptive, resilient, and cooperative. Dr. Couzin shares insights from decades of research on how simple rules at the individual level can create intelligent, emergent behaviors at scale; offering powerful inspiration for rethinking collaboration, innovation, and decision-making in our own organizations and societies. This Critical Mast episode is part of a community podcasting experiment on the phenomenon of masting— when trees mysteriously synchronize to produce massive seed crops all at once. In my conversation with Dr. Couzin, we will look beyond the forest to another kind of synchronization: the elegant intelligence of swarming life. Listen to the other episodes below or available on the Spotify Playlist here . Outside/In Future Ecologies Golden State Naturalist Jumpstart Nature Nature's Archive Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

What does it look like for humans to align with life? The built environment and urban areas represent a massive opportunity to significantly lower emissions, improve biodiversity, and create healthier, more resilient communities through the application of regenerative design guided by nature. Architect Michael Pawlyn shares how we can access powerful leverage points within complex systems and find hope for a thriving, life-friendly future driven by the wisdom of the natural world. Get a copy of Biomimicry in Architecture (3rd edition) here . Learn more about Michael Pawlyn and Exploration Architecture here . Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Many of us are familiar with applying nature's genius to physical products or the built environment, but we can also integrate this practice into visual design fields and processes. Michelle Fehler , a professor in The Design School at Arizona State University, dives into her approach for reconnecting with nature and sharing practices rooted in biomimicry within the visual communication space. In this conversation we discuss feedback loops, teaching methodologies, and what it looks like to move beyond only designing for the user to designing for nature -- which in turn includes humans. When nature is at the design table, we can address wicked problems with time-tested strategies from life all around us. Purchase the Biomimicry in Graphic Design Card Set or Nature-Based Design Decisions: A Brainstorm and Evaluation Tool . View other resources from Michelle. Learn more about ASU biomimicry programs . Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

The world is ready for learning from nature to take off, but what does biomimicry really need in order to gain more traction on a larger scale? Listen in to our special live episode with Learn Biomimicry Managing Director Alistair Daynes to hear how we can continue to move the needle on integrating and expanding the biomimicry perspective in all spaces. Whether you are just starting out or further along in your journey, this episode contains advice from a seasoned mentor and guidelines for going deeper. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Humans are a very young species. Compared to the other organisms that we share this planet with, we are novices in how to live in harmony here. Mimicking nature’s elegant and efficient structures on the micro and nano-scale has been a major limiting factor in our designs. But we are making progress in learning from nature’s structure and chemistry. Doing reactions at ambient temperature and pressure with nontoxic materials is still mostly an aspiration for us; but nature can lead the way. Andrew Meador explores the momentum of different biomimicry applications on the chemical and physical level, and we discuss some mind-blowing examples of how organisms leverage chemistry in their habitat. Connect with Andrew Meador on LinkedIn. Watch Andrew's TEDx talk on biomimicry and birds. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Cultivating a curiosity for our world is the first step in repairing our relationship with place, the organisms that we share our planet with, and ourselves. This reconnecting is at the core of a crucial and life-changing practice called nature journaling. John Muir Laws is a leader and innovator in the world-wide nature journaling movement and shares his wealth of knowledge in a very special Learning from Nature episode. This conversation invites you to ponder the intricacies of everyday life and encourages you to begin recording and reflecting. Nature journaling is especially important for biomimicry: this practice can help to shift perspectives and offers new inspiration! "A world of infinite beauty and discovery waits just beyond the point where we usually stop paying attention" (John Muir Laws). Learn more about John Muir Laws , and purchase his books . Join the Wild Wonder Foundation nature journaling movement. Get a nature journaling for biomimicry book (iSites). Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

The Biomimicry Institute's Launchpad program supports scientists and designers who are addressing some of our biggest challenges with nature-inspired ideas. Every year, a cohort of innovators from around the world comes together to learn from each other and receive guidance and inspiration through mentoring, networking, and community-building. Dave Hutchins is the Launchpad Program Manager and dives into what it takes to get a biomimetic product to the next stage and the pathways that The Biomimicry Institute offers for folks who are in this space. Dave is an engineer, entrepreneur, creator, and educator who is passionate about expanding and deepening the biomimicry ecosystem. Whether you are pursuing a project or just want to peek behind the curtain, listen in for some motivation and a good dose of hope! Learn more about The Biomimicry Institute. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Humans view waste as a burden, but nature utilizes waste as a valuable resource in a cycle of continual renewal. The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates 600 million tons of construction and demolition debris is generated every year -- and Mycocycle knows this is an opportunity. Joanne Rodriguez discusses how Mycocycle leverages mycelium (fungal root structures) to consume and eliminate toxins from construction waste and produce raw building materials like MycoFILL, MycoFIBER, and MycoFOAM. Imagine a world where we can safely break down harmful materials, or eliminate the need for those materials in the first place. This impactful bio-inspired company is showing what's possible on the pathway to a truly regenerative future. Explore Mycocycle. Reach the TechCrunch article. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Our coastlines are crucial buffer zones for climate chaos. Yet the current building strategies for concrete coastal marine construction can lead to low biodiversity, which impacts ecosystem health and water quality. ECOncrete's technology involves texture agents and molds that increase biological performance by creating a macro-surface that encourages organisms to colonize. This innovative company has implemented more than a dozen large-scale projects globally and is expanding rapidly as demand increases. By turning to nature for inspiration, we can adapt to the changing climate while also benefiting marine ecosystems globally. Explore ECOncrete Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

Globally, more than 1.6 billion tonnes of food is wasted every year -- and in India, 40% of produce goes to waste before it even reaches grocery store shelves. By learning from plant protection mechanisms, Deepak Rajmohan of GreenPod Labs has developed a solution: using natural plant extracts to activate those built-in defenses. The simple yet effective solution is a satchel that can be dropped into produce transportation to slow down the ripening rate and limit microbial growth. All at ambient temperature with no toxic chemicals or extra plastic packaging. Listen in to hear how GreenPod Labs is making an impact in the market and on our planet. This episode will share a behind the scenes look into the biomimicry process and hopefully reveal that this practice is not only possible, but it's happening! Explore GreenPod Labs. Watch the innovation highlight video from World Economic Forum. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

The ideal adventure apparel is both waterproof and breathable. Yet the tragic irony for outdoor enthusiasts is how toxic and wasteful the current clothing and gear options there are on the market. That's where Amphico comes in: a UK-based biomimicry company learning from waterproofing strategies in nature to create options without harmful chemicals while also eliminating the excessive waste. Isabella MacKenzie, the Lead Color and Textile Designer at Amphico, discusses their novel material and how they are accomplishing functionality without compromising human or environmental health. This episode will share a behind the scenes look into the biomimicry process and hopefully reveal that this practice is not only possible, but it's happening! Explore Amphico and the new technology "Amphitex". Read an article by Isabella MacKenzie to learn more . Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

It's on every continent, and in every terrestrial ecosystem. It's beneath our feet on most hikes and it's often overlooked: lichens! In this episode, Dr. Troy McMullin, the chief lichenologist at the Canadian Museum of Nature, gives an insightful overview of what lichens are, describes their many interesting strategies, and shares why you should care. We dive into their unique symbiotic partnership, their range of amazing structures, and how they are an important part of our future here on Earth. Grab a jeweler's loupe, put on your adventure shoes, and immerse yourself in a tiny world of awe and wonder. Troy McMullin Biography Lichens: The Macrolichens of Ontario and the Great Lakes Region of the United States The Secret World of Lichens: A Young Naturalist's Guide Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .

In the fourth episode of our limited series Knowledge Symbiosis: Can Biomimicry and Indigenous Science Harmonize?, Roxanne Swentzell and Anne LaForti engage in a conversation hosted by Sara El-Sayed, converging Indigenous ideologies and scientific understanding of soils, seeds, regenerative versus sustainable terminologies, and steps to healing ourselves and our ecosystems. This limited series is produced by The Cultural Conservancy's Native Seed Pod , Arizona State University, and Learning From Nature: The Biomimicry Podcast, with music and soundscapes by Colin Farish .

In the third episode of our limited series Knowledge Symbiosis: Can Biomimicry and Indigenous Science Harmonize?, PennElys Droz and Maibritt Pederson Zari engage in conversation hosted by Lily Urmann, exploring cosmologies, paradigm shifts and how to be in good relationship while we co-create and design as humans within creation. They outline principles of regenerative design in communities, and how we all might engage in decolonization as well as learn from Indigenous ecological relationships. This limited series is produced by The Cultural Conservancy's Native Seed Pod , Arizona State University, and Learning From Nature: The Biomimicry Podcast, with music and soundscapes by Colin Farish .

In this second episode of the limited series Knowledge Symbiosis: Can Biomimicry and Indigenous Science Harmonize?, Dayna Baumeister and Melissa K Nelson continue their conversation, hosted by Sara El-Sayed, exploring the common ground and mapping the divergences between Indigenous science and biomimicry. They dive into the nature of biomimicry and Indigenous knowledges and how they are often misconstrued by non-practitioners; potential ethical limits to seeking knowledge; and an ethical space of engagement for biomimicry practitioners and Indigenous knowledge-holders. This limited series is produced by The Cultural Conservancy's Native Seed Pod , Arizona State University, and Learning From Nature: The Biomimicry Podcast, with music and soundscapes by Colin Farish .

In this inaugural episode of the limited series Knowledge Symbiosis: Can Biomimicry and Indigenous Science Harmonize?, Dayna Baumeister joins Melissa K. Nelson and Sara El-Sayed in a conversation exploring the common ground and mapping the divergences between Indigenous science and biomimicry. SERIES SYNOPSIS Biomimicry, nature-inspired design, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), or Indigenous Knowledge Systems, both have roots in nature and a deep respect for natural processes. However, the two fields have different worldviews: biomimicry is oriented from a Western science perspective, while TEK emerges from Indigenous, spiritual, and cosmological worldviews. With a common source of inspiration, professionals in both fields recognize the potential for collaboration, yet no formal efforts or conversations in this realm have been published for a wide audience. This podcast series, Knowledge Symbiosis: Can Biomimicry and Indigenous Science Harmonize? invites dialogue from both perspectives—practitioners in biomimicry, and elders, practitioners, and Indigenous scholars—so we might better understand each other and explore opportunities to weave these learnings. Five episodes will be available on The Native Seed Pod and Learning From Nature:The Biomimicry Podcast for listeners to tune in and reflect. The episodes are hosted in rotation by Dr. Melissa Nelson, Dr. Sara El-Sayed, and Lily Urmann, and feature conversations between Kim Tall Bear, Janine Benyus, Dayna Baumeister, PennElys Droz, Maibritt Pederson, Anne LaForti, and Roxanne Swentzell. These conversations delve into the ethics of science, human-nature connection, regenerative design, and our relationship to all other kin on this planet. This limited series is produced by The Cultural Conservancy's Native Seed Pod , Arizona State University, and Learning From Nature: The Biomimicry Podcast, with music and soundscapes by Colin Farish .

A fun fact for your next party conversation: humans have over 30 trillion cells in our bodies, and 70-90% of those cells are bacterial and fungal! Look no further than exploring the microbiomes of biology when you need your next existential crisis -- or next rabbit hole of fascination to dive into. While mucus and the microbiome might not be the classic poster-child of biomimicry, there is so much we can learn from these elegant, strange, and efficient strategies. Erin Miller discusses the power of a beginner mindset, companies leading the way in developing applications, and curiosity-driven learning. Sponsored by Learn Biomimicry. Curious about how nature can solve our biggest design challenges? Start your education today. Use code LEARNINGFROMNATURE to save: 20% off the Biomimicry Short Course Set 5% off the Biomimicry Practitioner & Biomimicry Educator Programs Expand your mind with free resources from the Learn Biomimicry Blog: Discover the 50 Best Biomimicry Examples , explore Biophilic Design , or learn about Patterns in Nature. Grab some Learning from Nature merch including shirts and sweatshirts. Learning from Nature audio editing by Pine Peak Productions .