Designing a Species: On cross-disciplinary education programs and practice modes
Integrating Life-Sciences Knowledge into Design Work for a Sustainable Human Existence
Topic
One of the most promising approaches to true sustainability is Biomimicry. However, it requires designers to possess a certain scientific training and the capability to collaborate across disciplinary divides.
This paper first introduces the current stage of biomimicry as well as the current hurdles for its development. The text then introduces the challenges to cross-disciplinary collaboration between science and design. The paper furthermore describes the current global situation in training designers in scientific thinking and knowledge and its shortcomings. The authors finally propose two main paths to increase designers’ savviness in science and collaboration, and to simultaneously also improve their image and value to society: Science-design exchange semesters and double degrees as well as digital platforms that furnish natural knowledge to design projects. The paper elaborates both paths and calls for a scientifically backed, evidence-based design education.
Conference
Emerging Practices: Design Research and Education Conference 2014
If you want to read the paper, click here.
A Biologically-Inspired Approach to a Passive Indooor Dehumidification System
Topic
This paper describes the current stage of research in developing an entirely passive indoor dehumidification system. It first introduces the nature of the project, the challenge it tries to solve and its innovative biomimetic solution approach (= learning from nature). It goes on listing project goals and elaborating the requirements to be fulfilled. After briefly describing the recent research steps, the text elaborates a few examples of natural strategies in detail as potential examples. Focusing on the one natural strategy that BiDL and its partners have chosen so far (Capillary Condensation of Spanish Moss), the paper elaborates research achievements up to now and ends with an outlook where further steps and issues are listed in order to achieve indoor dehumidification without external energy.
Conference
Emerging Practices: Design Research and Education Conference 2014
Publisher
Tongji University Press, September 2015
Print ISBN
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