Navigating ecological futures: through nature-inspired design
🪴Reflecting on the interconnectedness of transformation design, inspired by Neri Oxman's Material Ecology
Reflecting on the work of Neri Oxman has been a journey of rediscovery, both in how we think about design and in how we approach the intersection of nature and technology. Oxman’s pioneering discipline, "Material Ecology," always makes me reconsider the frameworks we rely on to solve complex problems. By weaving together biology, computing, and materials science, she offers not just a design philosophy, but a roadmap for transformation.
Designing through nature
What stands out to me most is her ability to harness nature as a co-creator in the design process. Oxman’s approach feels deeply relevant for today’s necessary transformation. She doesn’t simply design with nature in mind; she designs through nature. Her work embodies the shift from exploiting natural resources to learning from them: integrating biological systems as fundamental design principles. This is the core of her work in Material Ecology, and it’s a shift in mindset that has profound implications for transformation. We can learn so much from her!
Oxman’s vision makes me rethink the way I approach problems—particularly those that seem insurmountable. In the face of climate change, social inequality, and even technological ethics, the challenge is often not about making something better but about designing entirely new systems that align with life’s principles. She shows us that transformation doesn’t have to come from human ingenuity alone. Instead, it can arise from collaborating with the natural world, respecting its processes, and applying them in innovative ways.
Multiplicity of solutions
This perspective has been invaluable in reshaping my own views on how we navigate the world of design. Oxman’s work emphasizes that solutions are not one-dimensional or limited to what we can create with traditional (design) methods. Instead, they lie in the complex ecosystems around us—ecosystems that have been perfecting themselves for billions of years. By embracing the principles of nature, we unlock new possibilities for sustainable growth and innovation.
The KREBS Cycle of Creativity (KCC), introduced by Oxman, serves as a conceptual framework that illustrates how creative energy and knowledge are continuously exchanged and sustained across four key domains of human innovation: science, engineering, design, and art. Just as the biological Krebs cycle describes the flow of energy in living organisms, Oxman’s KCC metaphorically maps how ideas, insights, and creative impulses flow through these interconnected fields. Each modality contributes to and enriches the others, forming a dynamic, cyclical process where scientific discoveries fuel engineering breakthroughs, engineering informs design, and design inspires artistic expression—all of which, in turn, loop back to influence and shape scientific inquiry. This ongoing exchange ensures that creativity remains a self-sustaining, evolving force, driving forward human progress.
What Oxman offers is more than a framework; it’s a new way of thinking about design as an integral part of life’s ongoing evolution. This has helped me understand that transformation, at its core, isn’t about imposing change from the outside. It’s about fostering symbiotic relationships—between humans, technology, and the environment. This concept resonates deeply with me, particularly as I think about how we shape the future.
As I reflect on this, I am reminded once again that transformation is never a linear path. It is a process that requires us to move fluidly between disciplines, much like Oxman moves between biology, materials science, and technology. This interdisciplinary approach encourages us to think beyond the silos of knowledge, embracing complexity rather than shying away from it.
To create lasting transformation, we must engage with the world not as a series of isolated problems to solve but as an interconnected web of life that requires our empathy, creativity, and humility. As Neri Oxman show us through her brilliant work: true transformation comes when we listen to the wisdom of nature and allow it to guide us toward more sustainable futures.
If you are not yet familiar with Neri Oxman’s work, I encourage you to pay a visit to her website Oxman where you can read all about her philosophy and work: “Design that unites”.
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Carola, I also am intoxicated with the capacity of nature for organic design and how form and function resonate across so many different categories. I think that William Whewell’s old notion of Consilience best describes it. When I discover Consilience in the design of the body, my own focus, it lights up my mind with a kind of thrilling inner glow.
I study a new body part, one that is both primal and is a structure that we have only just become able to see. This is because of the rediscovery of fascia, our connective tissue matrix. The deep core is a myofascial synergy. Myofascial synergies are ubiquitous within the body and are the basic unit of action and analysis—but this is a very new way of seeing things.
I want to suggest to you and to your readers that this anatomy, which we can feel and move and touch and which we comprehend on such a visceral level, is the foundation and the paradigmatic exemplar of the sort of design thinking we often talk about finding in nature.
I teach it freely as Musclemonk and would love to unpack it a little bit with you sometime.