[Re]Connection Newsletter

Hello world, we are Biomimicry South Africa

By way of a (re)introduction to our renewed organisational activities, we start by offering a poetic interpretation of why the work of biomimicry matters now, in the Southern Africa context:

BIOMIMCRY MATTERS

Inequality is a scarcity of equal opportunity.

Load-shedding is a scarcity of energy.

Dismal educational outcomes is a scarcity of knowledge.

Corruption is a scarcity of credible leadership.

These scarcities - and more - divide us:

Or are these scarcities symptoms, of disconnection?

Inequality breeds violent crime.

Load-shedding inhibits productivity.

Without education, we - our youth - have no future.

Corruption feeds on others' efforts to fix things.

These terrible conditions - and more - cannot go on:

What to do - where do we turn for inspiration?

The standard fixes will not suffice.

We need systemic solutions.

We need bottom-up movements.

We need top-down guidance.

We need support from all sides.

If disconnection is our illness, what is our medicine?

Biomimicry is a non-standard fix.

Biomimicry fosters (eco)systemic solutions.

Biomimicry begins at the bottom, in the soil beneath our feet.

Biomimicry teaches us how to guide with a birds-eye view.

Biomimicry facilitates lateral innovation.

Life - nature - knows: connection.:

If this reads as though we regard biomimicry as a panacea that will solve all of the world's problems, this is because that is exactly what we feel, and where our passion for our work stems from.

AND - of course - we know and accept that there are no one-size-fits-all, silver bullet solutions.

Now you know how we feel about the work we do; let's also speak to the rigour and science behind this discipline...

Biomimicry is a practice: an approach to problem solving with demonstrable, proven efficacy.

Biomimicry comprises certain existing methods, and it is also an ever-evolving creative expression: of our abilities to observe and interpret the way nature has been solving problems for 3.8 billion years.

We are talking about applying a living systems lens to problems: a whole systems approach that addresses root causes, rather than symptoms.

The bottom line is: South Africa's challenges are not intractable, but they are systemic.

Setting a renewed intention and tone...