Inspired by: Ecosystems (multiple species interdependence)
Green Business Network, Graham Wiles
The Problem
Industrial processes generate waste streams that go to landfills; linear economy is unsustainable.
Closed-loop business model developed by the Green Business Network and Graham Wiles that cascades waste from one production stage to become input for another.
This pioneering work demonstrates how industrial ecosystems can mimic natural ones. Cardboard waste becomes fish feed, fish waste becomes caviar production and other value streams in an integrated system where each organism's waste feeds another's input, similar to nutrient cycling in natural ecosystems.
Biomimicry Breakdown
How Ecosystems (multiple species interdependence) translates into Ecosystems: Cardboard to Caviar Closed-Loop Model
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Inspired by Ecosystems: Cardboard to Caviar Closed-Loop Model? The Biomimicry Opportunity Map scans your company website and suggests challenges worth solving the way nature would.
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Mycelium networks (fungal hyphae)
Brewery and business clustering inspired by mycelium network structure for resource sharing and integrated waste-to-resource systems.
Ecosystems and natural circular systems
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation develops circular economy frameworks based on ecosystem principles. Circular economies eliminate waste by designing products and systems to cycle continuously through biological or technical loops.
Whole systems, ecosystems, and natural capitalism principles
Kate Raworth's Doughnut Economy framework applies whole-systems and natural capitalism principles to redesign economic models. This systems-level biomimicry reframes economic success around ecological and social well-being rather than GDP growth.
There's a natural world to explore