Biomimicry: Toward a Sustainable Design

3 units

The construction and operation of buildings consume the majority of the world's natural resources and energy, and contribute to expand the landfills. Buildings have diverse effects on the environment during their entire life cycles. Although the tangible impacts are visible only after construction begins, the environmental consequences can be prevented in the first stages of design. The building form and envelope should respond to specific site conditions to help achieve environmental sustainability in architecture. The seminar will be a collaborative studio that welcomes students fo disciplines such as Biology, Engineering, and Architecture, among others. The goal of this course is to create environmental awareness; understanding building ecosystems, and increase the ability to design sustainable buildings from an interdisciplnary perspective. Based on scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the relationships of the natural world, the students will analyze alternative solutions for resolving and/or preventing specific environmental problems. The aim of this seminar is to prepare the students to participate in cross-disciplinary design teams that can develop workig methods to study complex architectural problems and challenges, and facilitate a technical, as well as aesthetically successful, durable and sustainable design. This course will research and study the structure and function of biological systems as models for the design and engineering of materials for buildings. It will involve the study of nature's design and processes as a tool to bring a solution to an architectural problem that will push technology forward while helping us minimize our environmental impact.