The National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) granted a second tranche of R2.8-million to BioWise, an education and sustainability-based non-profit company that is driving this process.
The first tranche enabled the initial research, networking and establishing of partnerships required to get a project of this magnitude up and running. This funding also allowed the facilitation of a design workshop with 20 local and national professionals from the biomimicry, engineering, architecture, social, environmental and education sectors. The outcome of this workshop was the fine-tuning of the concept, which led to the development of a full brief for the Biomimicry Discovery Park. This was followed by an independent feasibility study by Multi-Purpose Business Solutions to determine the viability of the project.
“When this study gave us the green light, it was all systems go,” said Gerard Pretorius, project manager for BioWise. “An extensive tender process followed after which George-based architectural firm Brink Stokes Mkhize and Elaine Lamb (sole proprietor) were appointed to do the conceptual architectural design for the Discovery Park. This was completed at the end of June,” continued Gerard.
Biomimicry is the imitation of the models, systems and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems. Over the last 3.6-billion years, nature has gone through a process of trial and error to refine the living organisms, processes and materials on Earth. The emerging field of biomimetics has given rise to new technologies created from biologically inspired engineering.
Biomimetics is not a new idea. Humans have been looking at nature for answers to both complex and simple problems throughout their existence. Nature has solved many of today’s engineering problems such as hydrophobicity, wind resistance, self-assembly and harnessing solar energy through the evolutionary mechanics of selective advantages. One of the early examples of biomimicry was the study of birds to enable human flight. The Wright Brothers who succeeded in flying the first heavier-than-air aircraft in 1903, derived inspiration from observations of pigeons in flight.
This second tranche payment now means that the process developing the Discovery Park can continue, starting with the conceptual development of the educational component that will form the heart and soul of the park. Andrea Grant-Broom, design consultant and fifteen design professionals arrived in Knysna for a five-day 'design-can-do' charette - a multi-disciplinary brainstorming session - during which the full edutainment experience was imagined and developed. This design session, held at Belvidere Manor, was kicked off with what is called a biomimicry 'genius of place' exercise. Facilitated by BiomimicrySA’s Will Lawson and local expert guide, Mark Dixon, the purpose was to discover the ingenuity of local species and use them as inspiration during the design process.
“A description of the full edutainment experience and five conceptual prototypes will provide tangible examples of the kind of interactive models, displays and experiences that will be enjoyed at the Discovery Park. All of these will feed into a prospectus, backed up by a full business plan and branding strategy that can then be used to attract the grant funding to undertake the full design and build phase,” said Gerard.
The Biomimicry Discovery Park, guaranteed to offer an experience unlike anything before, is a place where families, tourists, professionals, students, scholars, pre-schoolers and pensioners can connect with, be immersed in and discover all there is to learn from nature. This public edutainment facility and tourism attraction, together with the related Biomimicry Research, Design and Innovation Hub planned for the heart of Knysna’s industrial area and conceptually designed by Zimbabwean biomimicry architect Mick Pearce, is set to catapult Knysna, the Garden Route and South Africa into the international spotlight. Knysna will hereby be established as the biomimicry hub of Africa.
“Biomimicry is being hailed as an economic game-changer by the likes of Richard Branson, and it is such extraordinary individuals and companies that will be approached to fund this visionary project,” said Sue Swain, BioWise project coordinator. “It is anticipated that this world-first Biomimicry Discovery Park can do for the region and the country what the Eden Project has done for Cornwall and the UK – injecting life back into a depressed economy, serving as both a magnet and catalyst, while proving that it is more than possible to do really well by doing good,” enthused Swain.
Submitted to the National Lotteries Board (NLB) as a proposed “legacy project of national significance”, the NLDTF had the vision to recognize the legacy potential and to provide the initial support for this exciting, cutting edge concept and project. It is hoped that the NLDTF will extend their funding to co-fund the actual establishment of the Discovery Park, expected to cost in the region of R350 million.
“BioWise has been partnered administratively in this NLB project by the Port Elizabeth Early Learning Centre (PEELC) and will also work closely with them in terms of educational opportunities,” said Swain.
Knysna's Biomimicry Discovery Park is well on its way. A multi-disciplinary educational design charette was held at Belvidere Manor last week.
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