This might seem a bit an odd place for our Biomimcry workshop to take place, but as would become apparent later on, InterfaceFlor has strong roots in "Life's Principles".
Our first assignment was to define the function of our design. This meant understanding what various functions water fullfills. Not only that, but we also brainstormed about functions of possible designs (i.e purification, storage, etc.).
The next step was to biologize. This meant formulating the functions in terms of a question you could "ask" nature. (For example on www.asknature.org) This lead to questions like: How does nature purify? How does nature collect? After had formulated these questions, we immediately found a wealth of information on how plants and animals gather and process food, and it became clear to us how important the water-cycle is for every species survival.
As humans we have always pretended that all the resources in the world are ours for the take. We greedily take and selfishly keep. We have to start realizing that in if we want to live in a sustainable world we cannot keep all the resources for ourselves. We take away the chance for life to grow and evolve and we will stand alone in this world with no other lifeform to share our joy.
At InterfaceFlor they have started the journey to sustainability. Their motto is to become self-sufficient and be to leave a footprint as small as possible. They maximize recycling and clean energy harvesting, while trying to keep competitive; and succeeding at that.
This is our first contact with a company which has already started implementing life's circle, and it is a great example for everyone who wishes to embark on the same journey.
