I’ve always had a curiosity and interest in the human psyche and behavioural economics, unpacking how and why people behave the way they do. However, during my time at Londolozi, I have translated and imposed this curiosity onto the animals and wildlife we observe each and every day;  attempting to understand more of the ‘whys’ surrounding animal behaviour.

Every day is a day of learning and observing new behaviours and trying to unpack or piece together understandings of why animals behave the way they do, and how they evolved to be. The more we observe, the more my eyes open to the incredibly sophisticated, complex and interdependent web of connections between and among species and ecosystems in this natural world.

The start of every morning game drive offers endless possibilities of what we may encounter and witness. If you open yourself up to this potential, no game drive is ever boring as there is always something for nature to teach us.

So aligned with the above curiosity, I recently listened to an interview between three incredibly influential women that I wanted to share. Here they discuss the profound connections between the Circular Economy, Biomimicry and Doughnut Economics. I thought that sharing it here would encourage me to continue my own reading and research and to use this platform to share further insights or interesting stories that are shaping these fields of expertise. So stay tuned for more on these topics!

Even though these topics may seem like foreign concepts to some, I truly believe that these fields of research and schools of thought are core to the future stability of our planet, and will eventually become common language amongst sustainable businesses and global economic growth strategies around the world (if they aren’t already!).

While Circular Economics, Biomimicry and Doughnut Economics are three different concepts, I wanted to provide a brief explanation of their differences while also highlighting their profound interconnectedness.

Drawing inspiration from nature is everywhere you look… Whether it be looking at the dynamic anatomy of an elephant’s trunk and its practical abilities, or simply looking at a trunk’s versatility and thinking about how and why elephants evolved to have such a multi-faceted limb.

Biomimicry

“Biomimicry is innovation inspired by nature.  A sustainable world already exists. It is right outside and we just need to look to nature and get inspiration.” – Janine Benyus.

After writing books on wildlife and animal behaviour, Janine Benyus coined the term Biomimicry to describe intentional problem-solving design inspired by nature. As a pioneer in an emerging discipline, she is inspiring and challenging people from all faculties (engineers, architects, data scientists, creatives) to look to the natural world for inspiration in design and processes to create a healthier, more sustainable planet.

While it may just look like a dirt mound to some, the complex design and underworld of the fungus-growing termite mounds are inspiring sustainable architects. There is always more than meets the eye when out on safari…

Doughnut Economics

“By definition, “economics” is in essence simply “the art of household management”. I believe people today should not be taught economics based on a core understanding of the supply and demand of a market, but rather with a core understanding of the living world in order for us to understand the household to which we are all part of.” – Kate Raworth.

Kate Raworth is a renegade economist who is known for developing an economic model that balances between essential human needs and planetary boundaries.

As pictured below, her model enables us to recognize that there are life-supporting systems on which we depend, and these systems create the outside ring and ecological ceiling of the doughnut (ozone layer depletion, climate change etc). But at the same time, if 10 billion people are to thrive together on this planet, there is an inner limit (i.e. human rights) of every person that also needs to be considered; and so the challenge is to find and maintain some sort of balance…

The Doughnut.

So, to thrive, we cannot simply look at endless economic growth, but rather redefine growth to “meet the needs of all people within means of the living planet”.

Circular Economics

“The circular economy is a system where materials never become waste and nature is regenerated. In a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes like maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling, and composting.” – Ellen MacArthur

Ellen MacArthur is an advocate and founder of a foundation promoting a global shift away from the traditional linear economic models. Similar to the core purpose of the Doughnut, Ellen supports that future sustainability and success in this world will come from tweaking our current linear economic thinking to circular models that focus on regenerative and restorative systems.

Harnessing Renewable energy and reducing our footprint…

In Layman’s Terms…

Basically, my takeaway from the above fields of research is that all three concepts are pulling us in the same direction and speaking to the same future vision… one that RELIES ON NATURE’S BALANCE AND THE NATURAL WORLD FOR ANSWERS AND INSPIRATION.

In summary:

• The Doughnut is a goal for where humanity wants to get to: the needs of all within the needs of the planet.
• Biomimicry teaches us how the planet works, and how can we learn from the best designers that have been around for millennia.
• The Circular Economy is a powerful methodology for explaining how we need to go from a degenerative system that we’ve inherited to regeneratively designed ecosystems and economies.

Londolozi and its ethos, in my opinion, already tries to encapsulate the models described by Janine Benyus, Kate Raworth and Ellen MacArthur. So here’s to continuing to build “regenerative and restorative designs”!

What struck me from listening to these three women collide in discussion and debate on their respective topics was that these disciplines are all very ‘easy’ to discuss and talk about, but very difficult to implement into actual life as first-movers. Regenerative Design as an idea and way of business and learning that is still very much in the incubation phase for many societies and businesses…

But I do believe that we are only going to see these concepts integrate into societies and economies more and more in the years to come. And the reality is that we will be reverting back to the natural world for answers more and more!