The biomimicrySA Team
Claire Janisch, Biomimicry Professional, founder, presenter, trainer & consultant biomimicrySA
Claire is a sustainability & innovation advisor and biomimicry professional. She is a graduate of and a co-trainer for the international 2-year biomimicry Professionals Program (BPCP). She currently heads up biomimicrySA. Claire works in the areas of strategy, technology & education and is the leading presenter, trainer and consultant for biomimicry in South Africa. She is also a co-creator of the Genius Lab in South Africa, an experiential learning organisation inspiring innovation and future thinking for organisations and individuals (children and adults). Claire proactively spreads the biomimicry meme in South Africa across different disciplines and levels (schools, universities, professionals) through both education & practice. Claire has a MSc.Chem-Eng in the field of Environmental Process Engineering and has worked across Africa as a consultant in: Environmental Technology, Sustainable Energy & Climate Change, Cleaner Production, Sustainable Urban Design, Integrated Waste Management, Sustainable Agricultural Practices, Eco-labeling, Environmental Management & Environmental Education.
Will Lawson, local naturalist & trainer biomimicrySA
Will is biomimicrySA’s leading local naturalist and serves as a trainer for biomimicrySA. Will has been running the safari department in the Sabi Sand Wildtuin, on Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve for the past 2 years. He spends most of his time training new guides and aiding existing guides on on-going development. His passion for the marine environment is growing as well, with regular excursion to costal areas to dive. He has recently achieved the Dive Master qualification and hopes to be an instructor in 2011 to help others gain access to this breathtaking environment. Will hosted Janine Benyus during her visit to Sabi Sabi in 2009, and has since been trained to serve as a Biologist at the Design Table and co-trainer for biomimicry workshops and courses in South Africa.
Gamelihle Sibanda, local presenter & Biomimicry Professional in training, Chief Technical Advisor, United Nations, Pretoria, South Africa
Gamelihle functions in multiple configurations; technical, business, environmental, creative and humanitarian. His goal is to learn and apply Biomimicry principles to contribute to development of products and processes that will revolutionize how certain things will be done globally. Gamelihle is the second South African, to be selected for the international Biomimicry Professional training. He began the training in January 2011 and will complete it in January 2013. Gama also serves on the biomimicrySA Advisory Group.
Justin Beswick, biomimicrySA innovator
Justin is a high impact entrepreneur based in the Silicon Cape. He has a background in Biotechnology, Financial Analysis & Portfolio Management and the ‘school of life’ as an entrepreneur. Justin’s primary passion is where technology and biomimicry intersect. He also aims to enable others by transferring his fortunate knowledge and experiences gained from incubators, business competitions and business-startup learning’s to other aspiring entrepreneurs – with the larger goal of facilitating the development of entrepreneurship in his phenomenal home country, South Africa. Justin’s life philosophy is: Have Fun. Create Value. Change Lives.
Bernelle Verster, biomimicrySA Water Maverick
Bernelle, known as the Water Maverick, is currently doing her PhD at the Centre for Bioprocess Engineering Research (CeBER) at the University of Cape Town, rethinking the engineering industry with the help of Biomimicry. This is only a small part of how she actually spends her time. In 2011, two other initiatives contributed to her water related activities – TEDxCapeTown and the Moola for Amanzi Business Concept Competition. Bernelle believes an integrated approach to education, waste management and profitability is achievable. Her company, Merah Mas Industrial Biotech, aims to combine adventure sport and tourism to educate both tourists and the local public about science, while making it fun. She believes wastewater treatment can be used to aesthetic effect in a landscaping application while educating about biotechnology and contributing to service delivery. So far, the most useful approach has been to work with existing companies and groups and bring people and projects together to achieve this, to create an ecosystem of cooperative relationships. Ultimately, she aims to develop the production of valuable (bio)products, specifically biopolymers from wastewater in the near future.
Tessa Rayner, local presenter & Gauteng biomimicry network catalyst
Tessa Rayner is a graduate of the 2009 Biomimicry & Design Course held in South Africa with Janine Benyus as lead trainer. She is one of the core team establishing biomimicry in South Africa and for giving presentations on biomimicry in Gauteng. She was one of the first cohort of students to obtain a Masters in Sustainable Development from the Sustainability Institute in Stellenbosch and has worked as a researcher for the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) on a number of projects. Tessa Rayner has supported Claire Janisch in engaging with local high schools, initiating the Johannesburg Zoo Biomimizoo Project, and establishing the biomimicry network in Johannesburg.
Elspeth Donovan, Cape Town biomimicry network catalyst, biomimicrySA Advisory Group
Elspeth completed the biomimicry & design workshop with Janine Benyus in South Africa in 2009 and has since played a leading role in co-ordinating and hosting the biomimicry network in Cape Town. Elspeth also serves on the Advisory Group for biomimicrySA. She has been the Development Director of the Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership (CPSL) in the Southern African office since November 2008. From 2003-2006 she was the director of the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School MBA. She was instrumental in the introduction of the Modular MBA programme and introduced ‘The Role of Business in Society’ as an integrating course on the MBA with a strong emphasis on sustainable business practice being the underpinning philosophy of the programme. At UCT she co-taught an MBA elective called ‘Social Entrepreneurship’, which exposes the students to hands on experience of working with enterprises creating social and financial value. She regularly supervises MBA theses in the broad area of Social Enterprise. She designed and directed various leadership programmes for companies through the UCT Graduate School of Business. She has a BSc (biochemistry) and an MBA from University of Cape Town.
Ruenda Odendaal, local presenter & Stellenbosch biomimicry network catalyst
Ruenda completed her MSc. Biochemistry (main focus: proteins and enzymes) in 2009 at Stellenbosch University. She has been a presenter at MFM 92.6, Stellenbosch’s community radio station, since 2005. For the past two years she has also worked as the station’s community coordinator and has managed several projects (fundraisers and awareness campaigns). Ruenda joined the Sustainability Institute staff in June 2010 as project coordinator for the publication, Sustainable Stellenbosch by 2030. She is passionate about nature and people. Since completing the backyard biomimicry workshop at the 2 Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town and then the expedition biomimicry & design workshop at Tilodi in South Africa 2010, she has played a leading role coordinating the Cape Town and Stellenbosch biomimicry networks. She also gives presentations on biomimicry in the Western Cape. She is aims to begin her phD in biomimicry & water treatment at the University of Stellenbosch beginning April 2011.
Lorna Fuller, Gauteng biomimicry network catalyst, Joburg Zoo
Employed by the Johannesburg Zoo for the past 18 years, starting as a keeper and working towards a Senior Manager of Nutrition. Recently “Environment” has also been added to her title as the Zoo is working towards becoming an environmentally aware citizen. She has a BTech in Nature Conservation and is searching for an interesting topic to complete an MBA. Lorna attended a biomimicry workshop in 2010 and became a fan of Biomimicry, wanting to encourage other people to learn about Life’s Principles. This has helped forge a partnership with the Zoo for hosting the Johannesburg Biomimicry network talks and workshops and hopefully, more Zoo products linked to ideas and aspects of Biomimicry in the future!
Nadia Hansa, Gauteng biomimicry network catalyst, Joburg Zoo & Biologist @ Design Table
Nadia is a zoology student at Wits university who is passionate about animals and all of nature. She has been a volunteer and tourguide at the Johannesburg Zoo for the past 6 years and has had the opportunity to work with many amazing creatures and experience their genius close up. Nadia was introduced to biomimicry at a 3day workshop held at the zoo in 2010 and has since been on 2 other workshops at Tilodi and in the Cederberg. She believes biomimicry is the most promising way forward for ourselves and our planet and is excited to include it in everything she does starting with tours at the zoo so that she can spread the word and inspire new biomimics. Nadia has also helped to set up the Johannesburg biomimicry network meetings at the Zoo and serves as a biology resource for biomimicry workshops in South Africa.
Susan Swain, Naturally Knysna, Discovery Park
Sue Swain has had an interest in Biomimicry since 2004 and attended the Biomimicry in Design Workshop with Janine Benyus in September 2009. Motivated by the belief that biomimicry is something that can be applied in all areas of our lives, Sue has been working on a model for the Garden Route town of Knysna based on the principles, strategies and processes of a natural system. These principles have been distilled into a model to help Knysna “function like a forest”. The model can be used to guide how we run our businesses, live our lives, plan and run the town, and solve any number of problems from design challenges to tourism-related issues. Sue has also just received funding from the National Lotteries Board, from a funding proposal submitted in 2005, to coordinate the research and design of and fund-raise for the establishment for a Biomimicry Discovery Park. This will essentially be a public education facility and eco-tourism attraction rolled into one very interactive, fun and engaging park designed to immerse people in the fascinating world of nature and reveal how we can draw lessons from all we see around us.
Matthew Rosmarin, television and media
Matthew has completed two training courses in biomimicry, one of which was facilitated by Janine Benyus in South Africa in 2009. He co-produced the documentary of Janine Benyus’s visit to South Africa, titled Second Nature – The Biomimicry Evolution. This documentary has recently been screened at the Big Sky Film Festival in Montana. Matthew has also presented on biomimicry at various events in South Africa and is developing further local television and film opportunities for Biomimicry in Africa. His company, Talent Attack TV has adopted a stance of solely delivering content that speaks to key issues of responsible global citizenship. Matthew’s latest TV escapades took him to Antarctica and its surrounds where he was selected as one of three presenters for a 13 part reality TV series with the aim of creating awareness around climate change.
BiomimicrySA Advisory Group
Bruce Snaddon, Cape Peninsula University of Technology Design Department
Gamelihle Sibanda, United Nations, Civil Engineer, Biomimicry Professional in training
Elspeth Donovan, Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership
Sarshen Marais, Climate Action Partnership
Kiruben Naicker, Department of Environmental Affairs, Head Biodiversity Planning
Guy Lieberman, Second Nature & Draft FCB
Malcolm Douglas, Enviroskills Training
Lisa Smith, Unilever Ventures
Claire Weerepas, Head Life Sciences, St.Alban’s College
Margie Smith, TAFTA Fundraising