Ecology for territorial design and biomimetics

The functioning of natural systems is mandatory to be known when we want to design in the territory. This is important to understand the potential impacts and consequences of our actions on natural environment. In addition, studying the wide variability of shapes, sizes and structural details of natural world can help us to investigate the concept of structure in Nature, offering valuable information on the form-function relationship in the project and on the efficiency principles governing Nature. At the same time, the acquisition of awareness on natural environmental complexity raises the urgency to explore adaptation strategies in a changing environment. In this contribution I report the study case of the Department of Architecture, Design and Urban Planning of the University of Sassari, where Ecology is tough to students of the degree courses of Architecture and Design. In Architecture, the functioning of natural systems is investigated to understand the urgent need to preserve them, also in light of the climatic crisis on-going. Selected ecosystems are analysed with the collection and interpretation of scientific data to recognize possible anthropic impacts and evaluate restoration and management activities. In Design, starting from the analysis and interpretation of scientific data on phytoplankton ecology, students apply the acquired knowledge on natural principles to possible design applications with a biomimetic approach. Design solutions inspired by phytoplankton ecology are validated with the construction of experimental models and prototypes. In both courses, Nature itself is considered as a model of environmental sustainability