Computer mouses, software bugs, Blackberry phones, the cloud… digital technologies have drawn inspiration from nature for decades. Unfortunately, these technologies haven’t benefited nature all that much. At MozFest House Amsterdam 2024, we teamed up with Judith Veenkamp from the Urban Ecology Lab at Waag to host a creative ideation workshop about how we could design regenerative technology, using regenerative techniques seen in nature as inspirational starting points.
Technology & Ecology
The workshop began with an introduction to the design principles of Permacomputing, a concept and community of practice inspired by permaculture that explores regeneration and resilience opportunities for digital technologies. Permacomputing aims to challenge the significant environmental and societal issues facing today’s world of computing. This conceptual foundation helped prepare the workshop participants to brainstorm their ideas about how to design regenerative technology.
Non-human Collaboration Partners
Two non-human collaborators were then introduced to the session to join the brainstorm: a leafcutter ant and mycelium. These species joined with a depth of knowledge and experience on how to build regenerative systems and relationships. Each group first got to know their new non-human team member before jumping into ideating about how to redesign technology in a more regenerative way. Brainstorming included rethinking hardware, software, visual elements, servers, algorithms, and more – whatever the group was inspired to create.
Outcomes & Reflections
Many noteworthy ideas came about during the workshop, such as how we could build a decentralised network of community-based servers. But one conversation stood out the most. It was about the fact that regenerative systems in nature often include reciprocal relationships. For example, the leafcutter ant and its cohabitating fungal species share a mutually beneficial agreement: The ants protect and feed the fungus with leaf cuttings, and in return, the fungus provides the ants with the sustenance they need. Without each other, they would not survive.
This idea sparked discussion in the room, as we reflected on how extractive our technology infrastructure is. We take rare earth metals without replenishment, build energy-hungry data centres without giving back to the land, dig up the seafloor for internet cables without care for other organisms’ habitat, and the list could go on… This idea of designing technology in a way that is mutually beneficial with other organisms was inspiring. It was a sign of hope that we can do better.