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Guest Speakers

speaking at our Bioinspiration Summer School to be held at the Concarneau Marine Station, in Brittany, France, from the 11th to the 22nd August 2025

Credit: Tony Jouanneau

Annabelle Aish is Project Lead for ‘Bioinspire-Museum’, a crosscutting initiative launched in 2019 to coordinate, support and promote bioinspiration at the French Natural History Museum. Originally a Geographer, she took an aquatic turn towards tropical marine science which ultimately led her to pursue a career in marine biodiversity conservation for over 15 years. She has worked on a variety of marine issues including coral reef conservation, sustainable fisheries, marine protected area creation and management, and the development of indicators to assess the ecological status of marine habitats under European Directives. Between 2004 and 2011, she worked for the British government scientific agency responsible for nature conservation. Between 2011 and 2019, she was head of the Marine team at the French Natural Heritage Service (OFB/MNHN/CNRS). Her objective for ‘Bioinspire-Museum’ is to ensure that all forms of bioinspiration, from molecular to ecosystem level approaches are carried out in ways that contribute to the preservation of biodiversity and to sustainable development.

Marie Albéric is a CNRS researcher at the Laboratoire Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Paris at Sorbonne Université. Her research focuses on the color of biominerals, particularly on understanding the pigmentation mechanisms of mineralized tissues in sea urchins. She is developing extraction and purification protocols of organic pigments and associate macromolecules present in sea urchin skeleton waste and is elaborating bio-inspired syntheses of organic-inorganic hybrid pigments based these bio-sourced molecules.

In 1987, Peter Aerts obtained a PhD in Sciences (Biology) at the University of Ghent (BE). He studied the morphology, function and biomechanics of complex musculo-skeletal systems. In 1989 he moved to the University of Antwerp (BE, former UIA) funded by the National Science Foundation (later FWO-Fl). He was a Research Director of the FWO-Fl until 2000. Since then he is employed by the University of Antwerpen (BE). In 2002 he became the head of the Research Group of Functional Morphology (FunMorph). Peter Aerts also was a Visiting Professor at the Department of Movement and Sports Sciences of the UGhent (BE) since 2002. Per 1 October 2024, Peter Aerts is retired. However, he remains officially linked to the FunMorph-lab and further takes up teaching duties in zoology this academic year. His research (together with co-workers) focused on form, function and control of the musculo-skeletal systems with primary attention to the locomotor system. Animals and humans were studied. Investigations were primarily lab-based and employed techniques such as RX-imaging, micro-CT-scanning, EMG, 3D-reconstruction, high speed filming, biomechanical modelling, kinematics, computational fluid dynamics, finite element modelling, optimisation simulations, etc.. The goal was and is to study explicitly the mechanistic basis of biological performance in order to gain causal insights into the links between morphological variation (form) and differential performance (function).

Anick Abourachid is Professor of Functional Anatomy at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris. She works on the evolution of animal form in relation to their lifestyle and environment. Birds are her main study model for the understanding of the functioning of the musculoskeletal system. She uses a biology-robotics approach to model principles identified in birds and test their performance of prototypes. She is also exploring ways of using bioinspiration to develop more energy-efficient technologies in the context of sustainable development. She was in charge of the collection in the Comparative Anatomy Gallery for 20 years.

Professor Nadia Améziane is the former head of the Concarneau Marine Station (2013-2023) and the first woman to have directed a marine research station in France. A specialist in echinoderms (crinoids, starfish, sea cucumbers etc.) at the French Natural History Museum, she researches their taxonomy, phylogenetics and adaptation strategies. She also studies the biogeographic distributions of marine benthic fauna across the globe (Antarctic, N. Atlantic and Indo-Pacific). Nadia has been actively involved in the field of bioinspiration for over a decade, organising annual conferences on marine biotechnology, biomimetics and related domains. She is also engaged in training and education initiatives at all levels, encouraging the next generation of biologists and designers to understand, appreciate and be inspired by marine biodiversity.

An engineering graduate from the Université de Technologie de Compiègne (UTC) in Urban Systems Engineering and Innovative Project Management, Hugo is passionate about biomimicry and its potential applications in engineering. He has over ten years of experience in the biomimicry field and remains convinced of the opportunities offered by biomimicry to build a sustainable future. Hugo has worked on biomimicry training programmes and regional strategies development for CEEBIOS, and as a Biomimicry Specialist at the Institute for Desirable Futures.

Chris Broeckhoven is the founder of EvomimetiX and associate researcher at the University of Antwerp. He completed his PhD in Zoology at Stellenbosch University in 2015, after which he began his research on biomimetics as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Functional Morphology lab of the University of Antwerp and later at the European Space Agency's Advanced Concepts Team. Chris focuses on leveraging biodiversity and evolutionary processes to address contemporary human challenges, while considering the practical, ethical, and philosophical implications of nature-inspired technological innovations.

Tarik Chekchak is a scientist who enjoys building bridges between biology and other disciplines. For 13 years, he applied his systemic approach to the Cousteau team as the Director of "Science and Environment," leading integrated coastal and marine zone management projects that considered socio-economic, cultural, and environmental aspects. In February 2018, he became the Director of the Living Systems Strategy Division at the Institut des Futurs Souhaitables, dedicating his energy to accelerating the emergence of high-value innovations inspired by living systems and compatible with our living planet. A hands-on professional who supports organizations in their CSR strategies and eco-design initiatives, Tarik is also a speaker and teaches in several engineering and business schools, as well as in professional training programs and companies. Passionate about polar ecosystems, he has been leading Arctic and Antarctic expeditions for over twenty years.

Estelle Cruz has been graduated architect and holds a PhD in Ecology from the Natural History Museum of Paris. Her thesis, *“Multi-criteria Characterization of Biological Envelopes: Towards the Development of Bio-inspired Facades,”* was conducted within the CEEBIOS and MECADEV laboratories at the museum. In 2016, she embarked on a one-year world tour exploring biomimicry in architecture, collaborating on research projects in Zimbabwe, at Kyoto University, MIT, and the University of Victoria in New Zealand. From 2017 to 2021, she joined CEEBIOS, where she co-developed training in bio-inspired architecture, supported the development of bio-inspired buildings, and advanced design methodologies in biomimicry. She is currently conducting research on the representation of nature in visual arts as a postdoctoral researcher in the Arts and Sciences departments at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

Emmanuel Delannoy is a dad, a cyclist and a poet. He is also one of the pioneers of biomimicry in France and promoter of the concept of "Permaeconomy". He has been supporting the transformation of organizations for over 20 years. He is a member of the board of the French committee of the IUCN, president of INTER-MADE and author of several books devoted to the links between economy and biodiversity: "Economy explained to humans", "Biomimethics", "Permaeconomy" and "Les Turbulents". He was also rapporteur for the Ministry of the Environment, Energy and the Sea with the report "Biodiversity, an opportunity for economic development and job creation".

Henry Dicks works as an environmental philosopher at University Jean Moulin Lyon 3. A specialist in the philosophy of biomimicry, he is the author of The Biomimicry Revolution: Learning from Nature how to Inhabit the Earth (New York: Columbia University Press, 2023) and has published articles on this topic in a wide variety of journals, including Philosophy of Science, Philosophy and Technology, and Environmental Ethics. He is also a member of the UN Harmony with Nature Programme and co-pilots the Committee for Ethics and Environmental Responsibility at the CEEBIOS, France’s leading biomimicry institute.

Prof. dr. Els Du Bois is a research professor (ZAPBOF) at the University of Antwerp, faculty of Design Sciences, department of Product Development in Belgium. She completed her PhD in Industrial Design Engineering at the Delft University of Technolog, The Netherlands, in 2013. Since 2019, she has the responsibility to install and manage the new research domain of ecodesign and design for a circular economy. Her special interest is on the designerly optimization of circular product usage and extension of product lifetime and product reuse. Through her REuseLab, she is supporting companies in the successful implementation of reusable products. She is also co-coordinator of the MSCA-DN project Nature4Nature, which shows her desire to understand the development of products that support the regeneration of nature. Moreover, she educates, coaches, and engages students in designing sustainable products and futures within the bachelor and master programs of product development and industrial engineering. Lastly, she is a proud mother of two world explorers.

Karim El Kirat received multidisciplinary training in biochemistry and biological physical chemistry, complemented by advanced studies in nanobioengineering. He is currently a full professor at the University of Technology of Compiègne (UTC), specialized in the fields of nanobioengineering, biomimicry, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). He conducts innovative research on the application of biomimicry principles to develop nature-inspired materials and systems, with a particular focus on nanoscale solutions. His expertise in AFM allows him to explore the properties of surfaces and materials at atomic resolution. He actively collaborates on multidisciplinary projects combining engineering and biology for sustainable technological advances, mainly in the field of healthcare.

Claire François-Martin earned her PhD in biophysics from ENS Paris, focusing on membrane fusion. During her doctoral studies, she also spent several months working at Yale University's Medical School. Following this, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in materials science at ETH Zurich. At Ceebios, she assists companies in their innovation efforts through biomimicry and leads the BiOMIg axis which focuses on the characterization of biological materials.

Alessio Gerola is PhD candidate in philosophy of technology in the Philosophy Group at Wageningen University, where he explores the philosophical and ethical implications of biomimicry as sustainable design principle. He is part of the Ethics of Socially Disruptive Technologies (ESDiT) research project, a large consortium programme that investigates the ways in which new and emerging technologies are disrupting concepts and values we use to make sense of them.

A graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure de Création Industrielle (ENSCI-Les Ateliers, accredited by the Conférence des Grandes Écoles) in partnership with the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Guillian is a designer. He heads the Big Bang Project, an agency that brings together designers, engineers and scientists to develop innovative, bio-inspired solutions for tomorrow's lifestyles. He is also a teacher and head of the Master of science Nature-Inspired Design at ENSCI-Les Ateliers, a contributor to the Centre de Recherche en Design (ENSCI-Les Ateliers & ENS Paris Saclay) and a lecturer on subjects such as bio-inspiration, biomimicry and biodesign. ​ ​Guillian's innovative work has been presented at over two hundred and fifty conferences in Europe, the United States, Asia and the Middle East. They have also been exhibited in twenty-one cities and nine different countries, from the MAK Museum Vienna in Austria to New York Design Week and the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and are regularly featured and cited as references in the international print media and specialized books. These projects have been featured in Wired Magazine, Usbek & Rica, Le Monde and publications such as Les Ruptures Fertiles - Design et innovation disruptive and 75 designers pour un monde durable. Last but not least, this work is regularly featured in television and radio documentaries, such as the documentaries Rêver le Futur and Objectif 2050 broadcast on Planète+, or the documentary series Nature=Futur! season 1 and season 2. In 2024, Vogue magazine selected Guillian for its list of 100 innovators of the year.

Thibaut Houette is a French Architect and Doctor in Integrated Bioscience from The University of Akron. Captivated by natural designs, his various biomimicry research projects span multiple scales from studying tensile structures inspired by spider webs, to translating biological strategies to improve sustainable water management in buildings and abstracting natural ecosystems for the organization of temporary events. He obtained his PhD conducting research on ways to implement biological growth into architecture at the Biomimicry Research and Innovation Center. In this regard, he explored the use of myceliated material for building façades and abstracting root growth principles for building foundations. He recently joined Ceebios to apply his multidisciplinary expertise to transfer biological strategies to architectural and industrial R&D in order to accelerate the ecological transition.

Cédric Hubas, marine ecologist and professor at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN), has developed a scientific career intimately linked to marine stations. His career began at the Roscoff and Wimereux biological stations, where he carried out his first doctoral studies. These sites, emblematic of marine research in France, enabled him to lay the foundations for his studies on marine microorganisms. His career then took on an international dimension, with a role as lab manager at the Gatty Marine Laboratory (now the Scottish Ocean Institute) at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. This marine station is not only a place of advanced research, but also a crossroads for international collaboration, consolidating his skills in team management and applied marine ecology. Recruited by the MNHN in 2008, he first joined the Paris site at the Jardin des Plantes, before returning to the field in 2016, joining the Concarneau marine station, also part of the MNHN. This station became a new nerve center for his research into the role of microorganisms in coastal ecosystems, their metabolism and their response to environmental changes, such as light and salinity. It also focuses on the impacts of climate change on these micro-ecosystems, providing essential knowledge for the preservation of coastal environments in the face of today's ecological challenges.

Born and raised in France, Rachel Rosenkrantz is a luthier and designer based in Rhode Island. Exploring new techniques in her field, she brings a unique perspective to a traditional idiom with a strong focus on sustainability, and particularly with biomaterials; after working in the innovation team at Phillips. When not at her workbench, Rachel teaches Spatial Dynamiques at the Experimental and Foundation Studies Division at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her work has been included in Phaidon’s “The Shape of Sound”, and has been exhibited at Le Carrousel du Louvre at the “European ways of Life”. She has presented a gallery talk at The Metropolitan Museum of Art for “Play it Loud”, and has been featured in Anthony Bourdain’s “Raw Craft” as well as Autodesk’s “My Design Mind”.

Amir Lebdioui, Director of the Centre of Technology and Industrialisation for Development, University of Oxford

Jean-Michel Scheuren is a sustainability-driven professional dedicated to fostering innovation through nature-inspired solutions. As co-founder and CEO of Novobiom, he leads the development of fungal-based technologies to address environmental challenges and promote a circular economy. With a background in business engineering and a Master's in Environmental Science and Management, Jean-Michel bridges the gap between business strategy and ecological responsibility. His career spans diverse sectors, including renewable energy, and biotech startups, where he has consistently championed sustainable practices. Jean-Michel also serves as a startup and business coach, guiding entrepreneurs in building sustainable ventures. He has contributed to projects focused on biomimicry and the development of sustainable business models.

Thomas Speck studied biology at the University of Freiburg (PhD 1990) and received 1996 the venia legendi for botany & biophysics. After a visiting professorship at the University of Vienna he was offered professorships at the Humboldt-University in Berlin and at the University of Freiburg where he acted from 2002 until 2006 associate professor for ‘Botany’ and director of the Botanic Garden. After declining the offer of a full professorship and the directorship in general of the Botanic Garden at the Freie University Berlin he became in 2006 full professor for ‘Botany: Functional Morphology and Biomimetics’ in Freiburg. He is spokesperson of the Cluster of Excellence "Living, Adaptive, and Energy-autonomous Materials Systems (livMatS)" and of the Competence Network Biomimetics. Thomas Speck is member of the Board of Directors of the Freiburg Center for Interactive Materials and Bio-Inspired Technologies (FIT) and a scientific member of the Materials Research Centre Freiburg (FMF). He received several scientific awards, is (co-)editor of several scientific books and journals and has published more than 370 scientific articles in peer reviewed Journals & Books in the fields of functional morphology, biomechanics, biomimetics, soft robotics and soft machines, evolutionary biology and palaeobotany.

Saskia is co-founder and Director of biomimicryNL and a Certified Biomimicry Professional with over 30 years of experience in change management, strategic innovation, communications and biomimicry. With a variety of Fortune 500 companies, Saskia catalyzes innovation by enabling others to explore life’s design strategies to develop new ideas into real business opportunities and value models. As a vivid storyteller and systems thinker, she shares her passion for biomimicry and how learning from nature may help address the challenges our society faces today. Through training, lecturing and consulting, Saskia proactively spreads the practice of biomimicry across various disciplines. Since 2010, Saskia built a strong biomimicry network in the Netherlands and abroad, inspired thousands of individuals through talks, lectures and workshops around Europe, and worked with hundreds of organizations, governments, schools and universities. Her fascination with nature was born on the coast of The Hague where she still loves to go - but nowadays she can also greatly appreciate the green surroundings of the middle of the country.

Prof. Ann Vanreusel is member of the Marine Biology research group at Ghent University. She studied biology at Hasselt University (candidature) from 1980-1982. Then she went to the UGent to complete her licentiate studies in 1984. At the research group Marine Biology she could start a PhD in 1984 which she defended in 1989 on the ecology of the benthic communities in the Dutch delta region. As a post-doctoral researcher at UGent, she focused on deep-sea research, especially in the context of various European projects. She has more than 250 scientific publications in this field, while she was principal scientists for various campaigns to the European margins from Portugal to Greenland. From 2000 onwards, she was appointed lecturer and is now a full professor at UGent, where she teaches co-organizes and teaches the inter-university course in marine and lacustrine sciences and management.

Prof. Van Wassenbergh is a tenure track lecturer at the Laboratory for Functional Morphology of the Department of Biology (faculty of Sciences) at the University of Antwerp. He is specialized in the analysis of the biomechanics and functional morphology of vertebrate animals by combining experimental work with model simulations. The study of the biomechanics and evolution of cranial musculoskeletal systems is the main theme of his current research projects.

Born in London and raised in Jamaica, Steven studied biology at Western University and architecture at the Architectural Association. As a partner in ArtBuild Architects, he leads the development and application of bio-adaptive design principles, seeking new ways to merge ethics and aesthetics. Winner of numerous design awards, Europe-based ArtBuild Architects has an in-house laboratory where architects work alongside biologists, academics, industry and research groups to develop biomimetic concepts that can be transferred to everyday building practice. An early adopter of solid wood, ArtBuild Architects has already completed several landmark projects and continues to push the boundaries in Europe and North Africa. Steven lectures extensively on topics linking biology to the built environment, exploring the deeper nature of the intelligence that informs architects and the construction sector in general.

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