BIOMIMICRY and the future of sustainable African cities

Bridging traditional wisdom with modern innovation, biomimicry – a transformative approach to design that takes its cue from nature – is shaping sustainable African cities.

Africa’s cities are expanding at an unprecedented rate, bringing urgent challenges in housing, infrastructure and resource management. Africa’s urban population is expected to nearly triple by 2050, to about 1.34 billion, placing enormous stress on energy, water and waste systems amid a changing climate. Urban planners and architects across the continent are increasingly turning to biomimicry – the practice of emulating nature’s time-tested designs – as a powerful strategy for sustainable city development. This design philosophy resonates with Africa’s indigenous knowledge and biodiversity heritage, bridging traditional wisdom with modern innovation. By learning from ecosystems and organisms, cities can become more resilient, resource-efficient and harmonious with their surroundings.

Nature as a design mentor

Biomimicry offers a fresh lens for solving urban problems by asking, “How would nature do this?” Rather than relying solely on conventional engineering, biomimetic design looks to millions of years of evolution for inspiration. African ecosystems – from savannas to deserts and forests – provide a rich library of ideas for architects, engineers and planners. Designs that work with nature tend to be low-impact and regenerative by default, creating buildings and infrastructure that function more like living systems than inert structures. Notably, African vernacular architecture has intuitively embraced such principles for centuries – from thick adobe walls that keep desert homes cool (much like termite mounds) to pitched thatched roofs that shed heavy rain as leaves do. Today, modern designers are taking these age-old insights to new heights through deliberate biomimicry.

Biomimicry in action

One landmark example of biomimicry in architecture is the Eastgate Centre in Harare, Zimbabwe. Designed by architect Mick Pearce, this large office and shopping complex was inspired by the cooling mounds built by local termites.

Eastgate Centre’s internal climate is regulated through a system of chimney-like vents and air ducts that mimic a termite mound’s natural ventilation, eliminating the need for conventional air conditioning. This nature-inspired approach enables Eastgate to use 35% less energy than comparable buildings (with roughly 10% lower construction costs), thanks to passive cooling. Eastgate’s success clearly demonstrates the promise of biomimetic design in reducing energy demand and operating costs.

Water security is another critical concern for African cities, and here nature provides guidance as well. The Namib Desert beetle survives in one of the driest places on Earth by harvesting water from fog on its bumpy shell. Engineers have emulated this strategy with fog-catching nets and special hydrophilic surfaces that draw moisture from the air.

Arturo Vittori, www.warkawater.org

The Warka water tower in Ethiopia is a 9–10m bamboo structure with an internal mesh that collects moisture from the air. As fog or humid air passes through, droplets condense on the mesh and trickle down to a reservoir, providing a source of clean drinking water without any electricity. In optimal conditions, a single Warka tower can produce up to 100 litres of water per day, purely from fog, dew and rain. This low-cost, nature-inspired innovation offers rural communities an alternative to long walks for often-contaminated water. The design – a lightweight bamboo frame easily built by villagers – illustrates biomimicry’s potential to meet basic needs sustainably.

Biomimicry is also transforming community infrastructure. In the informal settlement of Langrug, Franschhoek, the Genius of Space project mimics wetlands to tackle sanitation. Planted reedbeds, trees, and artificial wetlands were installed to filter the settlement’s greywater (household wastewater), much as a natural marsh would. Channels and “living gutters” now slow and treat runoff, turning foul stagnation into a resource. Local residents co-designed and manage this mini-ecosystem, which improves water quality and creates green pockets in a previously barren area. This nature-inspired solution not only improves public health but fosters community stewardship akin to a living ecosystem, illustrating that sustainable innovation is feasible even in underserved neighbourhoods.

One notable implementation is the Zeekoeivlei Wetland Rehabilitation Project in Cape Town, where engineered wetlands are used to treat stormwater and improve biodiversity. This approach aligns with GBCSA’s Sustainable Precincts Tool, which evaluates developments based on environmental and ecological performance.

In nature, waste from one process becomes food for another. African cities are beginning to apply this circular model to manage waste sustainably. One exciting innovation is the use of black soldier fly (BSF) larvae for organic waste recycling. BSF larvae voraciously consume food scraps, manure and other organic refuse, converting it into protein-rich biomass (the larvae themselves) and a nutrient-dense compost byproduct. This biomimetic approach mirrors how insects break down detritus on a forest floor, turning waste into valuable inputs. Startups in Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria are deploying BSF composting to tackle urban organic waste. The larvae can reduce waste volume by up to 80%, while the harvested larvae serve as a sustainable animal feed (replacing costly fishmeal), and the residual frass is used as organic fertiliser. Importantly, BSF cultivation uses minimal water and land compared to traditional livestock or composting, making it a viable waste management solution.

Collectively, these examples show that biomimicry can operate at multiple scales – building, neighbourhood and city. Urban planners can even approach entire cities as living ecosystems by interweaving green corridors, permeable surfaces and wetlands to naturally manage stormwater, moderate temperatures and support biodiversity. In essence, biomimicry provides a toolkit for reimagining urban environments at every level, encouraging us to design cities that function more like coherent ecosystems.

The rise of biomimicry in African urban development aligns with sustainability frameworks. Green Star-certified projects exemplifying biomimicry, sustainable urban infrastructure and innovative design include examples like The Ridge (Cape Town, 6-Star Green Star Office V1.1 As-Built), which features a ‘living, breathing’ ventilation system inspired by natural airflow; Nobelia Tower (Kigali, Rwanda, 6-Star Green Star Office V1.1 Design), with a plant-lined facade for natural shading and on-site water recycling; and Hotel Verde (Cape Town, 6-Star Green Star EBP V1), which uses greywater recycling and rainwater harvesting for water conservation. Many other projects also incorporate nature-inspired sustainability strategies. The GBCSA Green Star Sustainable Precincts tool and latest Green Star New Build V2 tool explicitly rewards projects that integrate with nature. It features a new “Nature” category that measures a building’s ecological impact and regeneration, along with credits for energy efficiency, resilience and innovation that biomimetic strategies can fulfil.

Regenerative African cities

Embracing biomimicry is not just a design tactic but also a fundamental shift in mindset from conquering nature to learning from it. For African cities facing complex challenges, this approach can be transformative. The examples from termite mounds, desert beetles and wetlands illustrate that working with nature yields tangible benefits in energy savings, water security and livability. It also builds a sense of environmental stewardship by involving communities in design and upkeep. As cities strive to meet sustainability goals like SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities) and national climate commitments, biomimicry provides a practical bridge between ambition and implementation. Adopting nature’s blueprints now can even help fast-growing cities leapfrog past outdated, resource-intensive practices and avoid locking in unsustainable infrastructure.

Achieving this vision will require collaboration between architects, engineers, biologists and policymakers, with support from frameworks like those from GBCSA and other green building bodies to validate and scale these ideas. Ultimately, the goal is for cities to function like living ecosystems – self-sufficient, resilient and beneficial to their environment. The reward is a generation of African cities that not only meet sustainability benchmarks but actively regenerate their environment – cleaning the air, purifying water and fostering biodiversity – thereby inspiring the world by example. www.solidgreen.co.za