Janine M. Benyus (born 1958) is an American writer, expert in helping businesses innovate, and author. After writing books about wildlife and animal behavior, she created the term Biomimicry to describe a method of solving problems by copying designs found in nature. Her book Biomimicry (1997) received a lot of attention from people working in design, architecture, engineering, and science. Benyus explains that using biomimetic methods can help designers create products that work better, cost less, use less energy, and help companies avoid legal problems.

Life

Benyus was born in New Jersey. She earned degrees in natural resource management and English literature/writing from Rutgers University with highest honors. She has taught writing courses and given lectures at the University of Montana. She has helped restore and protect wild lands. She is a member of several groups in her rural county that make decisions about land use. She is president of Living Education, a nonprofit organization that focuses on learning connected to local environments. Benyus currently lives in Stevensville, Montana.

Biomimicry

Janine Benyus is sometimes called the "Godmother of Biomimicry." She has written many books about animals and their behavior. Her most famous book is Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature (1997). In this book, she explains that humans should copy nature’s smart designs when creating new inventions. She encourages people to ask, "What would Nature do?" and to study natural shapes, processes, and ecosystems to find solutions that work well and last a long time.

Benyus emphasizes sustainability in biomimicry. She describes this idea as "Conditions Conducive to Life" (CCL). She explains that living things in nature have evolved ways to work without harming themselves or their environment. For example, nature uses sunlight as energy, only uses what it needs, matches form to function, recycles everything, encourages teamwork, values variety, uses local knowledge, controls overuse, and uses limits to stay balanced.

In 1998, Benyus and Dayna Baumeister started the Biomimicry Guild, a company that helps people learn from nature to create sustainable products, processes, and policies that support life.

In 2006, Benyus, Dayna Baumeister, and Bryony Schwan founded the Biomimicry Institute, a non-profit group. Its goal is to spread biomimicry ideas by sharing biological strategies with human systems. In 2008, the institute launched AskNature.org, a website that lists natural solutions to common design problems. By 2020, the institute connected over 12,576 members in 36 regional groups and 21 countries through its Biomimicry Global Network.

In 2010, Benyus, Dayna Baumeister, Bryony Schwan, and Chris Allen created Biomimicry 3.8, a company that combines their for-profit and non-profit work. This company became a certified B-corporation, which means it helps both people and the environment. It offers advice, training, and speaking events. Its clients include companies like Nike, Kohler, Seventh Generation, and C40 Cities. By 2013, over 100 universities had joined the Biomimicry Educator’s Network to teach biomimicry. In 2014, the for-profit and non-profit parts of Biomimicry 3.8 separated again, with Biomimicry 3.8 focusing on business work and the Biomimicry Institute remaining a non-profit.

Benyus has worked on many boards, including the U.S. Green Building Council and the advisory boards of the Ray C. Anderson Foundation and Project Drawdown. She is also a teacher at The Biomimicry Center at Arizona State University.

Benyus’s work has been featured in films, including Biomimicry: Learning from Nature (2002), a two-part documentary made for CBC’s The Nature of Things and hosted by David Suzuki. She also appeared in Dirt! The Movie (2009), a documentary narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Authored works

• Benyus, Janine M. (1998). The secret language and remarkable behavior of animals. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers. ISBN 1-57912-036-9. Illustrated by Juan Carlos Barberis.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1997). Biomimicry: innovation inspired by nature (1st ed.). New York: Morrow. ISBN 0-06-053322-6.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1992). Beastly behaviors: a zoo lovers companion. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley. ISBN 0-201-62482-6. Illustrated by Juan Carlos Barberis.
• Benyus, Janine M.; Buech, Richard R.; Nelson, Mark D. (1992). Wildlife in the Upper Great Lakes Region: a community profile. Research Paper NC-301. St. Paul, MN: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station. DOI: 10.2737/NC-RP-301. hdl: 2027/umn.31951d029779112.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1989). Northwoods wildlife: a watcher's guide to habitats. Minocqua, WI: NorthWord Press. ISBN 1-55971-003-9.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1989). The field guide to wildlife habitats of the eastern United States. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-65908-1.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1989). The field guide to wildlife habitats of the western United States. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 067165909X.
• Benyus, Janine M. (1983). Christmas tree pest manual. St. Paul, Minn.: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Forest Experiment Station.

Awards and honors

In 2020, received the Trailblazer Award at Verdical Group's Net Zero Conference. In 2019, became a Fellow of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). In 2015, received the Edward O. Wilson Biodiversity Technology Pioneer Award. In 2013, received the Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development. In 2012, received the Design Mind Award from the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. In 2011, received the Heinz Award with a special focus on the environment. In 2009, received the Champion of the Earth for Science and Technology award from the United Nations Environment Programme. In 2007, received the Hero of the Environment award from Time International. In 2006, received the Women of Discovery Award from WINGS WorldQuest. In 2004, received the Rachel Carson Lecture on Environmental Ethics. In 2003, received the Lud Browman Award for Science Writing from Friends of the Mansfield Library, University of Montana.