commentary by: Yael Marantz
Biomimicry proponent, community CO-founder
BRAVE EARTH, Costa Rica

B I O M I M I C R Y

My journey of awakening began in the heart of the concrete-jungle-capitalist-empire, New York. Born in Israel and raised in Canada, I moved to the fast-paced, overpopulated city in my early 20s. I was working in communications for a creative consultancy helping Fortune 500 companies perpetuate the consumerist epidemic. Feeling suffocated, I would escape on weekends retreating upstate to immerse in Nature. It was the result of the stark contrast of my environment that I awakened to the intelligence, wisdom and healing potential of Nature.  

By the grace of the Divine I learned about Biomimicry, an approach to innovation that uses Nature for inspiration. Biomimicry helps us learn from the processes and patterns Nature has developed over eons of evolution, so that we can channel our human creativity into directions that can contribute to the regeneration of both our ecosystem and ourselves. I started incorporating Biomimicry in my work feeling glimmers of hope that there are solutions if we choose to change our perspective and shift our relationship with Nature from torture to nurture, from extraction to symbiosis, from using her as a resource to valuing her as the source of life.

Then the storm hit. Superstorm Sandy debilitated the city of Manhattan in 2012. Power outages, flooding, no public transportation, banks closed, supermarkets empty, full system shut down. Mayhem ensued but the power of community coming together in a time of crisis planted a seed of what’s needed in times of great uncertainty and transition. 

As our climate continues to heat up and natural disasters become more frequent, I believe we’re going to be forced to live in autonomous, decentralized, resilient, communities if we have a chance of survival. With this belief in mind, I started my journey visiting alternative communities. I became the Communications Director for the Global Ecovillage Network, a not-for-profit organization that acts as the connective tissue for ecovillages around the world which illuminated an entire movement of people living with a set of values that honours life.

I moved to South Africa to pursue my masters at the University of Cape Town dedicating myself to creating a model for transition infrastructure, a blueprint for community through the lens of Biomimcry, biophilia (immersion within nature) and a living labs approach (perpetual research through practice and failure). I now call Brave Earth (Tierra Valiente) in Costa Rica my home. Brave Earth is a living laboratory for regenerative living and co-evolution with Nature that consists of a community, regenerative farm and healing arts center.