Biomimicry (from bios, meaning life, and mimesis, meaning to imitate) is an ancient concept recently returning to scientific thought that examines nature, its models, systems, processes, and elements— and emulates or takes inspiration from them to solve human problems sustainably. Scientific and engineering literature often uses the term Biomimetics for the process of understanding and applying biological principles to human designs. This includes biomaterials, biomechanics, biological systems composed of individuals of one species (e.g., schools, herds and swarms), or multispecies ensembles.

Researchers, for example, learn from and emulate termites' ability to maintain virtually constant temperature and humidity in their Sub-Saharan Africa homes despite an outside temperature that varies from 3 °C to 42 °C (35 °F to 104 °F). Project TERMES (Termite Emulation of Regulatory Mound Environments by Simulation) scanned a termite mound and created 3-D images of the mound structure, which revealed construction that may ultimately influence human building design. The Eastgate Centre, a mid-rise office complex in Harare, Zimbabwe, (highlighted in this Biomimicry Institute case-study) stays cool without air conditioning and uses only 10% of the energy of a conventional building its size.

Modeling echolocation in bats in darkness has lead to a cane for the visually impaired. Research at the University of Leeds, in the UK, led to the UltraCane, a product formerly manufactured, marketed and sold by Sound Foresight Ltd.

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