In an era of mass extinction and ecological crisis, how can design move beyond human-centred approaches and instead encourage symbiotic relationships with non-human organisms? Symb-io-nts is a speculative design course that explores radical interventions that attach to and integrate with natural systems. Using 3D scanning, computational design and digital fabrication, students will develop speculative artefacts that respond to biological logics, challenge anthropocentric perspectives and engage with the urgent discourse of ‘design against extinction’.

Our world is losing biodiversity at an unprecedented rate. Habitat destruction, climate change, and pollution have pushed countless species to the brink of extinction. While traditional conservation efforts aim to preserve existing ecosystems, design and technology offer alternative ways to engage with these issues.

Symb-io-nts asks

• Can we design for other species than ourselves?

• What does it mean to create artifacts that are for lifeforms different from our own?

• Can digital tools—3D scanning, computational design, AI—help us understand, augment, or reimagine ecological systems?

Throughout this course, students will scan organic structures using their mobile phones, analyze natural growth and propagation strategies, and develop speculative symbiotic interventions. Moving beyond biomimicry, projects will explore co-existence, augmentation, and alternative evolutionary futures. The course is divided into four key phases: research, concept development, design & prototyping, and final production & documentation.

Required equipment

• Own laptop with pre-installed Rhino 3D software and computer mouse

• Smartphone capable for 3D-scanning (1 per group should be enough)

• Tools for sketching and hands-on prototyping

Deliverables

• Physical prototypes

• Hi-res (300dpi) photographs of your finished designs

• Rhino files, Gh scripts and STL print files

• Documentation with text and images according to provided layout in both pdf and jpg

• Process documentation as project on „incom“

Time

Tuesdays, 13:00 - 16:00

Location

Materiability Research Group, Building M, 1st Floor