1 INTRODUCTION The term biomimicry originates from the 1960s, and was popularised by the publication of Biomimicry - Innovation Inspired by Nature in 1997 by Benyus. Vincent (2006) points out that the mimicry part is not intended to a slavish copying of organisms, but instead an interpretation, adaptation or derivation from biology. This process of translation often results in designs that are not immediately similar to the organism that inspired them, but utilise the same functional concepts. An example is Sto’s Lotusan paint, inspired by the lotus flower. Because the flower emerges from swampy waters clean, it has long been an ancient symbol of purity. By studying the nano-structure of the lotus leaf, scientists observed that due to its rough texture, water beads on the leaves, drawing dirt from the leaf as the droplets roll off. The paint does not resemble the lotus, but allows surfaces to be self-cleaning in a way similar to the lotus. Approaches to biomimicry as a design process typically fall into two categories: Defining a human design problem and looking to the ways other organisms or ecosystems solve this (de- sign looking to biology), or identifying a particular characteristic in an organism or ecosystem and translating that into a human need (biology influencing design) (Biomimicry Guild, 2007). Within these two approaches, there are three levels of mimicry: The organism level, the be- haviour level and the ecosystem level (Pedersen Zari, 2007). The organism level refers to a spe- cific organism and may involve mimicking part or the whole of the organism. The second level refers to mimicking behaviour, and may include how an organism does things. The third level is the mimicking of whole ecosystems and the common principles that allow them to successfully function. Within each of these levels, are a further five possible dimensions to the mimicry: what it looks like (form), what it is made out of (material), how it is made (construction), how it works (process) and what it does (function). Pedersen Zari (2007) provides examples of the dif- ferences. Reference: Pedersen Zari, M. and J. B. Storey (2007). An ecosystem based biomimetic theory for a regen- erative built environment Lisbon Sustainable Building Conference 07, Lisbon, Portugal. An ecosystem based biomimetic theory for a regenerative built environment M. Pedersen Zari & J.B. Storey Centre of Building Performance Research, School of Architecture, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand. ABSTRACT: Biomimicry, where flora, fauna or entire ecosystems are emulated as a basis for design, has attracted considerable interest in the fields of architectural design and engineering, as an innovative new design approach and importantly as a potential way to shift the built envi- ronment to a more sustainable paradigm. The practical and comprehensive application of biomimicry as a design methodology and benchmarking tool, particularly in the built environment, remains elusive. One reason identified for this is the lack of a comprehensive and rigorous general theory of biomimicry that could be applied to the architectural design process and its outcomes over entire building lifecycles. This paper attempts to clarify various approaches to biomimicry and provides a set of principles that could form the basis of an ecosystem based biomimicry. It is posited that such an approach could become a vehicle for creating a built environment that goes beyond simply sustaining cur- rent conditions to a restorative practice where the built environment becomes a vital component in the integration with and regeneration of natural ecosystems as the wider human habitat.