The study on the Co-nature’ing model and regenerative ecologies was featured in the prestigious journal Biotechnology Design.
Biodesign research developed at ISMAT was represented at the 1st International Conference on Emerging Research at the Crossroads of Design, Biology, Computation, and Sustainability, held from August 26 to 28, 2026, at TU Delft, in the Netherlands.
Américo Mateus, professor and researcher in the Design degree and in the Master’s programs in Design for Circular Economy and Biodesign, participated in the conference by presenting the paper “From Design to Co-nature’ing: Toward a Metabolic Epistemology of Design in the Age of Human–Nature–Intelligence Ecologies”, co-authored with Susana Leonor and David Palma from ISMAT, and Julia Lohmann from Aalto University, Finland.
The article was published in the international scientific journal Biotechnology Design, by Cambridge University Press. The work proposes Co-nature’ing as a new conceptual framework for Biodesign, moving from a logic of designing for nature to a practice of designing with life, in which humans, living systems, and technological intelligences are understood as interdependent participants in the processes of knowledge, creation, and transformation.
The research develops the concept of Human–Nature–Intelligence (HNI) Ecologies and proposes a metabolic epistemology of design, understanding design as a relational practice capable of mediating flows of matter, knowledge, and information between human, biological, and technological systems.
This approach translates into the Co-nature’ing model, structured through processes of Co-Sensing, Co-Growing, Co-Evolving, and Co-Flourishing, contributing to new ways of thinking about research, practice, and education in Biodesign.
Participation in the TU Delft conference and publication by Cambridge University Press reinforce ISMAT's international position in Biodesign research and education, as well as its collaboration with leading European institutions such as Aalto University.
This work aligns with the research developed at ISMAT and with the growing scientific and technological infrastructure of CITAI-FABXR, particularly in the areas of biomaterials, biofabrication, and emerging technologies, contributing from the Algarve to the development of new design approaches oriented toward more regenerative, relational, and sustainable ecologies.
Article link: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/biotechnology-design/article/from-design-to-conatureing-toward-a-metabolic-epistemology-of-design-in-the-age-of-humannatureintelligence-ecologies/925AC45B8257A437B58AA5987EC1E591
