Meet Donald Dugong Seacleaner!
The graceful dugongs spend time eating seagrass from the bottom of the sea. Seagrass is important to save.
We wrote a story about Doctor Delia Dugong who saved the seagrass (this is an unpublished story). We also reversed our thinking and ended up with an idea where we take something away from the sea that does not belong there.
Reversal is a common creative thinking tool, and many great innovations have been developed by using this thinking method. You simply reverse the problem or challenge by asking,”How could I achieve the opposite effect?”
It is difficult to estimate how much of the plastic rubbish that ends up in the ocean each year has sunk to the bottom of the sea. The true figure of plastic pollution could be much higher. And this is where Donald Dugong Seacleaner comes in.
What if we could build a flexible robot that could eat plastic rubbish from the bottom of the sea? Just like the dugong has bristles, the robot could have bristles that help the robot to sort the rubbish into different categories.
There are different types of plastic rubbish, for example:
- Fizzy drinks and water bottles. Salad trays.
- Milk bottles, cleaners and most shampoo bottles.
- Carrier bags and packaging films.
- Margarine tubs, microwaveable meal trays.
- Yoghurt pots, foam hamburger boxes, egg cartons and plastic cutlery.
We made a big tube so that Donald Dugong Seacleaner could suck in bigger items such as water bottles. And several smaller ones to deal with smaller items such as carrier bags.
So now Delia and Donald can work together!
This idea has real echoes in current ocean-cleaning technology. The EU-funded SeaClear system uses underwater robots with a bristled collection basket to gather litter directly off the seafloor — and other teams have even built jellyfish-inspired robots specifically to reach the plastic that sinks to the bottom, since as much as 70% of ocean plastic ends up there rather than floating on the surface. Donald Dugong Seacleaner, it turns out, was solving a real and still-unsolved problem.
Sources
- ScienceDirect, The SeaClear system: An intelligent multi-robot solution for autonomous cleanup of marine debris on the seabed
- RESET.org, Jellyfish Inspired Robot Looks to Clean Up the Ocean Floor
Frequently Asked Questions
What is biomimicry?
Biomimicry is the practice of looking to nature for solutions, then applying what we learn to design and problem-solving. Instead of inventing from scratch, it means studying how plants, animals, and ecosystems have already solved a challenge — like staying cool, collecting water, or absorbing carbon — and adapting that strategy for human use.
How does biomimicry help address climate change?
Nature has been adapting to extreme conditions for billions of years, so many organisms already hold working solutions to problems we now face at a larger scale — cooling buildings without electricity (termite mounds), collecting water in drought (the Namib beetle), protecting coastlines from storms (mangrove roots), and capturing carbon (corals, forests, kelp). Biomimicry means studying those solutions and applying the same principles to human design.
How can children get involved in biomimicry?
Children don’t need special training to think like a biomimicrist — just curiosity and a habit of asking “how does nature solve this?” Simple ways to start include a backyard scavenger hunt for nature’s patterns, a “design-an-animal” challenge for a changing climate, or building a small model (like a passive-cooling structure or a water collector) inspired by something they’ve observed outdoors.
Is biomimicry only for scientists and engineers?
No — biomimicry is as much a mindset as a profession. Anyone can practice it by observing nature closely and asking design questions. Professional biomimicry practitioners apply it in architecture, materials science, and engineering, but the same core skill — careful observation followed by “what if we built it that way?” — is exactly what this post’s classroom and family activities are designed to build in children.
Åsa Jomård
In 2015, Åsa completed a course in Biomimicry: A Sustainable Design Methodology at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. With over 10 years of experience exploring nature for inspiration and as a former member of Ben, Biomimicry Education Network, she brings both academic background and creative teaching experience to her work. Her materials seamlessly integrate stories, nature observations, and design challenges, making them perfect for inquiry-led learning in early primary contexts.
AI was used as a Thinking Partner.