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biocompatibility, enzymatic catalysis, etc. The materials in the living world are also remarkable due to their diversity, their multifunctional properties and their production by self-assembly and self-repair. Finally, biological systems favour a minimalist approach and optimised information management that limits energy costs and the consumption of resources, while increasing adaptability and resilience. Today, these aspects are being explored in order to develop ecologically intensive agriculture and to design regenerative towns and cities.

Bio-inspiration: leading-edge engineering

Numerous universities and private research organisations are working on bio-inspired products or processes. Publications and patents on this subject have increased 15-fold since 1990. The United States and China are the most efficient contributors by far. But Europe is also present on the global stage, with more than one third of publications, mainly from Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and France. More than 175 biomimetics research teams have been identified in France. More than 100 companies, from large groups to SMEs, use biomimetics, irrespective of their field of activity (energy, construction, materials, cosmetics, etc.). Despite the growing number of researchers and users of bio-inspiration, the transfer of knowledge from the realm of biology to technology remains

a complex process. Biomimetics is a highly inter- disciplinary field and can only be effective if biologists are involved in the process of innovation.

Creating an industrial ecosystem conducive to the development of bio-inspired solutions Networks of skills and expertise must be organised on a nationwide scale, and specific tools and methodologies need to be developed in order to speed up the spread of academic and industrial R&D strategies. Through its role as a network, an interface and a source of support for innovative R&D projects, the CEEBIOS, founded in 2014, aims to catalyse the wealth of national skills in university research, education and industrial R&D. While the exploration, preservation and restoration of biodiversity have been recognised as urgent and major issues all over the world, industrial actors are still not making a sufficient contribution to this challenge. Bio-inspiration is a fantastic opportunity to reconcile industrial performance, environmental issues and the preservation of biodiversity in particular.

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The cobweb, a vast field of research for scientists studying its remarkable resistance