Three students from the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design — Michael Lee (MArch 2), Heather Woolvett (MArch 2), and Edward Yu (MArch 2) —  along with U of T biology student Tina Chim, participated in the Biomimicry 3.8 Institute's 2012-2013 Biomimicry Design Challenge. Under the supervision of their academic advisor, Daniels Faculty Sessional Lecturer Francesco Martire, the four students submitted a design for harvesting and collecting rainwater. Their design was inspired by nature's principles and biological processes of epiphytes. 

Entitled The Aqua Virentum Project, their work was selected as one of ten finalists from a large number of international submissions. Along with teams from Belgium, Chile, Mexico, Sweden, and the United Staes, the team has been shortlisted to further develop their design, receive training from biomimicry experts, and work with potential investors and incubators in the second round of the competition. The top teams will be invited to Boston at the Institute's Annual Education Summit where the winners from the second round will be announced.