The whole existence of life on earth evolved from bacteria, and we house them by the trillions on or inside of our bodies. These bacterias are incredibly important to our survival and, often, they have the power to decide our fate. Their group-behavior suggest an intelligence far beyond what most of us can imagine and it is this intelligence we wanted to explore, learn from and develop a project based on our findings.

We believe that the future is moving towards a more advanced technological intelligence in which our devices and sustainable urban infrastructure will become more adapted to the human body of the user. No longer will there be static object and us, biology and technology are merging. From the beginning of human history, people have used technology to enhance the human experience and extend the abilities of our bodies. The overarching aim of technology is to improve human lives, in the past, in regards to nature and technology, humans have manipulated and ‘conquered’ their environment for their own benefit. Now our aim is to engage in a more symbiotic relationship with nature, by understanding the natural patterns and processes better.

Now designers and inventors alike are beginning to take a new approach on how to work with new technologies and materials. We are undergoing a paradigm shift, where we are engaging in a more collaborative and symbiotic relationship with biology and technology. We will need to incorporate living materials into our urban environment. It is no longer an ‘advanced’ architectural solution to only incorporate mechanical systems to control the climatic environment. As a response to this, we have designed a wearable substratum that houses the Vibrio Fischeri bacteria and re-introduces energy production into the public space. The bacteria is no longer luminescent in the squid but on our skin. Furthermore the light is activated by a person’s movement, thus the human body and the piece itself develop this symbiotic relationship.