6 . 2024 Youth Design Challenge (YDC) saw remarkable participation from across the world. The winners have offered unique, nature-inspired ideas to solve local design challenges.
Green Buoy (浮标)
Oyster farming in South Korea is an industry that contributes to microplastic pollution in the ocean through the breakdown of buoys. Team Design Matter from Seoul created Green Buoy, which is made from a material that breaks down naturally, removing the risk of microplastic pollution and promoting sustainable marine farming. The team took inspiration from a water plant, mimicking its dome-shaped air pockets to provide buoyancy. They designed the buoy connector modules by studying the way that seahorses use their tails to hold firmly onto coral reefs.
The Beenard’s Canopy
Access to clean and affordable drinking water is still not a universal reality, particularly in South Sudan. Team A Squared from Beijing designed the Beenard’s Canopy. Inspired by the Namib Beetle, Moloch Lizard, and the Desert Rattlesnake, their device gathers the dew in the air, channels the collected water through a filter (过滤器) , and stores the water in a container for drinking purpose. The idea addresses the problem of lack of access to clean water by providing an economically practical solution.
Rain Net
In recent years, extreme weather has caused severe flooding in California, and yet, for most of this team’s life, California has been in a drought. Addressing both problems at once, the team designed a rain catchment device, Rain Net. Inspired by how plants move water and the patterns of leaf veins, the Rain Net has got inspiration from the xylem (木质部) in plants, in its design of tubes that guide, collect, and filter rainwater. The invention could be adapted to fit various roofs and the design makes it possible to connect various “nets,” allowing for more than one drainage (排水) system.
1. What problem did Team Design Matter intend to solve?| A．Coral reef damage. | B．Microplastic pollution. |
| C．Marine diversity loss. | D．Low oyster production. |
| A．Desert creatures. | B．The shapes of leaves. |
| C．Water movement in plants. | D．The network of plant roots. |
| A．To promote YDC program. | B．To introduce the 2024 YDC winners. |
| C．To advertise nature-inspired designs. | D．To explain the concept of biomimicry. |
