Physarum polycephalum variety of Slime Mold. Taken by Dr. Jonatha Gott and the Center for RNA Molecular Biology, Case Western Reserve University.While at SXSW I attended a Biomimicry panel. This was one of the panels I was most excited for. Ever since viewing Janine BenyusTED Talk a few years ago, biomimicry is one of those subjects that I could spend hours researching. Its applications to design are truly endless.
The panel at SXSW praised the brilliance of Slime mold. Yep, slim mold, that seemingly lowly organism that has been around far longer than we have has quite a bit to teach us about transportation. With maximum efficiency, slime mold grows and spreads itself out to acquire its food. The city of Tokyo used the growth and reach of slime mold as its model to design its transportation system with maximum efficiency. In the words of the great Paul Reubens, “I love that story.”
The Slime mold example again reminded me of the brilliance of our natural world. Too often, we see our environment as something to control and guide. I wonder how our society would change if we developed a much strong respect for the wisdom of the natural world that has had so many millenniums to adapt and change. It replenishes and nurtures itself. It is an adamant fan of cycles and self-care. The next time that we’re looking for guidance in our own lives or wrestling with a creative challenge, we would do we to take glance out the window or take ourselves for a walk with our eyes and ears wide open. All the answers are there, many under the care of an unlikely natural guardian like Slime mold.
The short of it:
Writer. Health, education, and art advocate. Theater and film producer. Visual artist. Product geek. Proud alumnae of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA). Inspired by ancient wisdom & modern tech. Proliferator of goodness. Opener of doors. Friend to animals. Fan of creative work in all its wondrous forms. I use my business skills to create passion projects that build a better world. I’ve been called the happiest New Yorker, and I try hard to live up to that title every day.
The long of it:
My career has stretched across Capitol Hill, Broadway theatre, education, nonprofit fundraising, health and wellness, and Fortune 500 companies in retail, media, entertainment, technology, and financial services. I’ve been a product developer and product manager, theater manager, strategic consultant, marketer, voice over artist, , teacher, and fundraiser. I use my business and storytelling to support and sustain passion projects that build a better world. In every experience, I’ve used my sense of and respect for elegant design to develop meaningful products, services, programs, and events.
While building a business career, I also built a strong portfolio as a journalist, novelist, freelance writer, interviewer, presenter, and public speaker. My writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, PBS.org, Boston.com, Royal Media Partners publications, and The Motley Fool on a wide range of topics including business, technology, science, health, education, culture, and lifestyle. I have also been an invited speaker at SXSW, Teach for America, Avon headquarters, Games for Change, NYU, Columbia University, Hunter College, and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. The first book in my young adult book series, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was acquired by a publisher and launched in November 2017. I’m currently working on the second book in the series.
A recovering multi-tasker, I’m equally at home in front of my Mac, on my yoga mat, walking my rescue dog, Phineas, traveling with a purpose, or practicing the high-art of people watching. I also cut up small bits of paper and put them back together as a collage artist.
My company:
I’m bringing together all of my business and creative career paths as the Founder of Double or Nothing Media:
• I craft products, programs, and projects that make a difference;
• I build the business plans that make what I craft financially sustainable;
• I tell the stories that matter about the people, places, and products that inspire me.
Follow my adventures on Twitter at https://twitter.com/christanyc and Instagram at https://instagram.com/christarosenyc.
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2 thoughts on “Beginning: We Could Learn A Lot From Slime Mold”
Couldn’t agree more. Nature is always there to teach everything worth knowing.
Christa Avampato 
Couldn’t agree more. Nature is always there to teach everything worth knowing.
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And isn’t it funny that we run all over the place searching, searching, searching. All the answers are just outside our door.
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