Nature has been efficiently solving challenges for millions of years. With this in mind, ERIA brought together some thirty professionals from various companies within the Estabanell Group for a one-day event in Vall de Núria. The main activity was a biomimicry workshop, an experience designed to explore how nature’s principles can inspire new solutions for the energy sector. The workshop was organized by ERIA and facilitated in collaboration with SDLI.
Nature as Inspiration for Tackling the Challenges of the Future
Biomimicry studies how natural organisms and ecosystems have developed efficient and sustainable solutions over millions of years and how these principles can be applied to the design of new technologies, products, or services. Using this methodology, participants explored the natural environment of the Vall de Núria in multidisciplinary teams to observe species, forms, behaviors, and patterns within the ecosystem and translate these observations into ideas applicable to the current challenges facing Estabanell.
The activity was structured into the phases of exploration, ideation, and prototyping. After an initial phase of observing nature, the teams identified guiding principles and worked on generating ideas, developing concepts, and creating prototypes that demonstrated how nature can become an ally in addressing the challenges of the energy transition.
Josep Solé, director of ERIA, explains that “biomimicry seeks to explain how nature dynamically adapts to changes in the environment. And with this workshop, we wanted our colleagues to learn how these changes can be applied to the innovation we aim to achieve at the Estabanell group.”
Innovation is also about connecting people
Beyond teaching an innovation methodology, the workshop sought to foster skills such as curiosity, creativity, and systems thinking, placing special emphasis on four concepts that nature applies in extraordinary ways: collaboration, cooperation, interchangeability, and interdependence. These principles, which are constantly present in natural ecosystems, can inspire new ways of working, collaborating, and tackling day-to-day challenges within organizations. Sharing an experience outside the usual environment allowed participants to forge new connections, exchange knowledge, and discover the value of working from different perspectives to find innovative solutions.
“At Estabanell, we’re very aware of the talent we have within our organization. But taking people out of their usual environment and having them work, think, and be exposed to new influences yields very valuable results,” says Daniel Iniesta, director of Organizational Development at Estabanell.
In fact, one of ERIA’s goals with these types of initiatives is to create spaces where people can experiment, challenge the status quo, and explore new ways of addressing the organization’s challenges. Stepping outside the usual context and facing different challenges fosters the emergence of new ideas and reinforces a culture of innovation based on collaboration and shared learning.
“At ERIA, we believe in creating spaces for innovation to break out of routines,” explains Alfred Coma, Corporate Venturing Manager at ERIA. “Through activities like this, we encourage people to tackle challenges in a different way and to think about innovation from a different perspective.” “This activity is an unconventional training experience because it takes people out of their routine and, in a more fun way, helps them connect and create synergies.”
The experience also allowed participants to meet colleagues from other companies and divisions within the Estabanell Group, share perspectives, and discover skills that rarely come to the surface in day-to-day work. For many of them, this learning experience goes beyond their immediate responsibilities and can later be applied to their daily work.
“What I especially appreciate about this experience is working in a different environment,” says Laura Romero, a workshop participant. “Nature helps us more than we realize. And it helps us solve challenges in a way that’s very different from what we’re used to in our day-to-day lives.” Jordi Granés, another participant, adds that “it’s important that innovation doesn’t stay confined to the innovation departments, but is present throughout the entire group.”
