See How Termites Inspired a Building That Can Cool Itself | Decoder

In 1991, architect Mick Pearce had a problem. An investment group in Harare, Zimbabwe, hired him to design the largest office and retail building in the country. But they didn't want to pay for the expensive air conditioning needed to cool such a large building. So that left Pearce with a seemingly impossible challenge: How do you design a building that cools itself?

This is a termite mound. Millions of termites live inside these structures, some of which stretch an astonishing 30 feet high. Although these termite skyscrapers may look solid from the outside, they are actually covered in tiny holes that allow air to pass through freely. Like a giant lung, the structure inhales and exhales as temperatures rise and fall throughout the day.

This termite ventilation inspired Pearce to use an approach known as biomimicry, imitating the ingenuity found in nature to solve human problems. Meet the Eastgate Centre. The building is made from concrete slabs and brick. Just like the soil inside a termite mound, these materials have a high “thermal mass” — which means they can absorb a lot of heat without really changing temperature.

The exterior of the building is prickly like a cactus. By increasing the amount of surface area, heat loss is improved at night, while heat gain is reduced during the day. Inside the building, low-power fans pull in cool night air from outside and disperse it throughout the seven floors. The concrete blocks absorb the cold, insulating the building and chilling the circulating air.

When the morning comes and temperatures rise, warm air is vented up through the ceiling and released by the chimneys. Thanks to this innovative design, temperatures inside stay at a comfortable 82 degrees during the day and 57 degrees at night. Not to mention, it uses up to 35 percent less energy than similar buildings in Zimbabwe.

Since opening its doors in 1996, Mick Pearce's 90% natural climate control system has made the Eastgate Centre a global landmark for sustainability. So, we must ask ourselves: If an architect could design a self-cooling building with termite-inspired climate control, what other innovations can Mother Nature inspire if we just paid closer attention?