USING MYCELIUM TO REVOLUTIONIZE BUILDING
GINKGO PRIZE
The Ginkgo Prize asks us to look 50 years into the future, to 2072, and imagine how a biological design both creates and resides in that future. In the future we picture at MycoMasonry, the design that dominates the built landscape is mycelium. Starting with the introduction of the mycelium insulated concrete form, we imagine that mycelium will take over as a low-energy sustainable material to use in all sorts of structures. As people migrate in response to climate change and extreme weather, housing will be constructed at an unprecedented rate in areas more affected by heat waves, fires, and other adverse effects of climate change. This housing, needing to be constructed at lower environmental cost than traditional housing, will use mycelium as a sustainable substitute for petrochemical and fiberglass insulation.
As society begins using mycelium for construction (in insulated concrete forms and similar products), advances in mycelium cultivation methods and mycelium breeding will increase mycelium's fitness for its role as insulation and lead to new roles for mycelium in industrial, architectural, and consumer design. We foresee mycelium being used as a low-carbon, biodegradable, natural material for structural elements of buildings, for consumer products, and embedded in people's lives the way plywood and concrete have become embedded in ours. As mycelium becomes more common as a structural element in designs in all parts of life, we may see a time where children don't even know a time without mycelium in every building.
ABOUT
MycoMasonry is a project started by three undergraduate students at UC Davis in 2022 as a way to create a more sustainable alternative to traditional insulated concrete form (ICF) construction. Using the power of mycelium, we can produce ICFs with desirable insulation, fire resistance, and strength characteristics at a fraction of the environmental concern. Our process for large-scale production of mycelium ICFs will be sustainable and have low energy-intensity, allowing small homebuilders to construct the home of their dreams without being forced to contribute to climate change and petrochemical extraction.
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2022
Year Established
3
Founders
21
Weeks to prepare for BDC
10
Minutes of Video
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Get a quote: email mycomasonry@gmail.com