Makerspace: Biomimicry

Makerspace: Biomimicry is coming to the Shelby Bottoms Nature Center this Saturday, October 10, from 1 PM to 3 PM. It's a pop-up makerspace where you get to take on engineering challenges and build your own nature-inspired inventions to test out on the spot. The whole thing is built around biomimicry—the process where human innovations are modeled after animals and nature. If you've ever wondered how a bird's wing informs a plane or how a burr leads to Velcro, this is that idea turned into a hands-on activity.

It's recommended for ages 6 and up, and there's no registration required, so you can just show up with the kids and get to work. The session is hosted by the Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, an environmental education and recreation facility run by the Nashville Metropolitan Board of Parks and Recreation. The center is tucked into urban East Nashville within the Shelby Bottoms Greenway and right next to Shelby Park.

If you have a little extra time, the center is worth exploring beyond the makerspace. It houses natural and cultural history exhibits, programming and art space, a library of field guides, an organic demonstration garden, a Cumberland River Compact rain garden, and a children's Nature Play area. There are about five miles of primitive and ADA-accessible trails running through the area, so you can stretch your legs before or after the session. It also serves as a reference center for organic and urban community gardening, rain gardening, and green building, and offers free public nature and environmental education programs, school field trips, and volunteer opportunities.

Makerspace: Biomimicry runs from 1 PM to 3 PM on Saturday, October 10, at the Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, 1900 Davidson St, Nashville, TN 37206. It's for ages 6 and up, and no registration is required.