Indigenous Mycelium
Indigenous Mycelium Gathering
In September 2025, Biomimicry for Social Innovation (BSI), Māori leaders of Te Matakupenga (TM), and the Biomimicry Center (TBC) at Arizona State University (ASU) collaborated to organize the Indigenous Mycelium Gathering in New Mexico. The Indigenous Mycelium Gathering was held at the Ocamora Retreat Center in New Mexico, hosted by Toby Herzlich (BSI), Sara El-Sayed (TBC), Melissa Nelson (ASU, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians) Marcus Akuhata-Brown and Renee Smith (TM). The gathering brought together 20 Indigenous people from a diverse range of communities and cultural backgrounds, including Māori, Oneida, Anishinaabe, Cree, Métis, Mohawk, Eastern Shoshone, Houma, Dine', Kauai Hawaiian, and Pueblo leaders from Tesuque Pueblo, Santa Clara, Kara::Kichwa from the Andes/Amazon, alongside biomimicry researchers, educators, and practitioners representing Egypt, Colombia, Slovenia, Ireland, and Costa Rica.
Fungi and Mycelium as a Metaphor
The concept of using fungi and mycelium as a metaphor arose from the Indigenous participants’ profound interest in understanding the deep natural principles of these organisms and how we shape our relationship to these ancestors. Their primary goal was to explore how these biological laws operate in depth and how they might inform processes of cultural preservation, community building, and knowledge exchange. The discussion emphasized that biomimicry is another complementary tool in this exploration, capable of dialoguing with Indigenous thought without claiming to hold ultimate authority or truth.
This approach enabled participants to identify both points of convergence and divergence between Indigenous ways of understanding nature and biomimicry science methodologies. The metaphor of the fungus also highlighted how collaboration and multiple perspectives can coexist, showing shared interests in observing, learning from, and applying natural principles, while also respecting the unique philosophical frameworks of each knowledge system.
Connection to Land and People
A central theme of the gathering was the participants’ relationship with the land, their territories, and communities. Indigenous leaders emphasized that nature is a relational system imbued with identity.
This perspective challenges conventional approaches that treat nature as separate from human life, underscoring the importance of developing a consciousness of interconnection and respect.
Engaging with the land in this way fosters meaningful dialogue with natural systems, encouraging coexistence rather than extraction.
The gathering invited participants to reflect on whether the goal is solely to gain information from nature, or whether it is also to reconnect, engage ethically, and maintain a reciprocal relationship with the environment. There was an emphasis on the importance of not speaking about nature but through our relational practices speaking to nature as a relative.
Composting & Decomposting
The concept of “composting and decomposing” emerged as both a literal and symbolic principle. Participants discussed how natural processes of decomposition, transformation, and regeneration can inspire approaches to human systems and community practices. This principle emphasizes abundance, collective well-being, and reciprocity, illustrating how ethical and regenerative actions foster mutually beneficial relationships including the concepts of "never forget", "lineage","the separation", “growing.”, “nurturing” and “not- knowing”. In this sense, the metaphor of composting extends beyond the ecological to the social and cultural, framing regeneration as a holistic practice that integrates the health of the land with the vitality of communities.
Indigenizing Science
A significant discussion point centered on the role of science in
relation to Indigenous knowledge. Participants reflected on how
and to what extent scientific methodologies should engage with
Indigenous epistemologies or not. Care must be taken to avoid
the appropriation or imposition of scientific frameworks in ways
that misrepresent or override Indigenous systems of knowledge
and understanding. Indigenous knowledge already embodies
sophisticated methods for understanding natural processes, and
biomimicry should be treated as one complementary tool rather
than a primary lens. This reflection emphasizes the importance
of ethical engagement and conscious collaboration,
acknowledging that Indigenous knowledge is fully capable of generating insights into life and ecological systems independently of Western science.