SFSU School of Design Students Take Climate Innovation to Global Stage

“The awards, grants, and donations we received were fundamental in a number of complementary ways,” said Carvalho. “For example, covering our registration fee to participate in the competition and the costs associated with fieldwork, which entailed taking 33 students and two faculty to site visits in Mendocino and Fort Bragg, including the Kelp Restoration site, the Noyo Center for Marine Science, and the Mendocino Art Center. Importantly, the funds also made it possible for us to pay for transportation and accommodation of four students and two faculty attending the Biodesign Challenge competition in New York this past summer.”

“The awards, grants, and donations we received were fundamental.” 

—Associate Professor Fernando Felicio dos Santos de Carvalho, SFSU School of Design

Carvalho was also quick to call attention to lecturer Josie Iselin, referring to her as a fundamental piece of all the effort who has been with him on this journey to the BDC since before the spring semester.

“Josie was the one making the connection with the Nature Conservancy in order to provide the class program with a focused topic,” Carvalho said. “She was also instrumental in facilitating the field trip activities, and supporting our students in New York City with me. I wish to acknowledge her invaluable, critical contributions.”

SFSU’s team included students who had never been to New York and had never participated in an international design event such as the Biodesign Challenge that gathered more than 40 teams from across the globe.

“This was, and is every year, a unique experience that significantly widens the perspectives of our students while providing them with a degree of confidence that comes with presenting to professional jurors, side by side with the best design schools in the world,” said Carvalho.

The BDC is a global, interdisciplinary education program and competition that invites students to explore the convergence of art, design, and biotechnology. Founded on the belief that scientific progress is enriched by creative vision, the event empowers participants to imagine more equitable and sustainable futures through the lens of emerging technologies.

Team Urbon’s approach employed living organisms that convert CO2 emissions in food resources and living structures, helping industries and society to envision a synergistic path to a more sustainable future, while supporting bull kelp restoration efforts through grazer suppression, public awareness, and local community engagement.

SFSU’s competing teams leading up to the BDC worked from the cutting-edge research and ongoing restoration efforts of the Nature Conservancy, led by marine biologist Tristin McHugh, to understand the relationships between the main organisms involved in the coastal ecosystem of Mendocino and Fort Bragg, to then explore, experiment, and design solutions that would contribute to the current bull kelp recovery work.