Nature-inspired designs hold a great potential for energy efficiency solutions. The first Biomimicry Global Design Challenge announced its finalists this week including solutions for agriculture, drainage, and desalination, based on respectively a carnivorous plant, earthworms, and mangrove trees. The Guardian lists several products based on nature that have already proved their value, such as a mushroom packaging, hurricane shaped propeller, and turbines based on whale flippers, among others.