Biodesign is an emerging form of design practice integrating biological materials and processes, and there is a growing interest in the field for structured conversations to generate insights on how it can be best taught, researched, and disseminated. In our conversations, we began exploring biodesign under the framework of Living Artefacts, in which livingness is prolonged to the use time of artefacts, and understood as a biological, ecological, and experiential phenomenon. Two researchers investigating Living Artefacts, through their short show-and-tell presentations, initiated threads of moderated open discussions. Using the Living Artefacts framework as a departure point, we collectively explored opportunities and challenges in biodesign, and possible ways in which they could be addressed. ... Read more

The state of the land surface and the water cycle over the South and East Asia can be determined by space observation. New or significantly improved algorithms have been developed and evaluated against ground measurements. Variables retrieved include land surface properties, i.e. NDVI, LAI, FPAR, albedo, soil moisture, glacier and lake levels. Based on these biophysical parameters derived from microwave and optical remote sensing observations, a hybrid remotely sensed evapotranspiration (ET) estimation model named ETMonitor was developed and applied to estimate the daily actual ET of the Southeast Asia at a spatial resolution of 1 km. The changes in glaciers and lakes on the Tibetan Plateau, and the drainage links between glaciers and lakes are determined in this climate-sensitive region. ... Read more