What if coral had much to teach us?
Often mistaken for a plant or mineral, coral is actually a fascinating animal superorganism made up of individual organisms (polyps) that live alone or in colonies. By building their limestone skeletons, corals shape reefs that rank among the richest ecosystems on the planet, providing vital refuges for extraordinary biodiversity. They also play an essential role for human societies by protecting coastlines from erosion and storms while supporting major economic activities such as fishing and tourism. Despite remarkable adaptive abilities that have enabled them to survive more than 240 million years of evolution, corals now face unprecedented threats caused by environmental change. The interdisciplinary Corallum Fabrica project is a 3D digital archive dedicated to showcasing coral architecture. At the intersection of art, design, and science, this digital platform serves both as a research tool and a medium for science communication. It highlights the beauty, complexity, and ingenuity of living forms, revealing how deeply nature fuels our imagination and inspires our creative processes. Elise Rigot is an associate professor in the Arts Plastiques - Design department at Université Toulouse - Jean Jaurès and a researcher affiliated with the LLA-CREATIS and LAAS-CNRS laboratories. Her work explores design’s reflective and critical contribution to scientific practices, focusing on the ethics of new technologies, oceanographic design, and the transformation of knowledge in the Anthropocene. She founded Corallum Fabrica, a digital archive devoted to coral architecture, and produces the Bio Is The New Black podcast, which examines the social, political, and aesthetic implications of biotechnology for design. She also created the Codex tool as a publishing medium in the field of 3D bioprinting. She is a member of several research networks, including Flusser France and RECOLNAT (MNHN). Isabelle Domart-Coulon is a marine biologist specializing in the microbial symbioses of corals and other reef organisms. An associate professor qualified to supervise research at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (MNHN), she studies host-microorganism interactions involving microalgae and bacteria in corals and calcareous sponges throughout their life cycles, with a particular focus on their roles in nutrition, defense, and the formation or erosion of limestone skeletons. Responsible for promoting the MNHN’s national Porifera and Scleractinia collections since 2005, she is also the author of more than 50 scientific publications, three book chapters, and two patents. The discussion will be moderated by science communicator Annalisa Plaitano.
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Source: paris.fr — photo: Corallum fabrica - LAAS-CNRS