CO-GROWN
UKRI BBSRC Engineering Biology Mission Award
BioDesign Competition
OPEN CALL
Imperial College London, Tom Ellis and KY Labs,
Northumbia University, Living Construction Group
Northumbia University, Living Construction Group
COMPETITION
DESIGN BRIEF
HOW CAN ENGINEERED LIVING MATERIALS RESHAPE THE FUTURE OF EVERYDAY OBJECTS?
This open call invites emerging designers, architects, artists and makers to explore the creative potential of bacterial cellulose (BC) and biologically integrated colour systems through comercially relevant design proposals.
This challenge focuses specifically on the emerging potential of self-dyed microbial leather, produced through microbial co-cultures that grow both the material and its colour simultaneously.
The competition asks participants to imagine what kinds of products and objects become possible when colour and material emerge together during growth.
LIVE Q&A
Missed the live Q&A? Watch the recording.
Missed the live Q&A? Watch the recording.
ABOUT THE MATERIALS
Co-GROWN
Participants will work with a curated library of bacterial cellulose materials developed through ongoing engineering biology research.
MATERIAL LIBRARY
CATEGORIES
- Fashion, Wearables & Accessories
- Interior & Home
- Industrial Design
- Craft
WHO CAN APPLY
- Emerging Designers
- Architects
- Artists and Makers
- Material Researchers
- Students
JURY
- The jury include leading figures from Biodesign, Material Innovation, Engineering Biology, Industry & Manufacturing
Professor in Synthetic Genome Engineering and Lead of the Tom Ellis Lab
Imperial College London
Professor in Microbial Biotechnology and Co-Lead of the Living Construction Group
Norhumbria University
Professor of Emerging Technology, Co-Lead of the Living Construction Group
Northumbria University
Director, Community Biotechnology Initiative & How to Grow (Almost) Anything | CEO
MIT Media Lab
Co-Founder | CEO
Modern Synthesis
Co-Founder | Scientific Advisor
Colorifix
Founder and Co-Director Living Systems Lab, and Director Maison/0
Central Saint Martins UAL
Assistant Professor Dyson School of Design Engineering
Imperial College London
KEY DATES
- Open Call Launches: 25 August 26
- Application Deadline: 26 October 26
- Judging: January
- Finalists Announced: 6 February 27
- Winner Announced: May 27
CONTEXT
- Carbon emissions
- Water pollution
- Petrochemical dependency
- Material waste
Leather production in particular is associated with:
- High water and land use
- Toxic chemical processing
- Deforestation linked to cattle farming
At the same time, conventional textile dyeing processes remain highly resource-intensive and chemically demanding.
This challenge responds to the growing need for alternative material systems that rethink not only what materials are made from, but also how colour and surface are produced.
By integrating pigmentation directly into material growth through engineered microbial co-cultures, the project explores future manufacturing models where fabrication and colouration occur simultaneously within biological systems.
AWARDS
& OPPORTUNITIES
Develop your project into a funded research prototype with the Living Construction Group at Northumbria University.
The winner will receive:
- Up to £10,000 towards prototype development.
- Access to specialist labs and biofabrication facilities.
- Mentorship from leading biodesign researchers.
- Opportunities for publication, exhibition and international showcase.
Finalists
Selected finalists will join our network, with opportunities for exhibition, publication, mentoring and future research/internship collaborations.Honourable Mentions
Exceptional projects will be recognised across our platforms.Before applying,
please read our submission requirements document
CLICK HERE FOR SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
APPLY/SUBMIT PROPOSAL
Proposal stage only — no prior bio-lab access or physical growing required. Conceptual sketches, renders, and speculative proposals welcome.
Co-Grown
BioDesign Competition
©
Groups
Imperial College London
Tom Ellis Group
- Anupama Sarojini Prakash
- Gianluca Prezza
Koon-Yang Lee Group
- Joanne Li
Northumbria University
Living Construction
Meng Zhang Group
- Jessica Virginia
- Reeba Thomas
- Weronika Turowska
Paul James Group
- Mingailė Jackson
Design Technical Support
- Linda Lightley
About the project
This Engineering Biology Mission Award project uses engineering biology to advance bacterial cellulose (BC) as a sustainable alternative to bovine leather, with the aim of compressing production into minimal processing steps while dramatically reducing environmental impact. Since the project began, teams at Northumbria University and Imperial College London have been engineering and co-culturing microbes to enable in situ dyeing, biobased material enhancement, and production of BC from industrial waste streams, working closely with industry partners including Modern Synthesis, Colorifix, and Brewlab.
Technical Summary
Engineered Living Materials (ELMs) is an emerging research area where synthetic biology is used to make new materials that benefit from the technologies of living cells. By reprogramming cells like E. coli and cellulose-producing bacteria, novel materials with advanced functionalities and properties can be efficiently grown at scale. Here, using our expertise in synthetic biology and bacterial cellulose (BC) ELMs, we use engineering biology to transform how BC leather is produced and how it can move beyond the limitations of bovine or plastic-based "vegan" leathers.