Michael Pawlyn is an architect, writer and public speaker. He has been described as an expert in regenerative design and biomimicry. He established his firm Exploration Architecture in 2007 to focus on high performance buildings and solutions for the circular economy. The company has developed a ground-breaking office project, an ultra-low energy data centre, a zero waste textiles factory and progressive solutions for green cities. Michael Pawlyn jointly initiated the widely acclaimed Sahara Forest Project; the latest version of which was opened by the King of Jordan.
Prior to setting up Exploration, Michael Pawlyn worked with Grimshaw for ten years and was central to the team that designed the Eden Project. He is regularly booked as a keynote speaker on innovation and his TEDx talk has had over 2 million views. He has written two books - 'Flourish: Design Paradigms for Our Planetary Emergency' (co-authored with Sarah Ichioka) and 'Biomimicry in Architecture' – both of which have been the respective publisher’s best-selling title. In 2019 he jointly initiated ‘Architects Declare a Climate and Biodiversity Emergency’ – a global call to action which has spread to 28 countries with over 7,000 firms signed up.
He has been featured in The Financial Times, National Geographic, The Economist, Wired and The Guardian as well as in a large number of design magazines. His television and radio appearances include ‘Animal Einsteins’ on BBC television and a number of programmes on BBC Radio 4.
Available to hire as a speaker Michael Pawlyn has provided a number of keynote addresses and has given a TEDx Talk that has been watched by over two million people. When speaking Michael addresses the audience in a passionate way and explores topics such as sustainability, climate change and changing the way things are done for the benefit of the planet. An expert on all things’ sustainability, Michael is a great choice for any event or business with a green agenda.
How to hire Michael Pawlyn
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Michael Pawlyn for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do not accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
Michael Pawlyn's official speaking topics include:
- Beyond conventional sustainability – towards a regenerative approach
- Nature-based solutions and innovation
- Business leadership on the environment
- Harnessing AI to shape a positive future
Official Feedback from Virtual & In-Person Events
Feedback from In-Person Events:
"Excellent session delivered by Michael, very informative, interesting and thought provoking. Feedback from staff very complimentary." - Ian, NPTC Group
“One of the finest talks I've ever seen on nature and design” - Amory, Chairman and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
“We asked Michael to give an opening keynote for our most important event of the year - a three-day conference attended by 250 of our most senior colleagues. He rose to the challenge brilliantly with a talk that was informative, inspiring and energising” - Siobhan, Group Head Sustainable Development, Anglo American
“Your talk was a tremendous inspiration to all and the response has been fantastic. Personally it was the best presentation I have ever experienced - thank you Michael.” - Torben Thyregod Jensen, VELUX A/S X lab
“Michael was fantastic! The audience absolutely loved his lecture. Couldn’t have been a better way to launch the series.” - Colleen, Natural History Museum of Utah
“We just wanted to send a quick note to thank you again so much for your brilliant address at yesterday’s Heat Conference. I’ve heard nothing but praise for your presentation. It really helped to energise the whole day: some have even said it was the best Heat Conference we’ve had!" - Rachael, SE2 Limited
“Michael, Thank you! It was a very inspiring talk and you received very positive feedback from many of the participants. Well done!” - Allan, McKinsey & Company
"Michael was excellent. There was lots of glowing verbal feedback on him with a lot of questions at the end. Personally, I really love the positive and practical approach to sustainability that he promotes and the sheer beauty of nature which he expresses through his excellent slides. Very well done." - Helen McGing, Citywire
“Thank you for your contribution at the CE100 Annual Summit, the feedback has been exceptional with many people commenting that your talk was a particular highlight.” - Stuart Whitman, Ellen MacArthur Foundation
“Thanks so much for coming to speak at our event yesterday. You did a fantastic job. A lot of people mentioned to me how much they appreciated your talk.” - Dougal, The Economist Intelligence Unit
“Two of the cultural stand-outs of the year were the products of visionaries — individuals creating worlds at the edges and the in-betweens of standard practice. A lecture by Michael Pawlyn during the London Festival of Architecture energised the audience with case studies demonstrating the radical potential of a generative, rather than a restrictive, approach to design that surpasses “sustainability”." - Sarah, Head of The Architecture Foundation in Building Design’s Review of the Year
“In addition to his skills as an architect he is a first-rate public speaker who both assisted me in preparing lectures and regularly stood in for me at international conferences. I could always trust Michael to inspire an audience to look at the environmental debate from a fresh perspective and he would achieve this through wit and imagination rather than dogma and doom-mongering” - Sir Nicholas Grimshaw
