
Gabriela Farias
Biomaterial Research + Design in The Netherlands, she/they
About
Designer, artist and researcher specializing in biodesign and mycelium-based materials, combining artistic exploration with ecological responsibility. I transitioned from museum fabrication to biomaterials research to explore sustainable, community-driven design. I focus on interdisciplinary frameworks that integrate design, ecology, and curiosity to address social and environmental challenges. Committed to advancing equity and innovation through collaborative and material-driven practices, I aim to expand material imagination and experimentation.
Contact
Education
Creative Sustainability Program
Research Focus: Mycelium biomaterials and community-driven biodesign
Human and Organizational Development major
Focus: International Leadership and Development
Awards
I served as a co-lead of The Test Site: an ongoing project that, with its practical orientation, integrates both ecological and social sustainability. It brings students together and encourages new experiments. In The Test Site's environment, community can be formed not just among humans but across different species as well.

Exhibitions
This project works at the intersection of biomaterial making and community engagement. It explores mycelium-based composites and how to introduce the concept of these novel materials to those unfamiliar with them, with the goal to expand ideas of sustainability. The exhibit will showcase innovative substrates used for mycelium bio-composites, new ways of making shapes with the material, and a manual that guides organizers through this process from beginning to end.



Volunteering
Wrote and won 9,500€ grant with 4 fellow students to finish a 6m tall A-Frame building at The Test Site on campus, abandoned after the initial structure was built. Used reclaimed wood, polycarbonate paneling, and second-hand materials.
Planned workshop with architects and volunteers, plan weekly meetings, source building sustainable materials, revise CAD drawings, host and manage build workshops, teach volunteers proper tool and building techniques.
Voted 2023 Campus Sustainability Champion, this low-tech plot hosts projects including a vegetable garden, beehives, solar oven, hand-built wooden structures including a shed and A-Frame, all made by students.
Organized and recruited for monthly site-wide meetings, hosted events, infrastructure workshops, managed all logistics and 50+ volunteers.