The biological analogy: History of ecological metaphors in industrial ecology (1989-2011)

Industrial ecology emerged as a discipline in the 1990s, founded on the belief that industrial systems parallel natural ecosystems and that insights from ecology could help reorganize industry to achieve circularity. This supposed parallel, referred to in the literature as the "biological analogy," initially sparked enthusiasm and was championed by the field's founders as a key tool for sustainability. However, over time, critics questioned the feasibility of learning from nature, leading to a debate over the meaning of the biological analogy. Was it a metaphor? A model? And if there was a distinction between the two, what were its implications? What, fundamentally, was the relationship between biological ecology and industrial ecology? Curiously, this heated debate faded by the early 2010s, perhaps because its conclusions challenged the identity of the rapidly expanding discipline. Yet, the biological analogy remains an integral part of industrial ecology's foundation and may resurface in the future. The history of this debate sheds light on the uses-and misuses-of metaphors in science.