Monika Brandić Lipińska

Monika sees tremendous potential in biological solutions for developing our future on Earth and in space. She is discovering how merging architectural design with engineering, applications of smart materials, biomaterials and biotechnologies, provides new ways to manage construction, growth, repair, replication and energy savings. Through the integration of low technology readiness level construction systems and in-situ resource utilization, tightly intertwined with biological processes, her work focuses around advancing biotechnological methods to construct human-oriented and livable habitats in space and in extreme environments.

Currently, Monika is currently pursuing her PhD at the Hub for Biotechnology in the Built Environment at Newcastle University. She researches biofabrication strategies for stabilising regolith using mycelium, to construct inhabitable structures, in resource-limited Martian conditions. The project is run in collaboration with the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) project Myco-Architecture Off-Planet developed at NASA Ames Research Center.

Her academic background consists of a Master in Architecture with specialization in Spatial Experiments at Lund University, focused on investigation into experimental architecture and design for extreme and space environments, and Master of Science in Space Studies at International Space University. She was also studying at Wroclaw University of Science and Technology and Politechnico di Milano, and was working in architectural offices in Tokyo, Copenhagen, San Francisco and Vienna. Since 2020 Monika is working with LIQUIFER, a trans-disciplinary group committed to innovative research and product development with space and terrestrial applications.