Zoepolis

What Zoepolis does

Zoepolis is an independent, transdisciplinary French research collective founded in June 2021 and headquartered in Lyon, formally structured since July 28, 2023 as the non-profit Association Zoetopie. The organization develops and disseminates design methodologies that integrate non-human living species — animals, plants, insects, and ecosystems — into design practice, addressing what the collective frames as the de-anthropocentrization of design in the context of the sixth mass extinction. Its work is organized around five research axes: extending existing design methods to non-humans, inventing new practices centered on other living beings, designing interspecific cooperative relations, using design as mediator of living beings, and developing new imaginaries and prospective scenarios that include non-humans. The community brings together 90+ members including students, professionals, and researchers across design, social sciences, art, biology, and naturalism, with active operating presence in Lyon, Paris, Marseille, and La Rochelle.

The organization's core outputs are methodological rather than technological. Its proprietary frameworks comprise three design methods — Design Centré Vivant (biocentric design), Design Centré Usager expanded to non-human perspectives, and Design Centré Relations Interspécifiques — together with the MUCE (Méthode Milieu, Umwelt, Cycle, Ethos) two-day training methodology and the transversal axes of médiation du vivant and nouveaux imaginaires. Supporting tools include open-source educational resources under Creative Commons license: the Livret d'enquête Symbiose, Carnet Mission Déchets inquiry booklet, and the Online Guerrilla Gardening web application. All research and methods are published as commons to drive broad adoption rather than proprietary monetization.

Zoepolis generates revenue through a diversified mix of channels rather than a single dominant stream. Paid MUCE training (€25-600/day, OPCO and FIFPL eligible following Qualiopi certification), annual Zoetopie membership fees (€1-€100/year tiered by category), event tickets for the Summer University and annual conference (€4-€30), individual donations, and — most significantly — commissioned design research from French public institutions including Ville de Lyon, Ville de Besançon, Ville de Chambéry, Caisse des Dépôts, Atécopol Toulouse, and Métropole de Savoie. Academic partnerships with design schools (ESC Clermont-Ferrand, UTC Compiègne, Strate, ENSAG, Institut Supérieur de Design de Saint-Malo, Université de La Rochelle) and conference engagements (TEDx Tours, Design Week Paris) supplement revenue while serving as community-recruitment and thought-leadership channels.

Name

Zoepolis

Legal name

Association Zoetopie

Website

https://zoepolis.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Zoepolis is a Lyon-based French non-profit research collective developing design methodologies that integrate non-human living species into design practice, serving municipalities, public institutions, design schools, and citizens through training, commissioned research, and open-source educational tools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Design Research and Training Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAMABAD

Environmental Science & Sustainability Programs (Ecology, Climate, Conservation)

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/STEM Enrichment & Science Programs

SECONDARYEDABAHAA

Foundational PM & Delivery Methods (Waterfall/Agile/Hybrid)

Education/Corporate Training & Professional Development/Project, Program & Product Management Training

SECONDARYBPACAJAJ

DEI, Equity & Inclusion Advisory

Business & Public Services/HR, Staffing & Recruitment Services/HR Consulting & Advisory (HR Strategy, Org Design, Change)

Keywords

• Design research services
• Design training programs
• Species-centered design
• Biodiversity design methods
• Transdisciplinary research

Headquarters

HQ city

Lyon

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees (Adhésion à Zoetopie): The association Zoetopie (created July 28, 2023) collects annual membership fees from individuals and organizations. Membership tiers include: students/independent/job seekers from €1/year, associations from €50/year, companies and public bodies from €100/year. Membership provides access to updated resources, a learning community, and support from the association.
2. MUCE Training program: Zoepolis runs paid two-day MUCE (Milieu, Umwelt, Cycle, Ethos) training sessions. Pricing varies by category: private sector employees at €600/day full rate or €400/day reduced, public sector at €400/day, independents at €350/day full or €250/day reduced, job seekers and individuals at €250/day, students at €25/day. Sessions are held in Lyon. The training is eligible for OPCO and FIFPL funding.
3. Donations: The website prominently features a donation option (Faire un don), suggesting individual donor contributions as a revenue stream.
4. Event tickets and workshops: The summer university and other public events charge participation fees: non-members from €5/day, members from €4/day. Conference tickets are priced at €10 for members and €30 for non-members.
5. Commissioned design research projects: Zoepolis conducts paid design research projects commissioned by public institutions, cultural organizations, and municipalities. Clients include the Ville de Lyon, Ville de Besançon, Caisse des dépôts, and others. Projects range from pollinator summit facilitation to ecological redirection of cultural institutions.
6. Conference and speaking engagements: Team members (notably Nicolas Roesch) deliver paid or subsidized conference presentations at events such as TEDx Tours, Design Week Paris, Design Masterclass, and academic colloquia.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Zoepolis is an independent transdisciplinary research laboratory that develops and teaches design methods for integrating non-human species (fauna, flora, ecosystems) into design practice. The collective offers paid professional training programs (notably MUCE, a two-day methodology), conducts commissioned design research for public institutions and cultural organizations, and delivers conferences, workshops, and a Summer University. All research outputs, methodologies, and pedagogical tools are released as Creative Commons open-source commons.

Product overview

Zoepolis operates as an independent transdisciplinary research collective focused on non-anthropocentric design approaches. The organization's portfolio includes MUCE, a two-day professional training methodology for integrating non-human perspectives into design; Online Guerrilla Gardening, a digital activism tool; and various open-source educational inquiry booklets (Symbiose, Mission déchets). The collective also offers design research services, conferences, and publications as part of its Commons (open-source productions).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• M.U.C.E. (Méthode Milieu, Umwelt, Cycle, Ethos): A methodology developed by Zoepolis for integrating other living beings into design processes, focusing on species perspectives, their sensory worlds, life rhythms, and behaviors.

Products and services

• MUCE – Méthode Milieu, Umwelt, Cycle, Ethos (Training Program) A two-day in-person professional training methodology that integrates non-human species perspectives (Umwelt, Cycle, Ethos) into design practice. Eligible for OPCO and FIFPL funding; open to private-sector employees, public-sector agents, independents, students, and associations.
• Stage Veiller les Vivants A one-week summer school stage combining anthropology, prospective design, and naturalist practices, targeting designers, researchers, and citizens interested in relationships with living species.
• Online Guerrilla Gardening A web application that generates ASCII 'flowery meadows' as a form of digital environmental activism to 'wildify' social media platforms.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90+ collective members from diverse disciplines recruited through courses, workshops, and public events
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• HopikaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner for the 'Mission Déchets' (2026) investigation booklet, which turns waste collection into an opportunity to observe biodiversity at ground level. The booklet was created for a family animation session in Cluses.
• France Nature Environnement Rhône (FNE Rhône)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Provided the subject and expertise for the Hackathon des ré-attachements held during Zoepolis's summer university (July 2025), focused on the relationships between human activities and wetland bioindicator species in urban environments.
• Institut Transitions (Lyon)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Host venue and co-organizer for the Saturday program of Zoepolis's first summer university (July 4–6, 2025), including the 'Opération Perséphone' prospective workshop and 'Voyage dans le temps' inquiry activity.
• Acadie / Métropole de SavoieminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Commissioned the Cartographie des interdépendances project (September 2025–January 2026), conducted during a Hackathon on the SCoT 2050, relating ecosystem services to territorial verbatims.
• ArthropologiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023Co-partner with Ville de Besançon for the Assises Nationales des Insectes Pollinisateurs (November 2023–January 2024), a national summit on pollinator insects that brought together 200 participants to identify and address barriers to pollinator-friendly policies.
• IfremercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Research partner on the Dolphins project (November 2023), which used user experience design and graphic design to facilitate access to new knowledge about mechanisms behind accidental dolphin captures in the Gulf of Biscay. Co-financed by the French Ministry of Ecological Transition, DGAMPA, and France Filière Pêche.
• Des Espèces Parmi'LyonminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partner for the Saproxylique Atelier (May 2023) with the Ville de Lyon, helping city agents understand the needs of saproxylous insects and design urban interventions to accommodate them in city spaces.
• IXXI – CNRS Complexity Sciences LyonminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Awarded a competition prize (2023) supporting the Penser Plante project, a transdisciplinary colloquium on plant sensory worlds followed by two days of co-design to rethink plant research. Supported by the Systems Biology Network of the University of Lyon and UJM Saint-Étienne.
• Université de La Rochelle (LRU)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partner in the Marine Beacon project (June 2024) for the design of a public information platform on marine species bycatch, involving elasmobranchs, cetaceans, pinnipeds, corals, and seabirds. Also partner in the Dolphins project with Ifremer.
• GIS UTSH (Université de Technologie et Sciences Humaines)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Co-organized the 'Design & Vivants' study day (April 29, 2022) in Paris with support from GIS UTSH, bringing together designers working with non-human species perspectives.
• Institut Michel SerrescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of four co-carrying organizations of the VIVANT FUTUR platform project, alongside Zoepolis, Université de la Terre, and Fédération BioGée, with the collaboration of Dorothée Browaeys and Jean-Jacques Perrier (CY École de design).
• Université de la TerrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-carrying organization of the VIVANT FUTUR platform, which aims to identify and analyze initiatives contributing to shared health between humanity and ecosystems, transforming production, consumption, and living patterns.
• Fédération BioGéecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-carrying organization of the VIVANT FUTUR platform. Also a partner for the Symbiose garden investigation booklet created for the Festival Jardins Jardin 2026, and co-producer of the VIVANT FUTUR platform.
• Routes VivantesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the blue tit (mésange bleue) road-kill awareness project developed during a workshop at Institut Supérieur de Design de Saint-Malo, aimed at identifying and proposing solutions to reduce road mortality for small urban species.
• Ecole des VivantscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of the annual 'Veiller les Vivants' summer school workshop, held at the Ecole des Vivants venue. Co-animated with CNRS anthropologist and research director Vanessa Manceron. The workshop runs for one week, combining anthropology, prospective design, and naturalist practices.
• CREA Mont BlancminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommissioned a serious game design project from UTC M2 Design students (2022) to raise awareness about alpine ecosystem functioning.
• Impact for ChangeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCertifying Qualiopi partner for the MUCE training program, enabling OPCO and FIFPL funding eligibility for participants. Provides support for financing procedures.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Centre for Circular Design (UAL): University of the Arts London research center applying design research methods to circular and ecological transitions. Shares Zoepolis's design-research-as-public-good approach and academic embedment.
• Atelier Ten: Environmental design consultancy integrating sustainability and living-systems thinking into buildings and planning. Comparable to Zoepolis in consulting on non-human perspectives in design but operating at a much larger commercial scale.
• Atelier Luma: A French design research laboratory in Arles exploring ecological transition through materials, design, and biodiversity. Their practice-based research approach and transdisciplinary framing closely mirror Zoepolis's open, commons-oriented methodology and focus on human/non-human relationships.
• Biomimicry Institute: A US-based nonprofit advancing biomimicry and bio-inspired design through education, certification, and a global network. Highly comparable to Zoepolis as a mission-driven educational organization teaching professionals to integrate living systems into design practice.
• The Great Recovery (RSA): Royal Society of Arts program that uses design research to rethink systems for circular economy outcomes. Comparable to Zoepolis in using design as a research method to address ecological crises and produce practical frameworks for organizations.

Broad incumbents

• Ideo: Global design consultancy with strong sustainability and human-centered research practices. Comparable in design-research methodology but operates at much larger scale and broader scope than Zoepolis's niche interspecies focus.
• frog (Capgemini Engineering): Global design and engineering firm with sustainability and life-centered design practices. Overlaps with Zoepolis in design research for ecological impact but at significantly larger scale and broader industry reach.
• Design Council UK: UK national body advancing design practice including sustainability and systemic design. Comparable to Zoepolis in promoting design methods for societal and ecological transformation, but at a broader policy and national-level scope.

Others

• Institut Michel Serres: French institute and co-carrying organization of the VIVANT FUTUR platform with Zoepolis. Comparable in transdisciplinary framing of human/non-human relations and serves as a strategic partner for Zoepolis's ecosystem of work.

Emerging players

• IASS (Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies): German research institute conducting transdisciplinary sustainability research including human-nature relations. Comparable to Zoepolis in producing frameworks that integrate ecological and social dimensions, though at an academic-policy scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@CollectifZoepolis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zoepolis
• Instagraminstagram.com/collectif.zoepolis
• Xx.com/zoepolis
• Facebookfacebook.com/collectifzoepolis

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zoepolis