Design for Exaptability

Treat existing tools, buildings, and institutions as components that should be easily repurposed when environments change, rather than optimized for a single predicted use. Inspired by biological exaptations (like penguin wings becoming flippers), planners and policymakers should prioritize modularity, denser structures that enable multiple functions, and governance rules that allow rapid lawful repurposing. — If adopted, it would shift urban planning, infrastructure investment, and institutional design toward resilience by default and change how governments budget for uncertainty.