SPIKA challenges inequality and urban food futures through microbial innovation.
UWE has been a key part of a development that has taken centre stage at one of the world’s biggest design exhibitions – the Triennale di Milano – with a striking new installation exploring nature, inequality and the future of food.
Launched on 13 May, SPIKA is part of the 24th International Exhibition at the Triennale di Milano. The installation features a hydroponic tower powered by microbial fuel cells – a sustainable system developed at UWE Bristol with Dr Mukesh Sharma and Prof Neil Willey. It invites audiences to consider our relationship with nature and how we might produce nutritious food in future urban settings.
Watch the SPIKA build come to life and hear from the researchers involved:
Video: Building SPIKA
SPIKA is an output of the Microbial Hydroponics (Mi-Hy) project – a €6.5 million EU/UKRI-funded effort to create sustainable urban hydroponic systems. The team at UWE is working in partnership with KU Leuven, University of Southampton, CSIC Madrid, University of Novi Sad, Biofaction Vienna and SONY Computer Science Labs Paris.
Innovation at UWE: The MI-Hy System
The Mi-Hy system – short for Microbial Hydroponics – is being developed in the Envirotron at UWE Bristol, a specialist facility for environmental and agricultural innovation. It reintroduces beneficial microbes into hydroponic systems and uses smart technology to manage these microbial communities.
Why? Because microbes are key to turning common urban waste streams into a nutrient source for food production. This makes Mi-Hy a bold response to urban sustainability, food security, and climate change – using waste to grow nutritious crops, closer to where people live.
Mi-Hy is part of the European Innovation Commission’s CO₂ and Nitrogen Valorisation Portfolio – a €30 million programme aimed at reducing emissions and creating circular solutions across Europe. The system will be demonstrated at key events and forums across the continent over the next two years.
See SPIKA in action
SPIKA is on display at the Triennale di Milano until November 2025
SPIKA and Mi-Hy are just one part of a bigger picture – showing how UWE researchers are using science, design and collaboration to shape sustainable futures.
Visit the live exhibit website to explore the exhibit in real-time
You can see updates by following on Instagram: @spika.mi_hy, @triennale