The world we live in is getting more and more fragile due to complexity generated by global boundlessness.
We can see the cracks in our supply chains in times of crisis like the ones we lived in 2020. Individuals and communities can not count on old models to receive basic necessities like medicines, power or even food.
The coronavirus outbreak has led India to restrict the export of dozens of drugs including paracetamol and various antibiotics, leading to fears of a global shortage of essential medicines.
India’s drug makers rely on China for almost 70% of the active ingredients in their medicines, and industry experts have warned that they are likely to face shortages if the epidemic continues.
“Even drugs that aren’t produced in China get their base ingredients from China. Globally there could be a shortage if China and India both get hit,” warned analyst Shaun Rein from the China Market Research Group.
The shortfall, which experts believe officials should have been able to avoid, forced managers of the grid to order rolling blackouts in the middle of a pandemic and as wildfires across the state were spreading.
China does not have enough fresh food to go around — and neither does much of the world.
The pandemic and extreme weather have disrupted agricultural supply chains, leaving food prices sharply higher in countries as diverse as Yemen, Sudan, Mexico and South Korea. The United Nations warned in June that the world is on the brink of its worst food crisis in 50 years.
“It’s scary and it’s overwhelming,” Arif Husain, chief economist of the United Nations World Food Program, said in an interview. “I don’t think we have seen anything like this ever.”
People are now left dreading the intensity of the problems they face, which some have said could be worse than the 1959 famine.
But protectionist moves by some food-exporting countries — to hold on to their products in a time of crisis — raise wider issues of global food security and the hard-edge competition between nations for medical supplies and other goods even as the world faces a common enemy.
So how do we tackle those issues and adapt to thrive in this new world ?
Communities will need to be resilient and self-sustainable but also able to exchange and collaborate with others. The 21st century will be local & interconnected (see Fractal Localism).
This new era will be characterised by an emphasis on cooperation rather than competition, but also a greater symbiosis between humans and their environment and a multi polar approach to problems.
For that we need to create better models, to develop and implement technologies, and to find new ways to be together as legacy structures and tools are insufficient to adapt fast enough to the world we are entering.
Therefore there will be a need to blend Art & Technology in a new way to allow ideas to emerge.
“When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty but when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong” — R. Buckminster Fuller
How can we maximise the human potential ? How can we liberate the intrinsic creativity of individuals towards making the community better as a whole ?
What if we could curate a space where creating technologies and art that increased the symbiosis of Human beings with their own environment would be incentivized ?
A space where systems thinkers, technologists, artists, visionaries and innovators can collaborate to create an environment where humans can thrive.
Off-grid smart village
Inspirations :
- Precipice from The Shockwave Rider
- The Unplugged
Solar punk — Raja Nandepu https://www.artstation.com/artwork/nQylEe
A few years ago in London I had the pleasure of becoming a guest at Vinay Gupta’s weekly dinners. The principles were simple, it would happen every Tuesday or Wednesday, food and wine would be provided, and pretty much anyone smart, interesting or weird that was in town and connected to a friend was invited. There you could meet artists, lawyers, technologists, explorers, scientists, misfits and a few wizards and witches. The result was an atmosphere of exploration, creation and fun.
Want to talk Films ? There is a cinema manager and festival organiser, with an in depth knowledge of the art, at the other side of the room. Behind you a biker club member and lawyer activist doing more for his community than almost anyone I’ve met (shout out to Red Army Riding Club). Next to him an historian and medieval weapons specialist that can discuss all kind of juicy details of the history of London. On the balcony a mathematician if you feel nerdy that evening.
The discussions, projects and collaborations that emerged from it were priceless. So much that a bunch of us who became regular got tired of having to interrupt our stimulating evenings to take the last Tube and moved in the same block.
So what made this successful ? Communion, mixing regulars with newcomers, a blend of continuity and newness over years. This taught me about the power of mixing different profiles, opinions, backgrounds, expertise and politics.
Fast forward to now. What if we could create an environment for a similar group to emerge in a more permanent way, freeing them from the usual shackles of society so they can fully manifest their creativity and stimulate each other towards creating a more regenerative future ?
That is what we are doing by building a Regenerative Innovation Lab.
Using something like RegenVillages’s VillageOS to design a smart village that uses regenerative and resilient technology, with pods (Niu Haus) so residents can have their own private spaces, and common buildings for the community.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/energy/the-smarter-grid/tomorrows-power-grid-will-be-autonomous
Autonomous energy grids use AI, renewable energy, and energy storage to optimize the grid
A hacker/maker space plus a botany and mycology lab where we research, grow and build for the village itself but also the broader community.
The village provides high quality sustenance obtained as locally as possible, ideally produced on site using technologies developed or implemented by members.
A curated offer of physical and spiritual practices will be proposed to promote a high quality of living, this include yoga, martial arts, body therapies, creative practices and meditation among other things. A gym and sauna will be among the amenities.
Regular workshops and talks to share knowledge will be organised by members but also specialists from the broader community around themes connected to the general vision.
How do we fund it ?
In a 21st century transitioning Game B world, how do we fund such a project with the objective of fostering long term cooperation and aligning the incentives of founders, funders and the community ?
By creating a fund “with profit” or “not-only-for-profit” using an Augmented Bonding Curve (ABC) token, preferably the Commons Stack’s one and start with key Regenerative actors as a Trusted Seed.
a non-profit organization is legally excluded from making profits, whereas a not-for-profit business model should be understood as a not-only-for-profit business. For such organizations, profit is no longer the key focus.
https://www.iesashift.nl/reviving-the-not-for-profit-business-model-for-a-sustainable-economy/
One of the issues with an ABC is that in the case of funding a project needing a large input of cash at the beginning, like buying land and buildings, there is a risk of collapsing the curve itself by reducing the collateral close to zero.
But what if you tokenized the land acquired using Mattereum’s process and then used the tokenized land as a collateral in your Augmented Bonding Curve ?
ERC-20 token collateralized with physical assets in the real world !
Or a “Real estate investment curve” as Vinay would put it. You could regularly reappraise the land and improvements built on it which would impact on the price of the ABC token alongside the cash collateral which itself would grow thanks to the projects incubated at the Lab.
That’s only one of the ways that this project could be funded and we are definitely open to alternatives.
Where do we build it ?
Being a resident at Amara Valley I perceive the possibility of creating a symbiotic partnership . Hosting this project on one (or two) of the adjacent properties will enhance its offer with for example access to the morning yoga sessions or regular retreats and offerings organised by the Amara Valley team.
Amara’s mission statement :
The mission of Amara Valley is to create a healing sanctuary of profound beauty, that enhances the wellness and development of everyone who comes here.
A nurturing place where we can learn to live in harmony, where our creativity can become reality, and where we are all able to reimagine and develop every aspect of our individual, and collective, potential.
Through transformative retreats, courses and gatherings, we seek to provide a home where Regenerative culture in all its forms can be cultivated and celebrated.
We strive to grow together, remembering those who came before us and honouring those who are yet to come, providing strength and insight to each other wherever we can, and committing deeply to serving the web of Life on the Earth.
We are guided by openness, kindness, happiness and love.
One of the tools we will use to plan the village is a Simple Critical Infrastructure Map (SCIM) to make sure that we are ready in case of a crisis and provide all the basics to our members and guests.
Individual level:
- Shelter
- Supply (food, water)
- Safety
Group level:
- Communications
- Space
- Transportation
- Resource control
Organization level:
- Shared Map
- Shared Plan
- Shared Succession Model
A community maps to those three levels above. It should provide Shelter, Supply and Safety to their members.
The community needs a Space for this, Transportation to go from and to the Space, a way to manage shared resources in the Space and Communications system to exchange with the outside world and more specifically the Organizations it is part of.
Provided that, the community will find like minded communities with whom they share a similar vision or Map to what the situation is, agree on a Plan to move forward and have systems to make the organization work (exchanges, disputes, succession, etc).
To read more on SCIM check out Dealing in Security, understanding vital services and how they keep you safe.
