Ariadne Systems is a mutual-benefit nonprofit corporation that provides its members with options for a ecologically harmonious and economically profitable lifestyle.
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Science and technology have delivered unprecedented wealth. It's not evenly distributed, of course, but most of us are doing better than our ancestors could have imagined possible. And things are, for the most part, getting better. In the broadest sense, Ariadne Systems is about accelerating that process.
The idea is to create a kind of general automation company that provides goods and services as efficiently as possible (instead of maximizing profit.) We provide these basic goods and services to the members for a monthly rate that slowly goes down over time.
Ideally, we are providing:
What is an ecologically harmonious lifestyle anyway? It basically just means that we are increasing the health and vitality of the living world around us as we pursue our own ends. This was the normal condition of all living things before the advent of modern technology. There was no waste, because there was nothing that didn't return naturally to the environment. A stone ax, left on the ground, is just a stick and a stone.
When we started to make artifacts that could not be returned to the environment, that are not what we call biodegradable, that was the beginning of the problem. The other aspect was the sudden and enormous growth of the human population and our livestock and crops. Today we outweigh all other land animals together by more than ten to one.
So there are a lot of us and we create a lot of trash and destroy a lot of living things. However, almost all of this wasteful and destructive activity is actually orthogonal to the things we're trying to accomplish. It's an accidental side effect, and we can accomplish our goals without waste and destruction, and it should be easier and more fun too!
An ecologically harmonious lifestyle is economically cheaper, both for the household (in reduced expenses) and the surrounding economy (via reduced degradation of ecosystem services.)
We have all the technology we need to bring about a kind of secular utopia. (This is not an argument against further innovation and invention, rather I'm pointing out that technological know-how is no longer the limiting factor.) All we have to do is deploy our knowledge and resources efficiently and we can solve most of our problems very quickly. (We still must contend with the human condition, eh?) The idea is to knock out the lower levels of Maslow's hierarchy, the "Physiological" needs and most of "Safety" needs in that model.
Under "Safety" is listed: Health, and Personal, Emotional, and Financial security.
The task now is to harmonize our technology with Nature. We produce food, fiber, construction materials, etc. using regenerative methods, and we build and deploy simple automation and robots to reduce labor. Concretely, we hope to offer residency memberships that include housing, food and water, energy, climate control, and even some clothing and basic medicines, all for $300 per month.
Room and board in an ecologically harmonious neighborhood for $300/month?
Is it possible? I believe so. Not only that, but this monthly rate should go down as time goes on and our systems become even more efficient and productive. For members that already have their own homes and land we will give them the materials, tools, and know-how to create their own regenerative systems.
We want to help members:
We do this by providing:
Members receive:
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I think Health actually falls under the first order or tier, but whatever. I would extend it to include the health of the surrounding ecosystems as well. Health is not confined to the individual body, it's a function of your entire food chain and atmospheric exposure and watershed, etc...
Fortunately, as Geoff Lawton says, "You can solve the world's problems in a garden." And I think he's right. You can grow food, the materials for shelter (and maybe shelter itself), fibers for clothing, soap and toiletries for hygiene, many kinds of medicine, energy in the form of biomass, etc... all in your garden and food forest.
Some people will enjoy farm work, and for those who don't we'll make robots.
It's pretty simple: Get one hundred to three hundred members. At $30/month/member that's $3000 to $9000 per month gross income in membership dues. That's the whole plan in terms of selling things or making money, just get some "1,000 true fans" to give us thirty bucks a month.
So then what's the plan for doing things with that money?
First, all open books, all open activity. Everyone shall be able to see what we do and how we spend the money.
Second, the ultimate goal is to build "Living Neighborhoods" that supply our needs automatically and are fun to live in, and that improve the health of the Earth, and then let people live there. I imagine a mix of resident members and people whom we just give a living to for their creative output. I dunno? 2/3rds members and 1/3 "Fellows" or whatever we call it?
The general idea is that the people living in the neighborhoods then "pay it forward" in terms of making the transition (to a kinder, gentler economy) happen. Not every member has to be some radical gardener, but the general trend should be towards more land under ecologically harmonious management, faster.
Well, we have land.
I can't bring people there to live in a neighborhood because the land is zoned agricultural rather than residential, but it provides space to develop the materials and machinery to build neighborhoods elsewhere. I may be able to host people for short-term visits, it's something to look into.
(With whom I have no affiliation!)
Bucky Fuller calculated that we would have this level of technology by sometime in the 1970's. We did (e.g. transistor, atomic power), but we have yet to engage our technology coherently to make it happen.
Since we're just starting out it will take a while to get to the point where we are giving out homes. But we have a few benefits already, such as a seed library and a tropical tree hothouse.
It's the foundation of prosperity, and it can be a source of profit as well. Along with advances in technology, this should result in massive reduction of work required to maintain a given quality of life. E.g. a 24-hour work week and the option to retire after working only a few years.