Systemic Symbiotic Planetary Ecovillage Network (SSPEN) - Chapter 11 by Silver Jones

S YS TE MI C S Y MBIOTI C P LANETARY ECOV ILLAG E NE TWORK

Systemic Symbiotic Planetary Ecovillage Network P O Box 1674 Middletown, CA 95461-1674 USA

silverj6@mchsi.com Silver J. H. Jones

Systemic Symbiotic Planetary Ecovi!age Network

TABLE OF CONTE NTS The capital assets of private citizens(2002)

Proposed purpose of SSPEN facilities

Landscape map

Resources

An example of a land based ecovi!age facility

Community in%astructure

Administrative and utilities in%astructure

Farming and nourishment in%astructure

Information in%astructure

Business, industrial, and retail in%astructure

Some examples of ocean based aquavi!ages

Financial models

Methods of governance

A brief look into permaculture

References

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CHAP TE R XI Resources Silver J. H. Jones 2008

Copyright ÂŠ 2002 by Silver (J. H.) Jones. All right, electronic, multimedia, and print, reserved. A publication of SSPEN - Systemic Symbiotic Planetary Ecovillage Network. The purpose of this discussion is to provide you with some idea of how much, we the people, have in the way of resources, and how we can go about reallocating these resources to provide for a long-term sustainable civilization. We begin by estimating what the collective wealth of just one country is - the United States. We then go on to provide a single example of what an ecovillage might look like.

The capital assets of private citizens (2002 era) Before we can discuss what earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s citizens can do with their personal resources, we must establish just what those resources consist of. In this discussion, we will only focus on the figures provided by the Federal Reserve in the U.S.A.: The total stock market investments of all American households in December 1999 was 11.8 trillion dollars. This figure does not include traditional bank checking and saving accounts, certificates of deposit, annuities, or mature life insurance policies. The estimated total value of the bond market is ~ 30 trillion, but we were unable to determine what percentage of this total figure is held by individual investors. We will use 1/3 as a rough estimate of the percentage held by individual investors. As a result of the stock market decline from 1999-2002, the 11.8 trillion figure has now dropped to 8.1 trillion dollars as of September 2002. The total value of personally held real estate in the U.S.A is 13.4 trillion dollars as of September 2002.

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If we combine these figures for September (2002 during a deep recession) we have a figure that represents the personal capital assets of the American public ~ 33 trillion dollars. This figures does not include any small business or corporate holdings. This 33 trillion dollar figure is an important figure which is pertinent to our discussion, because this is money that is totally under the control of private citizens. It can be moved or reallocated at the personal discretion of these individuals or households. If we make the worst case assumption, that any attempt to establish new and innovative ecovillage communities will receive no support from any other source of funding other than the people actually involved in establishing these communities, this figure then represents the total pool of money potentially available for reinvestment. This is a substantial sum of money. We do not anticipate that the entire American public will decide tomorrow to totally reinvent their lives and reallocate their capital. However, this figure is still an important one, because even a small portion of this sum, reallocated to new purposes, could provide a chance for considerable social change. If these initial experiments prove successful, we could anticipate larger percentages of this capital pool flowing into new communities over an extended period of time in this century. If one were to total up similar figures for countries in the European Economic Union, Australia, Canada, South America, Asia, and the Middle Eastern nations, we would be looking at an enormously impressive figure.

Proposed purpose of SSPEN facilities The following information is presented to provide at least some example of how to go about setting up an SSPEN project. Any given project will of course differ in many respects from the following example, but at least it will provide some general guidelines as to how to begin to organize such a project. We highly recommend that you post your project on a web site, as this is probably the most efficient manner to notify others and attract the money, talent, skills, financing, and partnerships that will be necessary to complete your project. It is important that every SSPEN project have at least a preliminary proposal describing the nature of the project. The project proposal should include the following information: • Information on the land development proposal should include the amount of land involved, the geographical and geological classifications of the land, the topology, the elevation, the soil, the mineral content, the type of terrain, and the surface and subterranean water supplies. If oil, gas, or geothermal sources are available, these should be included. Current zoning information should also be included. • Each project should include a description of the surrounding community, and the facilities available within that community. • The current financial status of the land, owned outright, or the portion of the ownership which is mortgaged. • Provide the general location of your facility. • Easement rights must also be addressed.

Landscape map Visual materials such as photographs and maps are very important to help others to visualize and understand the size and scope of your project. We would suggest the following visuals be posted on a web site:

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• It is advisable to have as much visual information available as possible. • Try to provide an aerial photograph or Google Earth image of the land, minimally, and hopefully a number of photographs from many different angles. • Provide photographs taken from the ground of interesting perspectives of the lands topology. • Shoot some video footage, and place some compressed video clips on the projects web site. • Provide examples of the different kinds of flora and fauna resident on the land.

Resources A thorough evaluation of the natural resources resident on the land should be conducted and presented on a web site. Some examples of resources available to projects consist of the following: • Land -Nine hundred acres of land consisting of valley with surrounding mountains on three sides in a U shaped configuration. A creek with running water down the middle of the valley. • Water - A running creek down the center of the valley. An underground water table of unknown status. • Minerals - Any substantial mineral content should be inventoried. • Wind -Wind on the high hill tops which could be tapped for energy generation. • Wood - Heavily wooded areas on all three hillsides. • Geothermal - Can provide a potential source of power generation and heating. • Sun Exposure - Potential solar power generation.

An example of a land based ecovillage facility We have provided the following as an example of a SSPEN project. This particular project is one that incorporates a working community living within the project, and a number of guest facilities that provide a resort, vacation, conference, spiritual retreat experience, and various interface with the general public. The approximate acreage for this project is 1000 acres.

Community infrastructure A number of facilities are planned for the facility. Each of the components plays a fundamental role in the overall symbiotic environment. Those facilities with a (IP - income producing) following their names are considered as potentially financial income producing facilities: Meditation Center (IP) • large central meditation room • smaller rooms for workshops, training, specialization • sound systems • art display • lighting systems

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Yoga Center (IP) • large central yoga performance room • smaller rooms for workshops, training, specialization • sound system • lighting systems Exercise Center (IP) • weight rooms • aerobic rooms • showers • lockers • sound system Theater Center (IP) • main dance or theater performance area • smaller rooms for workshops • sound systems • computer controlled lighting • back stage area • makeup and dressing rooms Music Center (IP) • standard recording studio • broadcast studio • reception area • workshop rooms • multichannel music geodesic dome theater (16 to 120 channels of sound in the geodesic facets) • live performance capacity • retail center • broadcast infrastructure • internet streaming facility • multiple computer controlled lasers • multiple stage, disco, and area lighting systems - all computer controlled Conference Center (IP) (real time, broadcast, and reception) (IP and free) • large main conference center • multiple teleconferencing screens • large screen projection facilities • sound systems • video systems • computer systems • recording systems • audio and video archiving facility • smaller rooms for special focus groups • internet streaming facilities Virtual Reality Center (IP) • community performance room • holographic systems • lasers • sound systems • video systems • computer systems • small group interaction rooms

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• individual terminals Internet Network Connection Hub (IP) (broadcast, reception) • outdoor theater (IP or free) • stage area • backstage area • seating area • standing area • sound systems • lighting systems Bookstore and Multimedia Center (IP) • hard copy books • e-books • DVD • CD-ROM • software Child Care Center (IP or free) • play area • education area • identification and sign in area • ecology training Non-edible Gardens • special garden areas • sculpture • seating and rest areas Camp Grounds (IP) • tent unit areas • lockers • fire pits • camp stove area • waste deposits areas • water taps • showers Parking Area • permanent residents • guest parking • truck loading areas Entrance and Information Center • sign in area • billing • schedule of events • maps • directions • parking directions • lost and found center • UPS/Fedex receiving and departure area Hiking and Biking Trails (IP) • designated hiking trails

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• designated biking trails • bike parking and locking areas Landscape Viewing Areas • selected prime landscape lookout areas on or off the hiking trails Guest Housing (IP) • simple guest rooms for families, couples, and individuals • grounds • common lounge areas • shared shower and bathroom facilities for small rooms Telescope Facility (IP) • computer controlled telescope • internet interface • computer terminal with solar, satellite, and geophysical observatory sites Spa (IP) • therapeutic baths • message • steam room • skin treatments • nutritional education center Writers Retreats (IP) • small private rooms • community lounge Time Share Housing Facility (IP) • apartments or condo units owned by the community and individuals • community units would be rented to visitors from other intentional communities who came to your community for extended visits • personally owned units would be owned by community members who traveled a good portion of the year Permanent Community Housing • the homes, condominiums, and apartments of the permanent residents of the community

Administrative and utilities infrastructure Administration Center • scheduling • planning • construction administration • accounting • check and bill processing • credit card and debit card processing • advertising Architectural Design Center (IP) (IP if commercialized) • design center • design approval

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Construction Center (IP) (IP if commercialized) • wood shop • metal shop • cement shop • fabrication center • ceramic center • machine and tool storage area Power Control Centers • grid power • solar power • hydroelectric power • wind power • geothermal power • power network • over unity power • biomass power • biofuel production area Water Storage and Control Centers • surface water and storage • sub-surface water • purification facilities • distribution points • agricultural irrigation Waste Management • septic systems • gray-water usage and handling • black-water usage and handling • recycling collection and storage • recycle processing • biohazard area for storing fuels and other potentially harmful substances Grounds Maintenance • private road maintenance • hiking trail maintenance • tree and brush manicuring • landscape maintenance Security Center • patrol of grounds • dispute arbitration center • search and rescue • emergency notification Fire Control Center • emergency notification • fire equipment storage • fire equipment maintenance • volunteer training Building Maintenance • painting facilities

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• • • • •

weather proofing roofing cement works heating and air conditioning inspection

Administrative Staff and Governance Buildings • offices for administrative staff • community documents center • governing council meeting area

Farming and nourishment infrastructure Food Gardens (IP) • seed storage • irrigation • tools area • food processing area • food storage facilities • composting facilities • hydroponics • algae • greenhouses Nourishment Centers (IP) • full restaurants • cafes • kitchens • health food store

Information infrastructure Internet Network and Control Center (IP) • computational grid (main processing system) • clustered servers • network • caching servers • storage • backup • satellite communications • backbone fiber connection (T1, T2, T3) • metro-fiber distribution • temperature control • power regulation • local intranet • global extranet • teleconferencing facilities • multimedia broadcast • multimedia reception • web site servers • wireless internet service Internet Communications Center for Visitors (IP or free)

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• internet terminals for checking e-mail and general web surfing by guests • Skype, AIM, VOIP, etc. • telephone system Publishing Center (IP) • book and magazine graphics mark-up office • editing office • photography office • e-publishing office • hard copy publishing office • printing facilities • print on demand

Business, industrial, and retail infrastructure Coop Banking and Investment ecoMall • Larger ecovillages could establish their own banking system, offering mortgages, insurance, and business loans within the residential and commercial portions of the community. • coop investment brokerage facility • By establishing a cooperative investment brokerage service, the citizens of the ecovillage could purchase stocks, options, and bonds at much lower commissions and spreads - equivalent to the fees institutional investors receive, as opposed to the higher fees payed by retail investors. Individuals would still control their own portfolios, but purchases and sales would be grouped whenever possible so that the investors would receive the lower institutional commission fees. The community could also choose to offer skilled financial advisors to its citizens through this facility. Industrial and Service ecoMall • A separate industrial mall removed from the residential areas would be desirable. The use of higher voltages, chemicals, and materials which require special handling require a separate facility. Noise and potential pollution control are much more easily handled in a separate facilities. • The portion of the business sector which is more service related could also have a small mall separate from the industrial sector. Medical ecoMall • If the community was large enough to support its own medical facility, it would be desirable to have a medical, dental, and veterinary facilities. In smaller ecovillages, these facilities could be part time facilities. Retail ecoMall A retail mall could provide an outlet for community business products, to the external surrounding community, and to the communities citizens. The placement of the mall should be outside the community, or on the edge of the community, to avoid additional traffic and parking problems. What we envision here are small malls, and in smaller communities these may be unnecessary, in medium sized communities they could all be combined into a single complex.

Some examples of ocean based aquavillages It is unfortunate that earth’s population is growing at such an astounding rate, and this condition must be addressed and corrected as soon as possible, but in the mean time we must address and allow for this population explosion in a serious manner. The oceans provide the most obvious terrestrial expansion zone, to absorb future population growth. We will refer to this new form of microsociety or ecovillage as

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an aquavillage. An aquavillage, just like its land based cousin, will be an ocean based microsociety centered around the common theme of eco-friendly civilization. With ever decreasing land resources, in the future we can and must create viable microsocieties that are capable of existing almost exclusively on ocean resources. Maneuverable, floating, and anchored ocean cities on the scale of 30,000 to 50,000 person populations are feasible. These aquavillages must be as self-sustaining as possible, thereby placing as little demand as possible on existing land resources. If you think such possibilities are far fetched consider the project FreedomShip (www.freedomship.com). Although this example is not quite what we have in mind for our aquavillages, it can still be very instructive to look at this proposal. The FreedomShip project is a proposal to build a massive cruise ship type vessel that will circumnavigate the world over a two year period, spending most of its time just beyond the 12 mile national limit around national shorelines. The ship will have its own airport, supporting airplanes with up to 40 passengers, ferryboat service, and personal cars will be stored on ship. The vessel will include libraries, schools, a hospital, restaurants, hotels, entertainment facilities, offices, warehouses, light manufacturing, and assembly facilities, and 25 stories of individually owned residential apartments. This floating city will be 4,500 feet long, 750 feet wide, and 350 feet high. The ship will include 1.7 million square feet of commercial space for businesses, and a luxury shopping mall. The ship will support 40,000 permanent residents, 15,000 hotel guests, 20,000 employees, and as many as 30,000 visitors on any given day. It is estimated that it will take 44 months to build and launch this floating city. The scale of this project will require completely new construction techniques, more along the lines of high rise apartment buildings, than the more common ship building techniques. Even though this facility was not designed to be self-sufficient, it certainly qualifies as an example of a microsociety. Because this particular project is a for profit commercial enterprise and has no mission statement about it ecological perspective we cannot classify it as an ecovillage. But with a little imagination one can easily imagine something similar, but designed around an intentional ecofriendly theme similar to what we have been exploring in our land based ecovillages. The Seasteading Institute (www.seasteading.org) is another organization that is proposing homesteading the oceans of the world by setting up independent micro-nations outside the 12 mile limits of national ocean shore buffers zones. This is a relatively new organization, but it presents very interesting possibilities. They are using an open forum to design and develop the concepts involved in this proposal. With the addition of an eco-friendly theme, the addition of some clean energy strategies like solar, wind, and ocean temperature differential generators, and some aquaculture vegetable and fruit farming, and sea farming and harvesting facility, such a vessel could easily be classified as a proper eco-friendly aquavillage. The Venus Project (www.thevenusproject.com) designed by Jacque Fresco has also proposed a highly cybernetic approach to both land based and sea based eco-friendly ecovillages for both land, the shore, and the ocean. The oceans are a vast resource that we have not fully explored, and we can no longer afford to continue this oversight. A full appraisal of just how much we can do with our oceans without harming their long-term viability should be a high priority. We must learn to farm our oceans and not just pillage them. We must find ways to increase our oceans productivity which include replenishing techniques, and we must preserve and protect the coral reefs which are presently in a serious state of degeneration.

Financial models It is important to provide a financial plane which lays out the purposed methods by which the community intends to develop its project financially. The following may apply to many different types of communities: â&#x20AC;˘ How the funding to purchase the land is going to be handled, if the land has not already been purchase?

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• If the land has already been purchased, is it owned outright, or mortgaged? • How will new, or additional ownership, or partnerships be handled? • Will the model involve legal statuses, such as incorporation, foundations, non-profit status, or various types so trusts? • In what manner will funding for ongoing, and additional new development of the land be handled? • In what manner will the taxes and the expenses for the upkeep of the land and the facilities be shared or handled? • How will revenues, profits, and all other forms of income from the operation of the community facilities be shared? • State the manner in which the project will be preserved beyond the lifetimes of the individual owners. • Provide guidelines which state what will be acceptable and unacceptable usages and practices on the land, and guidelines for the preservation of the natural resources on the land.

Methods of governance Some broad outlines of how the governance of the land and facilities will be conducted is important. Obviously this can be almost any system the members of the community wish to initiate, and can be changed and modified at any time, subject to a vote to change the methods of governance by the community members. (not completed)

A brief look into permaculture Since the vision and presentation of ecovillages we have presented here is somewhat more technological than the average person would expect when coming to a web site on this topic, we will attempt to balance our presentation by providing some information from an excellent source of practical information about how to set up ecovillages in all types of climates and geological terrains. We highly recommend the book, Permaculture - A Designers’ Manual (ISBN 0- 908228-01-5) [1] to anyone attempting to establish an ecovillage community, or to anyone attempting to improve an already existing ecovillage. This book provides an extremely well thought out and tested series of models for ecovillages designed for various types of combinations of climate and geology. Permaculture, as defined by a direct quote from this excellent book, is [2]: “Permaculture (permanent agriculture) is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material and nonmaterial needs in a sustainable way. Without permanent agriculture there is no possibility of a stable social order. Permaculture design is a system of assembling conceptual, material, and strategic components in a pattern which functions to benefit life in all its forms. The philosophy behind permaculture is one of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless action; of looking at systems in all their functions, rather than asking only one yield of them; and of allowing systems to demonstrate their own evolution.” Just to give you some idea of what this 576 page book goes into we have provided a copy of the Contents [3].

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CONTENTS Chapter 1 - Introduction Introduction The philosophy behind permaculture Ethics Permaculture in landscape and society References Chapter 2 - Concepts and Themes in Design Introduction Science and the thousand names of God Applying laws and principles to design Resources Yields Cycles: a niche in time Pyramids, food webs, growth and vegetarianism Complexity and connections Order or chaos Permitted and forced functions Diversity Stability Time and yield Principle summary References Chapter 3 - Methods of Design Introductions Analysis: Design by listing characteristics of components Observation: Design by expanding on direct observation of a site Deduction from nature: Design by adopting lessons learned from nature Options and decisions: Design as a selection of options or pathways based on decisions Data overlay: Design by map overlay Random assembly: Design by assessing the results of random assemblies Flow diagrams: Design for work places Zone and sector analysis: Design by the application of a master pattern Zoning of information and ethics Incremental design Summary of design methods The concepts of guilds in nature Succession: evolution of a system The establishment and maintenance of systems General practical procedures in property design Principle summary Chapter 4 - Pattern Understanding Introduction A general pattern model of events Matrices and the strategies of compacting and complexing components

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Properties of media Boundary conditions The harmonics and geometries of boundaries Compatible and incompatible borders and components The timing and shaping of events Spirals Flow over landscape and objects Open flow and flow patterns Toroidal phenomena Dimensions and potentials Closed (special) models; accretion and expulsion Branching and its effects; conduits Orders of magnitude in branches Order and dimensions Classification of events Time and relativity in the model The world we line in as a tessellation of events Introduction to pattern applications The tribal use of patterning The mnemonics of meaning Patterns of society The arts in the service of life Additional pattern applications References and further reading Designersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; checklist Chapter 5 - Climatic Factors Introduction The classification of broad climate zones Patterning in global weather systems; the engines of the atmosphere Precipitation Radiation Wind Landscape effects Latitude effects References Designerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s checklist Chapter 6 - Trees and Their Energy Transactions Introduction The biomass of the tree Wind effects Temperature effects Trees and precipitation How a tree interacts with rain Summary References Chapter 7 - Water Introduction Regional intervention in the water cycle Earthworks for water conservation and storage

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Reduction of water used in sewage systems The purification of polluted waters Natural swimming pools Designersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; checklist References Chapter 8 - Soils Introduction Soils and health Tribal and traditional soil classifications The structure of soils Soil and water elements Primary nutrients for plants The distribution of elements in the soil profile pH and soils Soil composition Soil pores and crumb structure Gaseous content and processes in soils The soil biota Difficult soils Planet analysis for mineral deficiencies; some remedies Biological indicators of soil and soil conditions Seed pelleting Soil erosion Soil rehabilitation Soils in house foundations Life in earth The respiration of earth Designersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; checklist References Chapter 9 - Earthworking and Earth Resources Introduction Planning earthworks Planting after earthworks Slope measure Levels and leveling Types of earthworks Earth constructs Moving the earth Earth resources References Chapter 10 - The Humid Tropics Introduction Climatic types Tropical soils Earthshaping in the tropics House design The tropical home garden Integrated land management Elements of a village complex in the humid tropics Evolving a polyculture

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Themes on a coconut-or palm-dominant polyculture Pioneering “Animal tractor” systems Grassland and range management Humid tropical coast stabilization and shelterbelts Low island and coral cay strategies Designers’ checklist References Chapter 11 - Dryland Strategies Introduction Precipitation Temperature Soils Landscape features in deserts Harvesting of water in arid lands The desert house The desert garden Garden irrigation systems Desert settlement -- broad strategies Plant themes for drylands Animal systems in drylands Desertification and the salting of soils Cold and montane deserts Designers’ checklist References Chapter 12 - Humid Cool to Cold Climates Introduction Characteristics of a humid cool climate Soils Landform and water conservation Settlement and house design The home garden Berry fruits Glasshouse growing Orchards Farm forestry Free-range forage systems The lawn Grasslands Rangelands Cold climates Wildfire Designers’ checklist References Chapter 13 - Aquaculture Introduction The case for aquaculture Some factors affecting total useful yields Choice of fish species (varieties, food, health) and factors in yield

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Fish pond configurations and food supply Farming invertebrates for fish food Channel, canal, chinampa Yields outside the pond Bringing in the harvest Traditional and new water polycultures Designersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; checklist References Chapter 14 - The Strategies of an Alternative Global Nation Introduction Ethical basis of an alternative nation A new United Nations Alternatives to political systems Bioregional organization Extended families Trusts and legal strategies Developmental and property trusts Village development Effective working groups and right livelihood Money and finance Land access An ethical investment movement Effective aid Futures References and resources

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References 1.

Mollison, Bill. PERMACULTURE-A Designer’ Manual, Tagari Publication, 1988.

2. Mollison, Bill. PERMACULTURE-A Designer’ Manual, Tagari Publication, 1988, p. ix - x. 3. Mollison, Bill. PERMACULTURE-A Designer’ Manual, Tagari Publication, 1988, p. v - viii.

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