Core Application

Redirect to:

• One Month Project-Based Visits

Note: this application is old. At present, we are offering Dedicated Project Visit opportunities. Updated last on 11.23.09.

Key requirements:

Open Source Clause

• Open source nature of the work - all research and development results - especially economically-significant results - shall enter the public domain, copyleft, or similar intellectual propery status. The results shall enter this status in as timely fashion as possible, in order to maximize collaboration potential. Documentation shall be developed to high standards. All work shall follow this intellectual property model, unless explicitly agreed upon prior to the beginning of a developer's involvement.

Core Team Requirements

Time

• Basic time requirement goals are roughly 4 hours of directed physical work and 4 hours of organizational work - for a total of 8 hours per day, six days per week. This is a minimum, and we are hoping that prospective members find this work sufficiently important to warrant additional time commitment.
  • Time spent in physical vs. organizational work may vary depending on the stage of projects. Design periods may indicate almost full days sitting on a computer, while prototyping stages, buildout, or plantout sessions may mean that almost the entire day is spent outside. This varies depending on the project phase.
• The 8 hour work day is negotiable, but if someone can't put 8 hours into a project that has serious transformative potential, we begin asking - does the applicant have the inherent motivation or 'fire in their pants' becuase they see the transformative potential? We want only those people who are committed deeply to the project to be on the Core Team.
• If one is not interested in such a time commitment, then we suggest that the applicant consider the basic volunteering, and use this Application.

Financial Issues

• We require that core team members are free of debt, or that they do not have to spend time away from development work on paying back loans.
• We are open to people doing extra earning by production related directly to GVCS technologies. However, this must happen outside of the 8 hour daily basic requirement, and it must not interfere with it. Decisions on possbile engagements along these lines will be determined by principled consensus with other members of the Core Team.
• Core Team Members are required to bring in a mutually-agreed upon value to the project on a monthly basis. This value may be difficult to define, but careful consideration should be given to this to make realistic predictions. This value will be negotiated with the R&D Director and the rest of the Core Team, based on the skills, resources, and other qualities of the applcant. The applicant may also negotiate allocation of a small part of the value generated as a stipend.
• The first time visitor's fee is applicable, see Visit Factor e Farm
• We have a nonrefundable membershiping fee of $400 for those interested in joining the Core Team after their first visit. This is meant to encourage potential members to take the time to study our operations carefully and to compose a realistic proposal regarding their work prior to coming. This fee also compensates the existing Core Team for time spent in orienting new members in case the membershiping does not work out. New participants may use the value generated as a result of their work to recover this cost, upon successful delivery of their stated goals.

Conflict Resolution

• Any Core Team member can bring up any grievance, and other members of Factor e Farm are required to be receptive to conflict resolution procedures. These may take any form necessary. We prefer to utilize measures for local resolution, such as direct discussion in a focused conflict resolution session. If this is not successful, then the Director of Research and Development has the power to decide on further remediation procedures, including mediation by the Council of Elders.

Respect, Conduct, and Principles

• Core Team members are required to follow the 7 Areas of Respect, Rules of Conduct, and other Principles.

Questions for Applicant

Research and Development

1. What resources, time, skills, and financial commitments are you willing to make voluntarily to move the work of the Global Village Construction Set forward, as an on-site member of Factor e Farm? See the video on the Global Village Construction set from the Oekonux conference as a reference regarding the technology set - [1]
2. Based on the list of technologies in the Global Village Construction Set, select one and propose a program of action for developing that technology, and how that can contribute to developing an Open Source Business Model.
3. The goal of our work is to produce economically significand and replicable enterprise options for production in resilient communities. Are you capable of defining an open source business model, and of publishing an open source business plan, and what experience do you have that will help you succeed?
4. Read our recent blog post - [2] on the proposed developments by the present 2-person core team at Factor e Farm. Please propose a brief overview of deliverables that you can make to the program as a result of your involvement. Include both: (1) your contributions to the program already proposed for the 2-person core team program; and, (2), contributions that will be made primarily under your leadership. Describe the skills and experiences that qualify you to complete your proposed program.
5. Serious critique has been raised about our program regarding the technocentric nature of our developments. We do not see the program technocentric as much as results-oriented - ie, a rigorous program of development for an equally ambitious goal. Critics have raised concerns that we are not doing sufficient community-building or that we do not have sufficient feminine energy in our land-based facility. Our response is that we find those aspects extremely important, but we are not at the phase where we can prioritize them over technology development. We will be addressing these issues as soon as we have demonstrated an effective development method for open source technology development. We believe that we will be in a better position to do this when we have additional resources. What is your perspective on this issue, and will you be able to work effectively in the described environment?

Resource Development

1. Are you in a position to help recruit True Fans, and if so, how do you plan to do this and how many True Fans can you recruit per month?
2. Do you have experience with proposal writing? Grant writing? If so, what is your experience, and how would you be able to use your experience to move the Global Village Construction Set forward?
3. Can you help us secure in-kind donations of material resources? (plant material, animal stock, hardware, equipment, etc.)
4. We are interested in organizing college lectures, especially ones that cover our costs and provide speaker fees, especially in collaboration with groups like Engineers Without Borders and others. Do you have any experience in organizing lectures, or would you be interested in doing so?
5. Can you propose ways in which earning from work directly related to the GVCS can be used to generate value? (example: workshops, product sales, open business incubation, etc.)

Infrastructure

1. Our facility is under construction. Our basic infrastructure is described here.
2. What experience do you have with construction?

Lifestyle

1. Can you cook? Can you grow food?
2. Do you smoke, drink, or use drugs? See our Rules of Conduct for cleanliness, smoking, drinking, firearms, and respect of others - and tell of of any possible issues.
3. Can you get along well with others?
4. Are there parts of you that you know are difficult for others to deal with?
5. Can you adjust to a farm schedule of getting up with the break of daylight?

1. What important questions do you still have regarding our program, and what things are not clear about what we're doing and how we're approaching it?