Practical Post-Scarcity: Principles and Strategies for Civilization Reconstruction
Abstract
OSE's work aims to integrate civilization - to facilitate human growth required for a collaborative, transparent, and inclusive mindset and thus economy of abundance. This is a rigorous goal, as it relies on integrating all human knowledge and practice to create a civilization, which first and foremost, transitions to an economy of abundance. This is opposite of the scarcity-based economic system of today, which relies on enforcing various mechanisms of scarcity, such that many people and even entire nations are left in poverty and deprivation. This is quite opposite the possible scenario of Universal Basic Assets which gurantee prosperity without exclusion, so that true self-determination and freedom is introduced for the first time as a possible norm in civilization.
OSE is a practical experiment aimed at the above. Here we discuss our principles and approach, which drive our culture and actions. Universal Basic Assets (UBA) above is used in the general sense. Execution must be specified. UBA merely refers to an economic infrastructure for civilization which allows for so-called financial independence for everyone. It is an economic playing field where everyone has food and shelter and other needs guaranteed, such that they have the self-determination to pursue what is really important for them in absence of economic pressure and political manipulation. It seems that foul politics can be traced pretty clearly to economic pressure in most cases, where it becomes really easy for bullshit to prosper when people are insecure. The leveling of the economic playing field to universal financial independence appears to be a prerequisite to a peaceful society - and much more - in that innovation can be unleashed only in a self-determined society - according to Self-Determination Theory which is the currently-accepted theory of human motivation.
Summary of Approach
To summarize our overall approach - we believe that transformation can be practiced simply by what people do for a living. Therefore, the general principle of OSE remains the mass creation of right livelihood. This means the universal access to livelihoods which follow principles of the economy of abundance, such as sharing, not stealing, nonviolence, etc - a legal code that can be summarized in merely a few lines. Right livelihood is implemented partially as the triple bottom line concept in mainstream business, though it lacks elements of true environmental integrity and social justice because it does not address the distribution of wealth at a fundamental level.
Creation of right livelihood at scale by comprehensive substitution of 'business as usual' would be a significant endeavor at the $100T scale. This means the substitution of the economy - almost 100% of it - to collaborative abundance. The cost of developing Distributed Market Substitution across all sectors - including economic, social, and political - appears to be approximately 1000x lower, a figure of $50B. This is known as the Knowledge Kernel. The $50B figure is derived at Knowledge Kernel.
In order to create right livelihood at scale, we propose Integrated Education delivered by Extreme Learning. This leads to Integrated Enterprise, which enables Distributed Market Substitution.
Summary of Method
We first define terms and goals, which are Eradication of Artificial Scarcity, aka creation of abundance - a technical term. DMS reflects such abundance on a leveled economic playing field, and marks a clear outcome of Self-Determination throughout society. Ills such as violence, torture, war, and others fade in comparison to self-determination, where self-determination limits terrorism or other artifacts of asymmetric warfare. The violence inherent to much of commerce is neutralized, as affection and abundance replaces scarcity mindsets and means.
Thus the premise is that post-scarcity is a condition of financial independence, and thus a strong force against manipulation from external means. Property law remains strong, but voluntary commons such as [[Universal Basic Assets] and similar mechanisms of efficient production take the place of many mechanism that formerly provided security to only a few, by enforcement of violence, adversary relations, and other affordances of scarcity.
Post-scarcity is equivalent to open, collaborative economic development. To transform the current system, an irresistable offer must be made - or at least an offer that any rational agent and potential global steward will accept as a possibility. Here we see that people entertain the notion of 'jobs' to provide financial security, even if partial security. Our proposal is to provide said 'jobs' through open enterprise that must first be invested-in heavily. Such investment must be motivated by favorable outcomes. Favorable outcomes are based on first-principle calculations that currently, abundant energy exists to provide for everybody's needs (5000x more than required). This energy must be distributed for everyone to benefit.
The method for gaining the necessary buy-in or investment relies on initial development of integrated products, with the breakthrough notion of motivating the public interest in such development via open source. Open source is proven in software, here we aim for hardware - and changing people's lives in tangible ways through general open product development. Idea is not innovative, but innovation would be required to execute because the current level of Collaborative Literacy in civilization is very low.
The model is summarized:
Steps:
- Open development leads to Product with high level of product/enterprise integration with lifetime design and modularity as some of the key features.
- 4 year Civilization Construction Program starts, bootstrapped by the Product in #1; focused on Learning How to Learn for solving pressing world issues, locating in hotspots. For example, Factor e Farm may engage in reinvention of farming or housing. Learning How to Learn is necessary for the level of integration - personal, economic, and political - needed for a peaceful transition of humanity.
- Each program builds up a robust Rapid Learning Facility aimed at distributed market substitution (DMS) in the chosen, specific area. Note that each product area engages in both Tech Recursion and Product Ecosystem Integration.
- Growth of program to 240 successful graduates continuing on the R&D track means R&D capacity has been developed to the level necessary for DMS
- Education programs with their respective Rapid Learning Facilities are created for other areas of endeavor, as spinoffs cross-subsidized by existing RLFs and led by recent graduates of the Civilization Construction Program.
- Each RLF can be considered mature as a billion dollar program, at which point it can grow or evolve under the guidance of its Board of Stewards.
- The global community of RLF operations grows 240x every 4 years (4x equivalent per year), which is the time it takes for OSE Senior Fellows to graduate. Senior Fellows are cultivated from Civilization Construction Program graduates, reaching 50k facility in 8 years.
Rapid Learning Methods
Integrated education is based on rapid learning, which must include physical plant for practice and immersion. This physical plant is the Rapid Learning Facility (RLF). The scope of the RLF includes both learning and production, and the rapid learning part means that the RLF enables profound access to leveling the economic playing field. The RLF provides enterprise access to anyone. This avoids the welfare dependence trap, as skills + economic power are learned, and this learning replaces ephemeral handouts. RLF access constitutes access to Universal Basic Assets, as economic exchange mechanisms including currency and credit are part of a Distributive Enterprise paradigm. For example, real assets can back a currency or value-exchange ecosystem when a RLF-associated ecosystem of economic activity is created. Thus, the RLF is a community-based Glocal endeavor, where a population at Dunbar's scale (village-scale) can sustain an autonomous economic zone which thrives at a modern economic level of prosperity. Henceforth, we are designing each Rapid Learning Facility to enable economic autonomy on the individual and village scale - as the basic unit of social organization. This is not isolationist, but quite the opposite - as the RLF is connected to the wider world through open economic exchange - in the form of global-scale open economic development.
A certain process guides rapid learning, consisting of: