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Joshua Pierce

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Open Source University, Open Source Civilization

I propose the consolidation of all open source movements and organizations with the mandate to create the largest consortium of actionable knowledge that outlines a blue-print for becoming 100% sustainable, 100% recyclable, 100% independent, and capable of assuming 100% of all the needs of 100% of the population of the world with fewer resources, zero waste, and zero pollution, while systematically eliminating the need for human labor thus freeing every man, woman, and child from all economic and time constraints allowing us pursue higher purposes unabated. I propose the establishment of an accredited Open Source University, an Open Source Political party, and an Open Source Civilization by which all knowledge is a common heritage of our entire species.

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Topics: energy food future global health open source everything shelter
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    Marcin Jakubowski 100+

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    TED Fellow
    Feb 16 2012: The concept that we promote in the Global Village Construction set it not 'personal production' as much as it is the 'community-based solution of relocalized production.' Our experiment relies on determining the smallest scale which would allow for the creation of advanced civilization - minus the compromises of global geopolitics. Yes, the heart of such a proposiiton is access to clean, renewable energy. Distributed power production on the scale of communities is a possible solution. The best solution for this I've seen to date on decentralized power is the SolarFire solar concentrator system from India - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7diA_bnoc4 - which the producer is offering for $12,000 FOB.
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      Spencer Ferri

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      Feb 16 2012: Fascinating! I also read a little about your project (bravo, by the way; your ideas are amazing). Could you envision utilizing this technology in your construction set? I haven't read fully through the devices you plan to open-source. Could they be compatible with this energy source? Heck, could/would -you- build a Solar Fire machine in order to power the production of your own devices?
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        Marcin Jakubowski 100+

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        TED Fellow
        Feb 17 2012: Yes, we are planning on building the Solar Fire system, while making improvements with a modern steam engine, automatic solar tracking, hail protection, and mirror surface cleaning mechanism.

    • Joshua Pierce

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      Feb 17 2012: The best tactical strategy I can come up with involves creating incentives to attract as many creative individuals to contribute to this Open Source model for civilization. I really like the concept of publishing trade secretes (I believe it was in one of the GVCS videos). If we could create a new type of corporation with a board of directors that were chosen by contributors in an open forum who would develop strategies to capitalize on Open Source technology to generate profits for new research and entrepreneurial incentives which would fund and build a state of the art R&D facility. But, from what I can see that's what the GVCS is starting with this DIY Village.
      So! Marcin, (you're my hero by the way) instead of trying to develop all 50 machines yourself which could take awhile, a fantastic strategy that has worked in the past is a competition model like the X-Prize. In short offering a prize for do-it-yourselfers who can create the heirloom machines that are needed and offering assistance in developing the documentation for publication, and the necessary testing of the machines could be done as part of the competition. Events can draw huge crowds and potentially sizable profits, but moreover they would allow average Joes the chance to be a part of something truly amazing. This, I believe, would provide incentives for developers to contribute in a focused and organized way.

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