We live in a world of intense optimism and intense despair. These feelings are accentuated at a time when the leader of what once went by the name of the free world is busily acting in ways that contradict that concept. Cybercommunities are premised on the notion that a person may, in one lifetime, live in many places and where all borders are somewhat more porous. This does not minimize the individual. The individual is central to cybercommunities.
Beyond Henry Ford
We have taken for granted the reality that a Henry Ford will be needed to create the first cybercommunity.
We need an adventurer who will spend a fortune to create a Future for us all. Several such efforts may be needed to arrive at models that will be replicable and catch on. As explained in prior articles, cybercommunities are car-free aggregates of some 10,000 persons living in reasonable proximity, Car Free and enjoying all of the aspects we associate with a vibrant city.
The economic pivot
The economic reality we are dealing with today is the impossibility of infinite replication of our sprawl economy. Current economics relies on metrics of growth that cannot and should not survive. The answer lies in an economic pivot toward the sort of living in which the big expenses are commonly shared. We do not need to ecologize every separated dwelling if we can build within a matrix that does all the environmental heavy lifting.
To build within
Building within a matrix means having for each community what was once seen as a basis for cities -- a wall. But instead of a wall, I propose a matrix that will, in essence, be the skeleton of the body which is the actual human space within the matrix. Imagine a frame in which 10,000 could easily dwell and enjoy, on three or four levels a car free experience.
These folk would have access to seating, spaces for gathering, commerce, schools and everything needed to enhance life in the way cities are intended to do.
The economic payoff
We are talking a model that will become universal. We are talking exterior components that can be assembled anywhere. We have not even gotten to the internal components. The payoff requires imagining an economy based on the need to create and enhance cybercommunities.
