I just wanted to chime in and add a few things as far as goals are concerned. Please note that this is just throwing some ideas out there. None of the following is etched in stone nor is it intended as such.
Also, thank you for the suggestion Red Eclipse. I'll cover some of the housing ideas I have in mind later in the post.
Back on track...
When I think of this community, the first things that come to mind are peace and abundance. I realize that not everyone will get along all of the time. So everyone would need to know at least some basic conflict resolution strategies so when disputes do arise, we're all prepared on how to deal with it. If everyone knows the information then there will be no excuse not to use it when conflicts do arise. There also needs to be a code of ethics, which everyone should agree with. I believe that mutual respect for each others boundaries will be key in most situations. I think that the good vibes post in my signature is a good starting point for our basic ethics.
The next thing is abundance. We would need to be as self sustaining as possible. Permaculture, Food Forests, Aquaculture, Earthships, Eco-Domes and hybrids of all these systems seem to make the most sense in the grand scheme of things. It takes more thought and planning at the beginning but requires significantly less manpower as it matures. With proper planning, we'll have an abundance of food and rich, fertile soil in no time.
This particular property already has fish ponds but we don't know for sure yet that this is the property we're actually going to get. Considering Hyperspace Fool's insights into the Amazon in this post, I'm reconsidering if Peru is the best candidate as far as location goes. Granted, it's not completely out of the question. There might be some really great insect repelling plants that we could place throughout the property. I just want everyone to be open to other avenues if they are possibly a better fit.
The ideal land in my mind would include the following:
1) Abundance of fresh, clean water would be the top priority. Preferably somewhere with a waterfall so we could utilize not only hydro-electric power but we can also build a Trompe to power anything that an air compressor could power. For more information on how a Trompe works, check out the Permaculture Design Course torrent that's available online.
2) The property would preferably be as square as possible to make designing zones a bit easier.
This video shows the basic ideas behind creating zones.
[YOUTUBE]
We want to flow with nature and work smarter, not harder. By planning out the entire property before anything gets built, we can evaluate all aspects of the build to make it as productive as possible.
3) Some kind of road access so that getting supplies and materials isn't too difficult.
4) It needs to be somewhere that gets plenty of sunshine.
I'm sure there will be some other property requirements as well but these are the top things I could think of right now.
I feel that we need to create a list of goals and separate them into Short Term, Mid Term and Long Term.
Short Term would include (but not limited to):
Finding out exactly who is on board to contribute to the initial design, planning and building processes. These people need to be in good health and able to work long hours in harsh conditions. Like Snozz said, this isn't going to be a cakewalk by any means.
Next, we need to find out exactly where this will take place. I believe that the drug laws in Portugal are pretty laid back and the area is a bit more hospitable. India is also a possibility in my mind. I'm not sure what the cost of living is like in either place, so we definitely have some more research to do.
Once we agree on who will participate and the general area we wish to pursue, we need to all get together for a meet and greet to make sure our personalities will work well with each other.
After we get our pioneer group, we need to start raising funding. We could actually start that right now somehow. The Kickstarter idea isn't bad at all. We'd just have to establish what perks comes with a financial donation.
Mid Term:
Provided that we have enough funding, we find, survey and purchase the best property we can get in the best location for our intentions.
Once we have the property, we need to map out the zones and sectors, we need to find out exactly where the sun is at any given time throughout the year. We also need to really evaluate all of the native plants on site to see what already works on the property and how we can benefit from them. So basically what I'm getting at is that it's going to take around one full year on the property to do the proper research and planning for everything that is to come. We could speed this up by finding an expert botanist with knowledge of the area we'll be working. As it stands now, we'll be starting from scratch so it's going to take some time.
I recommend that the initial team of pioneers are all familiar with permaculture theories and concepts even if you don't have any hands on experience with it. There are tons of torrents available on the subject. I figure if we're all out there loaded with the same knowledge, there is a higher chance of one of us remembering that critical piece at the critical time when we need it. Also, the more minds working on a problem, the more elegant the solution becomes.
Once we figure out exactly what we're up against and how to benefit the most from it, we start construction.
Long Term:
This is still open to debate. What exactly are we wishing to accomplish in the end? Are we just going to build a community that only caters Nexians? Are we going to help the existing communities around us? By building something like this, we open up a lot of potential for good things to happen.
These are just some ideas to get us started on the planning phase. Feel free to critique/optimize however you deem appropriate.
Also, thank you for the suggestion Red Eclipse. I'll cover some of the housing ideas I have in mind later in the post.
Back on track...
When I think of this community, the first things that come to mind are peace and abundance. I realize that not everyone will get along all of the time. So everyone would need to know at least some basic conflict resolution strategies so when disputes do arise, we're all prepared on how to deal with it. If everyone knows the information then there will be no excuse not to use it when conflicts do arise. There also needs to be a code of ethics, which everyone should agree with. I believe that mutual respect for each others boundaries will be key in most situations. I think that the good vibes post in my signature is a good starting point for our basic ethics.
The next thing is abundance. We would need to be as self sustaining as possible. Permaculture, Food Forests, Aquaculture, Earthships, Eco-Domes and hybrids of all these systems seem to make the most sense in the grand scheme of things. It takes more thought and planning at the beginning but requires significantly less manpower as it matures. With proper planning, we'll have an abundance of food and rich, fertile soil in no time.
This particular property already has fish ponds but we don't know for sure yet that this is the property we're actually going to get. Considering Hyperspace Fool's insights into the Amazon in this post, I'm reconsidering if Peru is the best candidate as far as location goes. Granted, it's not completely out of the question. There might be some really great insect repelling plants that we could place throughout the property. I just want everyone to be open to other avenues if they are possibly a better fit.
The ideal land in my mind would include the following:
1) Abundance of fresh, clean water would be the top priority. Preferably somewhere with a waterfall so we could utilize not only hydro-electric power but we can also build a Trompe to power anything that an air compressor could power. For more information on how a Trompe works, check out the Permaculture Design Course torrent that's available online.
2) The property would preferably be as square as possible to make designing zones a bit easier.
This video shows the basic ideas behind creating zones.
[YOUTUBE]
We want to flow with nature and work smarter, not harder. By planning out the entire property before anything gets built, we can evaluate all aspects of the build to make it as productive as possible.
3) Some kind of road access so that getting supplies and materials isn't too difficult.
4) It needs to be somewhere that gets plenty of sunshine.
I'm sure there will be some other property requirements as well but these are the top things I could think of right now.
I feel that we need to create a list of goals and separate them into Short Term, Mid Term and Long Term.
Short Term would include (but not limited to):
Finding out exactly who is on board to contribute to the initial design, planning and building processes. These people need to be in good health and able to work long hours in harsh conditions. Like Snozz said, this isn't going to be a cakewalk by any means.
Next, we need to find out exactly where this will take place. I believe that the drug laws in Portugal are pretty laid back and the area is a bit more hospitable. India is also a possibility in my mind. I'm not sure what the cost of living is like in either place, so we definitely have some more research to do.
Once we agree on who will participate and the general area we wish to pursue, we need to all get together for a meet and greet to make sure our personalities will work well with each other.
After we get our pioneer group, we need to start raising funding. We could actually start that right now somehow. The Kickstarter idea isn't bad at all. We'd just have to establish what perks comes with a financial donation.
Mid Term:
Provided that we have enough funding, we find, survey and purchase the best property we can get in the best location for our intentions.
Once we have the property, we need to map out the zones and sectors, we need to find out exactly where the sun is at any given time throughout the year. We also need to really evaluate all of the native plants on site to see what already works on the property and how we can benefit from them. So basically what I'm getting at is that it's going to take around one full year on the property to do the proper research and planning for everything that is to come. We could speed this up by finding an expert botanist with knowledge of the area we'll be working. As it stands now, we'll be starting from scratch so it's going to take some time.
I recommend that the initial team of pioneers are all familiar with permaculture theories and concepts even if you don't have any hands on experience with it. There are tons of torrents available on the subject. I figure if we're all out there loaded with the same knowledge, there is a higher chance of one of us remembering that critical piece at the critical time when we need it. Also, the more minds working on a problem, the more elegant the solution becomes.
Once we figure out exactly what we're up against and how to benefit the most from it, we start construction.
Long Term:
This is still open to debate. What exactly are we wishing to accomplish in the end? Are we just going to build a community that only caters Nexians? Are we going to help the existing communities around us? By building something like this, we open up a lot of potential for good things to happen.
These are just some ideas to get us started on the planning phase. Feel free to critique/optimize however you deem appropriate.
