The "Tesla" of EcoVillages | James Ehrlich | TEDxTrondheim

What comes to mind when you hear: Ecovillages?
Ecological, sustainable, traditional communities perhaps.
Now, how about when you hear: the Tesla of Ecovillages?
Founder of ReGen Villages, a Stanford University spin-off company implementing the “Tesla of Ecovillages”. James is a Senior Technologist at Stanford University, Senior Fellow at Opus Novum consortium at NASA Ames Research Center, Entrepreneur in Residence at the Stanford H-STAR Institute and Peace Innovation Lab at the Centre for Design Research and recently appointed to a White House / U.S. State Department Joint Task Force on the Nexus of Food, Water, Energy and Waste.
A serial entrepreneur in Silicon Valley for over 25 years, James successfully founded and managed technology and media companies with successful exits. For nearly a decade, he produced an award-winning national public broadcasting series based on case studies of organic and bio-dynamic family farms that reached over 35 million homes each week, and published a best-selling companion book on Hachette, (Organic Living, THG 2007).
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx

[@Allclipped]

This better be that genius kid because i'm tired of looking for him

[@LordFartamor]

Me too LUL

[@mspiper2852]

Is it?

[@kylepatrickmaducdoc1719]

is this the "genius kid" from that 1979 apple store video?!

[@niccolomachiavelli7836]

Yes

[@s4ckm4n]

Nice :-D

[@ratillaarl1123]

Nah.. This one is james not jay

[@s4ckm4n]

@@ratillaarl1123 Could be his nickname. Jay was a kid in '79, maybe he matured into a James. Although, I have to agree that Jim is a more common nickname for James.

[@ratillaarl1123]

@@s4ckm4n well they already figured out who he is.. He is now a lawyer, lives? in chicago and has 1 daughter.

[@permacultura_tropicus]

i have always dreamed of being able to do this in Mexico, gather my friends , family and neighbors and do what its needed to become resiliant and self sustainable !!! there is actually ONE village that has been succesful, they do not need the outside world or government to thrive , its called Cheran , located in Michoacan state.

[@TheKrazyKs]

Synergy, this blessed and timely talk coming my way. Thank you. I am living in Vancouver, B.C., Canada and we - son and I - have never, had a conscious community. This gives me hope and adds even more momentum .. Thank you. Katherine Marion

[@OrthodoxDAO]

@Serena Trinity Actually I am not entirely sure why he threw in all these buzzwords with the cloud and sentient homes and blockchain apps, but this "self-improving village" is a tiny part of the project, the big part is getting the basics right, affordable house, affordable greenhouse around it, successful food production setup, affordable environmental services like water treatment etc. As I live in his first target group, "cold Europe", I know of a thousand reasons why this might not get funded, as we live in a bit of a paradox, we are affluent enough to initiate pilot projects like Denmark's "hydrogen island" and also we can afford to have some kind of green transition with wind turbines etc, but I have the suspicion nobody from our governing coalitions wants housing transition or affordable housing, and this has been like that for 50 years. Why build self-sustaining villages when voters in unsustainable cities keep you in power. And/or why make villages attractive and jeopardize the billions and trillions in expensive real estate that, among other things, accounts for half of your pension plans. And, by the way @TheKrazyKs, a "Tesla village" does not raise your consciousness, just like a Tesla car does not raise your consciousness. Perhaps if you are conscious already, you might buy a Tesla instead of a Lambo

[@TreJayWest]

So I'm not the only one here for Jay huh? I'm actually late huh?

[@BEDMan-vl3xy]

Yes we’re all looking for Jay, no need to say anything

[@cupbowlspoonforkknif]

This needs more views!

[@globalunityconsciousness]

Great video. I love living in Findhorn, Scotland

[@Robert-pq1rv]

OMG OMG this is awesome!!!

[@karendahl2415]

Thank you so much

[@mrtrackharrasser]

@@karendahl2415 not sure he was thanking you for anything karen. lol

[@kevinjameskaras7665]

Oh man! We have a community of partners funds and shared vision in Akron OH to make this happen. I'm excited to reach out and connect!

[@shankaririse9194]

CHECk out One Small Town, Ubuntu (means "for the good of all" by Michael Tellinger.

[@Pinkenstein]

That's so cool!!

[@darkblitzrz8]

Do you have a way to contact. I am open to share and learn about community building. I happen to be in Michigan

[@StarGalak]

Amazing!

[@chrisrobinson1597]

How about earthships everywhere?

[@Moliminn]

Not applicable technology in all climates and conditions. Amazing for dry conditions. Turf house technology is much more fitting for damp and cold conditions. It is weirdly more thought out and complicated that most people realize. Modern luxury turf houses in Iceland are pretty epic.

[@gabrieln3613]

The year 2000? as the start of the organic food movement and no one knew? I had a smile on that one!........I design Intentional Communities, Organic Farms & Gardens, Greenhouses, Lakes, Ponds, Swimming Pools, etc. I helped establish an Organic Produce department in a health food store right there in Silicone Valley where he is (Cupertino)......in 1979. The says 21 years before when he is considering the start of the organic food......we used to have organization meetings with organic farmers right in that area, to help with marketing, standards, etc. Nevertheless, anyone out there trying to help the planet be more sustainable, start a community, raise awareness, etc. has my vote!

[@gabrieln3613]

@Serena Trinity Thanks for the feedback. On our team of seven we do have one permaculture designer who's worked all over the world, two permaculture farmers, one certified food producer. Glad to look up a couple of the other things you shared.

[@anilrehmatullah7906]

is he the genius at the apple store

[@kylepatrickmaducdoc1719]

Anil Rehmatullah You know what?! I AM PRECISELY HERE TOO BECAUSE OF THAT RANDOM 1979 THROWBACK VID IN MY RECOMMENDATIONS! AND NOW ALOT OF PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO FIND OUT TOO! 😂😂😂 KZbin GETS INDEED INTERESTING 😂😂😂

[@anilrehmatullah7906]

@@kylepatrickmaducdoc1719 WENT BACK AND FOURTH WITH SCREEN SHOT IMAGES LOOKS LIKE SAME PERSON.

[@envious3073]

Anil Rehmatullah it's clearly not the same person since this guys name is James and the kid from the video is Jay

[@ratillaarl1123]

No

[@Ice-emo-yt]

It’s not him

[@DanielHomeyer]

The biggest input of this system isn't autonomous, plastic, steel and glass hardly will come frome within the village. Why not combine the idea with the usage of regional materials?

[@beth8775]

Daniel H Honestly, a lot of those materials are already in any given region. How many junkyards/salvageyards are full of old windows, etc.? They are just waiting to be recycled or repurposed.

[@tradutorajuliana]

organic materials present issues when controlling temperature, and their first project is for very cold countries. Maybe if they expand, thinking about organic materials at other locations would be ideal! :)

[@OrthodoxDAO]

@@tradutorajuliana The "issue" is if this transition could happen in contemporary capitalism, the system that destroyed traditional economies and communities. Materials, in comparison are a non problem

[@Savemelord7776]

@@OrthodoxDAO if any group of individuals was able to undertake and successfully achieve such an endeavor, i suspect they’d have waco problems. totalitarian countries don’t take kindly to sovereign nations springing up in their back yard.

[@vijayapatil3747]

What’s the progress in 5 years? Is there a village coming up anywhere right now? Someone please answer

[@Dofi628]

I have the same question, I searched everywhere, and I can't find if there's anything concrete.

[@marcdekens]

In the Netherlands (Almere Oosterwold) development has halted.

[@nadialustosahorn1989]

Amazing village!

[@cakeistheplace7327]

Hes got the voice of that computer kid

[@randomasmr7561]

yeah..

[@s000sdas]

Stop scrolling down the comments *The kid's name is Chris Dover, now he's living in New York and he's working as a cybersecurity expert for Apple, he has 2 kids, one son and one daughter*

[@crocodile4]

I WANT TO LIVE HERE

[@HausofModaMexico]

This is amazing

[@ratillaarl1123]

Most people are here because of computer boi

[@Ice-emo-yt]

Arl Ratilla is it him or not?

[@jorgehurtado182]

More info please on how to join this eco villages. And is there a fee?

[@oozma1292]

Genius Kid

[@jmane4611]

How do you do this when you have a goverment that is cracking down on people who want to live in an eco friendly community. This is not possible to do in the US of corporate.

[@Guuski]

To me working together and documenting everything sounds like a good thing to do, I am interested in the forms of oppression you are talking about here, all the best to you and your people

[@sainttom6785]

They have these in the US

[@shankaririse9194]

Check out One Small Town - UBUNTU -(which means "for the good of all") and Michael Tellinger and Alosha Lynov.

[@micamaik503]

thanks for commenting this Shankari! Its great inspiration...

[@CasianaCarmazan]

Joseph Good There are several eco-villages in the US.

[@dolanjustin]

No need to plan. Just copy the Model of St. Michael's Sustainable Community is Costa Rica. It has all of this and more and costs a lot less.

[@sanzapercussions2819]

You can't compare a project in Costa Rica (latitude about 0 degrees) with a project in Netherlands (latitude around 45 degrees)

[@dolanjustin]

We should compare where we should live. Choosing the tropics is an easy choice. More food, less work, surfing, and the beaches... For the amount of money and resources being used for a project at latitude 45, we can build over a dozen eco villages in Costa Rica latitude 9.5

[@Pinkenstein]

@@dolanjustin If everybody moved to Costa Rica, wouldn't it be too crowded and way less pleasant?

[@spiritsoul11108]

How is doing your Almira ecofarm in Nederlands?

[@i.dinterdimensional6243]

Can anybody direct me? too where I can get in contact with somebody who might be able to help out with establishing eco community’s in countries where there are none at first.

[@wenetwork7420]

We are building the WE Network right now which is an online Eco Village engine to help you connect with everybody and help us create the cookie cutters if we need to make it a snowball movement what country are you in in the US? the Village we are concentrating on right now is only 10 bucks a day to become a trade based shareholder

[@vijayapatil3747]

@@wenetwork7420 where can I get the information

[@MoanikaLewinsky]

I really wish we could do something similar, but how can it be possible, if in Oregon (One of the most rainy states of the US) you can go to jail if you are caught collecting rain water?....And in Florida (The sunshine State of the US) Going solar is illegal?

[@xiaoxiaobaibobo]

JL Jones u can move?

[@TiVi_br87]

Its because we keep having idiots as president in the US...if we got rid of them we could change. We need him as president tbh! The others only care about money the kind of green that lines their pockets not the green to sustain the people.

[@meman6964]

Solar is legal and subsidized in central Florida.

[@MoanikaLewinsky]

@@meman6964 It is legal as long as you stay connected to the grid, you are not allowed to go completely off the grid

[@marcdekens]

Empire Collapse. Better transfer somewhere else.

[@katiaperez9502]

How much r they

[@alisabki]

Yes He is the Boy. The voice seem legit I think.

[@tigerwood1597]

cool

[@jordanguo4325]

You should try it in China. The project would move much fast. See how fast Tesla built new factory in China.

[@skdkskdk]

You mad? You think the gov, any gov, wants to see people self sufficient? Whos is going to build the Apples and the Teslas for minimum wage?

[@SuperZiqri]

Found it

[@endcivilizationnow]

Everyone wants to solve a predicament....

[@jeffkingofearth]

Human will never change untill the doom clock reach 12am

[@oldboy9267]

they wont change their language skills thats fosho

[@Savemelord7776]

the vision is awesome but short sighted in that the implementation of such a thing would likely be considered counter intuitive as to why individuals typically consider living in or founding an ecovillage. i suspect if a study was done on individuals who live in ecovillages/intentional communities/etc, many of them would consider themselves to be at least somewhat distrustful of big tech. further, at least some noteworthy portion of individuals living off grid do so in order to escape the 12 eyes, frequency pollution, and the looming IoT. lastly, the maintenance of such an enterprise is unlikely to be undertaken by those living there. this introduces the problem of external governance, ignorance of systems utilized and likely disenfranchisement except by total bootlickers. total bootlickers do not live in ecovillages. they live in cities and yachts and palo alto and san francisco. further, james ehrlich has spent a little too much time at stanford for my comfort to offer me any solutions. anyone who considers themselves to be anti establishment and has even a rudimentary knowledge of some of the weird and heinous things stanford has produced would understand why caution is needed. without a high degree of programming skill, cryptography, residents would never be able to verify that these ecovillages weren’t in fact depraved cia experiments. think vault tec and vaults, you get the picture. what he proposes is actually more like a kind of a gated village than an ecovillage as this type of thing will be likely for the ultra wealthy. what humanity needs is a FOSS version of this concept. ie, a group of individuals interested seriously in programming, cryptography, networking, as well as permaculture, husbandry, architecture, city planning, etc. they would also need significant skills in all the aforementioned, as well as significant time, capital, and impetus. i find this to be unlikely, though with the powers that be and their bad actors going into overdrive as their power wanes, perhaps heroes will not only emerge and manifest these practical utopias, but also educate the rest of us on the process. god bless

[@shellshoq]

I agree completely. If this software and support was open-source and the villages were co-ops owned wholly by the residents, then I could get on board.

[@05tf]

If this isnt jay..... boi I'm tired of searching...

[@ratillaarl1123]

Dont worry ill fill you up.. He is now a lawyer. He lives in chicago and he has a daughter and you can search her daughter up.. Ask reddit for more details :9

[@05tf]

アール ラティラ My Name thank you!

[@cassidythumbsanton2411]

Awesome content, but he definitely has not been to Burning Man, because collaborative city building is only a small fraction of the magic. Kinda like saying "That batting cage was great, it felt just like the World Series."

[@OneTribe.Community]

Other than drugs and parties, as well as experiments in sustainability and the sharing economy, what are some other pieces of "Tha Magics of BM"?

[@walterwilliam7091]

Implement this on third World Countries

[@walterwilliam7091]

I know about Permaculture very well and I’m aware of the consequences a high-risk energy could bring to all living beings. We don’t need a technology projected to avoid the contact of Nature especially when it’s created by the people who know few about a more holistic connection but I believe that humans have still to experiment their mistakes to get to a concrete solution. As long as Capitalism still exists human is chained in a money-making system...we Permaculturists believe that the real abundance relies on the creativity of humans and the art of Nature

[@admiralmurat2777]

Do the people own them?

[@skdkskdk]

Communist China owns them, same same

[@CamelotNewPress]

Can't be computer kid... notice this person is way older.

[@LordFartamor]

Haha, I don't get it

[@lordabsoluteunit9759]

I FOUND HIM, wait, am I a little late?

[@sluttyfest]

Who dat boy

[@charlieg9370]

Kid from the apple store vid or nah?

[@lisaajane01]

[@havenbastion]

Great idea which is totally inaccessible to most of the world and has zero "trickle-down" potential.

[@beth8775]

Kaiser Basileus Except it's not inaccessible. Their plan is to start with more northern areas. The northern hemisphere is where most 1st world nations are. We are the ones who need to make the biggest changes. Obviously, there are basic design changes that need to be thought out for different climates.

[@Ambrosha385]

blockchain though?? not sustainable at all.