Anthropolis uses Ancient Greece metaphorically because democracy began there, grounded in the polis—human-scale society derived from nature, not imposed over it. Greek physis guides its philosophy and aesthetics, while Indigenous, Polynesian, and ancient agrarian cultures inform stewardship, commons, and reciprocity. Sustainability is intelligence; conviviality prevents domination.

Anthropolis adopts the Greek polis because the Greeks understood phýsis (nature) as the ultimate authority. Nómos—human law—was valid only when aligned with natural order. Democracy emerged from this insight: no ruler could override ecological reality, so governance required collective participation. Anthropolis revives this principle, structuring cooperation as a systemic necessity and designing each polis as a living system aligned with ecological limits.