Anthropolis: Charter
- Pete Ward
- Oct 22
- 4 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
A Framework for Designing the Regeneration of Civilization
Preamble
We, the members of the Anthropolis Industrial Design Studio, form this charter to guide the transition from an extractive civilization to a regenerative one.
We acknowledge that the dominant model of industrial capitalism—fueled by fossil energy, centralized power, and commodified labor—has severed humanity from its ecological roots.
Our purpose is to restore this relationship through design.
We recognize that design is not merely the creation of objects, but the cultivation of living systems—biological, social, and spiritual.
This charter establishes the principles, ethics, and structures by which the Studio operates, collaborates, and evolves.
Article I — Purpose and Scope
The Anthropolis Industrial Design Studio exists to:
Develop and prototype regenerative systems of habitation, production, and exchange.
Replace fossil-fueled urbanism with interconnected sustainable villages functioning as ecological organisms.
Integrate biomimicry, anthropology, and industrial design to create viable post-capitalist infrastructures.
Serve as a living research institute, design cooperative, and educational platform for regenerative culture.
The Studio’s work encompasses architecture, material science, anthropology, social systems, and ecological technology, uniting them under one guiding principle:
Design as a living act of ecological participation.
Article II — Guiding Principles
1. Biomimetic Intelligence
Nature is our primary design mentor.
Every design must emulate the logic of living systems—efficiency, cooperation, and renewal.
2. Anthropological Grounding
Design must reflect the diversity, culture, and history of human lifeways.
Technology without cultural wisdom is unsustainable.
3. Regeneration Over Sustainability
Our goal is not to sustain what exists, but to heal what has been damaged.
All projects must leave ecological and social systems better than before.
4. The Village as Design Unit
We design at the scale of the village, not the metropolis.
Every community is an ecosystem of relationships—ecological, social, and economic.
5. Open Knowledge and Cooperative Development
All research and designs are open-source and shareable.
Collaboration replaces competition; transparency replaces proprietary control.
6. Circular Economies and Local Production
Resource flows must form closed loops within bioregional boundaries.
Waste is a design flaw; resilience is a design goal.
7. Cultural and Ecological Reciprocity
We learn from indigenous, ancestral, and marginalized voices.
Design is an act of gratitude toward the planet and its peoples.
Article III — Organizational Structure
1. The Core Studio
The central creative body composed of designers, anthropologists, ecologists, engineers, and artists.
Responsibilities include:
Defining studio vision and research agenda.
Coordinating inter-polis collaborations.
Maintaining the open-access design repository.
2. Local Poleis (Design Cells)
Autonomous, community-embedded studios applying Anthropolis principles within specific bioregions.
They design, test, and adapt projects according to local ecological and cultural conditions.
Each polis cell is a living laboratory of design—rooted in its own soil, connected to the global Anthropolis network.
3. The Council of Stewards
A rotating body of advisors and elders representing key disciplines:
Ecology, anthropology, design, indigenous knowledge, economics, and governance.
They ensure that the Studio’s direction remains ethically aligned with its founding principles.
4. The Commons Network
A digital and physical infrastructure connecting all projects, partners, and communities.
It hosts shared tools, research data, and learning materials under Creative Commons and open-access principles.
Article IV — Governance and Decision-Making
1. Consensus and Dialogue
Major decisions are reached through deliberative consensus, valuing both data and intuition.
2. Subsidiarity
Decisions are made at the smallest viable scale—by the people most directly affected.
3. Rotational Leadership
Leadership roles rotate annually to prevent hierarchy and encourage shared ownership.
4. Transparency
All finances, research, and project decisions are publicly documented and accessible.
5. Cultural Integrity
The Studio commits to avoiding appropriation by crediting and compensating source communities of knowledge.
Article V — Design Ethics
1. Material Ethics
Use renewable, biodegradable, or fully recyclable materials.
Avoid all forms of toxic or extractive supply chains.
2. Human Ethics
Protect dignity, autonomy, and diversity in all collaborations.
Uphold equitable labor practices across global-local partnerships.
3. Ecological Ethics
Measure success by the health of ecosystems, not economic return.
Prioritize regeneration over profit, participation over ownership.
4. Temporal Ethics
Design for generations, not quarters.
Every project must include plans for maintenance, renewal, and graceful decay.
Article VI — Education and Dissemination
The Studio serves as a learning organism—a school of ecological design.
It offers open curricula, residencies, and workshops on biomimicry, regenerative design, and anthropological methods.
Knowledge is shared freely through digital archives, bioregional summits, and collaborative teaching exchanges.
Youth mentorship and cross-cultural learning are integral to its continuity.
Article VII — Partnership and Collaboration
Anthropolis collaborates with:
Universities and Research Institutes advancing ecological design and anthropology.
Local and Indigenous Communities applying ancestral wisdom to modern design.
Craftspeople and Makerspaces developing circular economies.
Foundations, NGOs, and Ecological Governments supporting pilot projects.
Partnerships must align with the Studio’s ethics and commit to non-extractive collaboration.
Article VIII — Stewardship and Accountability
1. Ecological Auditing
All projects undergo ecological and social impact assessment using regenerative metrics.
2. Cultural Review
Anthropological advisors ensure cultural respect and reciprocity in all design processes.
3. Financial Transparency
Budgets are reinvested into regenerative projects, education, and community resilience.
4. Continuous Reflection
Annual gatherings review the Charter’s relevance and revise it through consensus as living law.
Article IX — The Oath of Anthropolis
We affirm that design is sacred work.
We commit to:
Work with the Earth as a collaborator.
Honor diversity as a source of strength.
Create systems that give more than they take.
Leave behind not monuments, but living legacies.
In every drawing, model, and prototype, we seek to remember:
“We are not building on the Earth; we are building with it.”
Ratified by the Founding Circle of Anthropolis
Adopted in the Year of Transition, 2025
“Design as Ecology. Culture as Technology. Civilization as Community.”