Here are some ideas on Arcosanti [1] the prototyping operation and the educational Cosanti [2] Foundation and the philosophy "Arcology [3]," architecture [4] coherent with ecology [5].
Archology has a visionary leader and organizationl. Organizations like Arcosanti exist to change the meme’s of a culture, both the words used and word views our minds use to make decisions.
The use of “ecology” is spreading fast from nature surrounding humans to other systems the surround and influence human activitiesi [5]. Current education researchi [5] is addressed within the 5 major ecologies of the teacher-student to the meta-ecology that delivers the effects of the state on the human learning process. Consider redefining the word Arcology to mean the design of any aspect of the physical world to effect human tasks and well-being.
Design (I took my PhD in this area) effects every change we me make in our physical world. Very little of it addresses the entire system but just focuses on a change is a small segment.
Arcology could capture the high ground as a word that leads to much more systems design which in turn leads to needed transformations need not just incremental revisions.
Take Paolo Soleri’s vision for cities and urban design into an all encompassing vision for any system design that addresses the most major and far reaching physical and virtual issues of the 21st human race.
Innovation always, and I mean always, originates from an individual with a small group that some how cuts through the noise of society, and takes it’s disruptive innovation into the main stream of the culture.
Want an example, take Kinsey. His professor told him develop strong academic credibility with wasp research before he took on human sex. Arcology has this strong credibility in a niche area. It is time to take on the next level of responsibility, bring the concept of system design to the decision makers and masses.
The redesign the organization, to have the magnificent physical place of Arcosanti as the foundation for a system design in the virtual place. Then use (TED, YouTube, Wikipedia, Web, social networking, Virtual Schools,…) to roll out to a global audience the meme of systems design.
Ted experience note: In my 20 years of hammering on eLearningi [5] systems design, the Arcology solution has not been accepted as the most promising way to address large issues like education. The incremental legacy education innovations continue unabated. The meme’s of the world must be changed to ready embrace system design (Arcology) as the only way to address the huge challenges the world faces.
Model: The Santa Fe Institute that brought (attempted to bring) complexity systems analysis to the world might be a starting change model. But any effective model will have a meta-systems design of itsi [5] own to determine how it can change the memes of 6 billion going on 9 billion people into becoming 21st century thinkers and doers.