The goal is to make all human consumption sustainable, while satisfying everybody’s needs and wants.
I plan to do this by:
- Meeting all basic needs with sustainable products and services
- Completely eliminating all other consumption
Part 1: Basic Needs
Basic needs include food, water, shelter, clothing, health and safety for up to 8.5 billion people by 2030, 9.7 billion people by 2050 and 10.4 billion by the mid-2080s, which is where the human population is expected to peak (1).
The plan is to identify the most suitable (sustainable) products and then outcompete unsustainable products off the market through better pricing, making it a no-brainer for mainstream consumers to choose sustainable products.
This part of the plan has four distinct stages:
- Sell existing products
- Develop new products
- Acquire sources of raw materials
- Consolidate market control
Stage 1: Sell existing products
The first task will be to calculate the total basic needs.
Next, the task will be to identify the technologies and types of products that have the best chance of meeting those needs sustainably, and find existing products that best fit these requirements.
Finally, the task will be to set up a website to sell those products.
The way we will drive product prices down during this stage, will be through the following approaches:
- Sell at cost. No markup. No profit.
- Limit the product offering, thus increasing the volume per product.
- Use the collective buying power to obtain bottom prices.
- Rely on community for marketing.
- Use volunteers whenever possible.
- Whenever the same product is available elsewhere for less, promote them.
Stage 2: Develop new products
Naturally, there will be instances when existing products are not available in certain locations or in sufficient quantities, or their ability to meet the sustainability requirements is inadequate.
The first task of this stage will be to identify gaps where existing products or technologies do not meet the required sustainability standards or needs.
Next, the task will be to fund or carry out research in order to develop solutions that will close those gaps.
Finally, the task will be to facilitate the production of new products and services, and distribute them as needed.
In addition to the approaches mentioned in the previous stage, we will also implement the following price-reduction approaches:
- No R&D costs in product price. Fund all research through donations.
- Design for simplicity. Easy to make. Easy to use. Easy to repair.
- Design for durability. No planned obsolecense.
- No “new & improved” products.
- Free access to all patents and research data.
Stage 3: Acquire sources of raw materials
The next opportunity for price reducion will come from using own sources of raw materials.
We will develop partnerships with owners of sources of raw materials and work to gain control over those sources through management, stewardship, donations or acquisitions.
The control over raw materials will also give us control over their prices and usage. This will enable us to supply raw materials at rock-bottom prices (or even free of charge) to select manufacturers. It will also enable us to withraw access to raw materials for unsustainable competitors.
Finally, having a control over sources of raw materials will allow us to ensure they are managed sustainably so they can be enjoyed by all future generations.
Stage 4: Consolidate market control
Removing the cost of raw materials, along with all the other measures, should bring the product prices below levels that can be matched or bettered by even the strongest of competitors.
If this assumption holds true, it will make us an uncontested market leader.
Provided our operational capabilities allow us to serve the market while maintaining rock-bottom prices, our competitors will have no option other than to sell or go under.
At this stage, we will have an almost unlimited number of growth options and a huge leverage in negotiations.
The objective will be to consolidate market control via targeted acquisitions of customers, talent, resources, technology and/or know how.
Part 2: Other Consumption
Part 2 of the plan is concerned with all the consumption that goes beyond the essentials of food, water, shelter, clothing, health and safety.
The objective is to eliminate all non-basic consumption while fulfilling everybody’s needs and wants.
The only way to accomplish this in a sustainable way, is by replacing real-life consumption with virtual one.
This part of the plan has three stages:
Stage 1: Identify trends
The success of Part 2 will depend on technology that doesn’t yet exist.
The first task will be to assess the current state of technology and identify trends and directions that have the biggest potential.
Utilizing social media in order to communicate the findings will help generate public support and connect with future early adopters.
This activity is also expected to raise funds to pay for the next stage.
Stage 2: Develop a solution
We’re hoping to raise enough funds to support a research and development program with the objective to develop a workable solution that can replace real-life consumption with virtual one, while still feeling real.
Stage 3: Provide the solution for free
Once the solution is available, the idea is to provided it to everyone free of charge.
Any operational costs will be covered through donations.
If all works out the way it’s intended, every person on Earth will live the live they always dreamed of, within the limits of Earth’s biological capacity.
References
- Population. United Nations. September 3, 2023. https://www.un.org/en/global-issues/population