Building Blockchain Bridges: To Buckminster Fuller's Vision....

Looping Back To Bucky's Vision

Over 40 years ago, futurist, systems theorist, architect, designer, inventor, and author R. Buckminster Fuller inspired millions of minds with his vision of the possibility of providing the basics for all human life to achieve sustainable harmonious living on this planet. He had identified that "spaceship earth" has provided enough resources for all mankind to be lifted out of poverty and thrive in sustainable, harmonious living - if only we were to reallocate our collective resources "from weaponry to livingry." And while some might argue that the state of world affairs has gotten worse since then, in terms of a widening gap between the rich & poor, environmental pollution, political turmoil & wars - it's also been the case that technological expansion has provided us the means to solve some of the world's greatest challenges - and many have foreseen the potential for blockchain developments to facilitate unprecedented degrees of global collaboration in creating the socio-economic, financial, and information-flow structures & systems allowing the fruition of scenarios painted by visionaries like Fuller, whom millions have strived towards achieving but have lacked certain systems and components to complete - systems & components which blockchain developers have been and are currently building.

Bitcoin may have been the beginning of the blockchain revolution, and there's been BIG buzz, hype, preparations, and questions about how it's going to make the existing banking/financial systems obsolete (systems which have been an integral component sustaining the military-industrial complex). Even the central banks are trying to figure out how to embrace the change and survive the transformation. Yet the financial applications which can be built upon this technology are only the beginning. From disruption of the legal system to the transformation of trillion-dollar supply chain industries, and all arenas of economic activity, the blockchain is a catalyst. That's already been established. What has not yet been established is how populations, the majority of which are illiterate in the the language, conceptual frameworks, and simplified functional protocols of this technology, are going to adapt to the rapid acceleration of these technically-complex developments as they alter the global economic playing field.

To paint a picture of some foreseen implications: many have predicted the evaporation of millions of jobs as A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) technology accelerates and allows robots and computers to take over increasing numbers of jobs currently held by humans, who rely on them for their living wages. Here, we're halfway to Bucky's vision of a future where humans need not work menial jobs, but are free to pursue creative and passion projects. Of course, many will ask - "what about the required living wages? How are people supposed to pay for food, rent, and basic required services if robots have replaced their jobs?" Recall - Bucky's vision was one wherein there are already adequate resources available to meet all basic human needs - and several economic models have been in development to provide the blueprints for such an allocation of resources. Not surprisingly, many of these models have been built out - whether theoretically or tangibly - on blockchain technology, under the category label of "Universal Basic Income..."

The basic tenet = all citizens are to be provided a basic living wage, something like $1000-2000 / month to cover the essential costs of living. While this may seem like an unrealistic 'socialist plot' to some, it's not entirely far-fetched if considering:

A) governments' current expenditures (in inefficient and destructive systems)

B) the mainstream Federal Reserve banking system no longer has its money tied to gold, and is hence printing money from thin air and charging interest on it to create insanely huge public and private debts - all in a technological age where anyone with Internet access and the know-how can now create their own currency via blockchain technology 

Universal Basic Income is no longer a theory entertained by idealists, but a model being discussed globally, tested out in places like Ontario, Canada and Oakland, California, voted on (and turned down with only a 23% approval) in Switzerland, being considered in Finland, and is gaining serious support and traction in several circles worldwide. Couple these concepts' growth in popularity with blockchain applications as the means to create money and fairly distribute money itself... Well, you probably get the idea by now. (Especially if you've been clicking on the links to reference materials, news articles, etc.)

We ALL use money. (Unless you're broke-ass and borrowing a computer with free internet access to read this). As such, none of us are exempt from the requirement of adapting to the changes ahead to our financial & economic system transformations in progress and ahead. Any way it goes, the game is changing - and cryptocurrencies are here to stay.

We needn't all be computer coders active in the back-end technical development of these blockchain developments. But basic literacy in this new blockchain cyberspace shall likely prove more valuable than most can even probably imagine at this point. We may not all be passionate about pretty futuristic visions where everybody gets free money and the intricate details of how such systems work. But, these changes to our global systems WILL affect nearly everybody - just as have the first two waves of the rise of the Internet and social media in the way we have connected globally and share information.

The scope of what lies ahead in this third wave of the Blockchain Revolution may indeed bring the fulfillment of Buckminster Fuller's vision. If not just used in the implementation of basic income projects, it could hold potential for many other applications to distribute basic human needs equally - whether reinventing the power grid or providing the means to account for the distribution of food production, upgrading supply chain intelligence in the agricultural industry.

Will we pass "The Final Exam," as Bucky called it - ushering in an era of unprecented prosperity and sustainable living?

Time will tell.

Though undoubtedly, the developments taking place in the blockchain sphere could sure help to bring Buckminster Fuller's visions to become a reality sooner than later...