Empathy is more than just how we live and interact with one another. It is also related to technology, products, and our stewardship of the environment. Today, I speak with James Ehrlich, whose extraordinary innovation in neighborhood design fits in with this empathetic style of living. James talks about his “smart neighborhood” that nourishes itself and lives in harmony with the environment to create its own sustainable and organic food sources, and uses technology to ensure everyone has the equitable resources they need to thrive. Even more than that, these neighborhoods and villages not only leverage amazing, unprecedented technology, they also redefine “community” and recreate a full story arc in a compassionate, and empathetic way.
Key Takeaways:
- As living organisms, we have never, in history, been more disassociated from the natural world, but we can change that.
- It is the element of imagination and possibility combined that are needed to move civilization forward.
- We will start seeing these neighborhoods of the future become more commonplace in the next five to ten years.
“We want to see communities as a full story arc. That is compassionate, empathic living.” — James Ehrlich
About James Ehrlich:
James Ehrlich is Founder of ReGen Villages Holding, B.V. a Stanford University spin-off company formed in the EU to realize the future of living in regenerative and resilient communities, with critical life support of organic food, clean water, renewable energy and circular nutritional flows at the neighborhood scale.
Mr. Ehrlich is also an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Stanford University School of Medicine Flourishing Project, Faculty at Singularity University, Senior Fellow at NASA Ames Research Center Opus Novum Consortium, and (Obama) White House Appointee for Regenerative Infrastructure.
Mr. Ehrlich Ehrlich founded ReGen Villages as a Dutch (EU) impact-profit company in 2016, with its patented VillageOS operating system software to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to define, design and autonomously manage regenerative neighborhoods that promote healthy long-term outcomes for residents and wider communities.
ReGen Villages are planned for global replication and scale in collaboration with established industrial partners, universities, governments and sovereign wealth and pension funds, enabling an optimistic post-COVID green transition.
Mr. Ehrlich is a serial entrepreneur in software and media, with over 15-years case study research on organic, bio-dynamic family farms, intentional communities, ecovillages, co-living and collaborative communities.
An award winning National Public Television producer and co-author of a best-selling book on “Organic Living” (Hachette, 2007), Mr. Ehrlich brings his seasoned background in software design and development to the expression of creating a ‘digital mycelia network,’ connecting nature with data, for the benefit of people and planet.
Born and raised in New York City, Mr. Ehrlich moved to Silicon Valley to start a successful video game and media technology software company in 1989. Mr. Ehrlich holds a Bachelors Degree from New York University in computer science and media, and has completed Master studies from Stanford University in mechanical engineering, where he continues to lecture and do research on the science of flourishing.
Connect with James:
Website: ReGenVillages.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jamesehrlich
Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy
Connect with Maria:
Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com
Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com
Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross
LinkedIn: Maria Ross
Instagram: @redslicemaria
Twitter: @redslice
Facebook: Red Slice
