michel on chiang mai
michel bauwens on chiang mai (also: michel on chiang mai future)
via tweet [https://x.com/mbauwens/status/2006653540694212823?s=20]:
Check out my new post on Substack! This is the view from my writing room near central Chiang Mai. Come and join us in 2026 for in-depth explorations of the AI threshold for human civilization! In particular, see what we announce for January 21: the WAMOTOPIA gathering. * Towards ‘Civilizational’ AI : our central task in 2026 [https://4thgenerationcivilization.substack.com/p/towards-civilizational-ai-our-central]
notes/quotes from substack link:
Now Chiang Mai has not always been a scenius, but it gradually became one, and I believe, it is about to experience a particular flowering, and it is this flowering I will invite you to participate in.
brian eno.. scenius ness et al
In the mountain zone around Chiang Mai, indigenous tribes created what James Scott called Zomia, a zone spanning several Southeast Asian states, where the mountain created obstacles to state control, and so experienced a greater degree of cultural freedom
james c scott.. zomia ness et al
Its dominant ‘pre-modern’ mentality, which it has preserved in better ways than most other places in the world, let’s not forget that Thailand was never colonized, means that many people in the popular sector, do not have a focus on accumulation, but rather on relational priorities and a sense of sufficiency, which is by the way, the official royal philosophy in the country. My aim is not to paint too rosy a picture, as there is quite some level of rural poverty, particularly amongst the elderly, but I believe this is a truthful reflection of much of the specifics of the local mentality. The middle classes are of course not to be painted with that same brush.
Life in Chiang Mai remains ‘slow’ and incomparably less stressful than any other place I visited. I literally feel a change in the air, as soon as I land in Chiang Mai. Each time, up to today, I feel that a great weight is lifted from my soul, as soon as I arrive. I’ve seen people here who would rather wait five hours for the next bus in the morning, rather than run so as not to miss the last one. And thus, Chiang Mai has been increasingly attractive, to retirees, people who wanted to live more cheaply and quietly, and various artists and cultural figures seeking a quiet place. However, it used to be known as a city where you literally ‘disappeared’. Life seemed too good, and at the time, did not seem to promote cultural dynamics as much as a quiet life amongst friends and family. Many famous people who came to live here were never heard off again, living a more simple Epicurean life. That Thailand is the ‘land of smiles’ does of course not mean that people are truly more happy, but it matters a lot in terms of general behavior and making life more pleasant and free of aggression.
A few milestones that I can remember. In 2011, Bangkok was flooded, in some neighborhoods for up to three months, and this set in motion an inner migration of middle class people from the capital to Chiang Mai. According to one of the local mayors, half of today’s population in the city originated from Bangkok. This truly modernized the city. From a place where you could not yet sell chocolate, Chiang Mai is now a city with many hundreds of ultra-trendy coffeeshops, art galleries, and vegan restaurants. Before Covid, you could already attend 3-4 crypto events per week here.
Since 2013, more than 100,000 Christian Chinese settled in and around the city (according to a local mayor); and before, during and after Covid, Chiang Mai became a point of attraction for digital nomads, particularly around a common passion for crypto and Web3. The relatively high youth unemployment in China (18 to 25% in the current youth cohorts), stimulates a steady stream of young Chinese, who like the Westerners before them, find a much cheaper place to live in and around Chiang Mai, where they can create a new life, based on their passionate pursuits, thanks to the new capacities for remote work, or ‘green’ engagement in ecological projects which are more affordable here than in mainland China.
Chiang Mai has now become a thriving culturally active city, and it has achieved this status while retaining most of its original charm.
And let’s not forget this: Chiang Mai lies at the center of nearly 60% of the world population, at the heart of the new ‘hegemonic’ center of current world history. If you make a 4,000 kilometer circle around Chiang Mai, you have China, India, Indonesia and the Philippines, Bangladesh and Pakistan, and the totality of Southeast Asia. Either directly or through Bangkok, it is extremely well connected to Asia and the rest of the world. Chiang Mai has the potential to become a true ‘world-city’, not in the classical sense of a huge megalopolis, but in the sense of the conception of the Civium, the concept developed by Jordan Hall, that indicates a new type of rurban configuration, blending the best of the green countryside and the cultural dynamism of a city, thanks to the combination of a convivial green cityscape, with high density and ultra reliable digital infrastructure.
jordan on civium project et al
In April 2023, I was invited to the first pop-up village in Montenegro, called ‘Zuzalu’, and as I gave my invited lecture, I was contacted by members of the 4Seas community. “We’re from Chiang Mai”. I had no idea that they existed
vitalek on 1000 societies bloom ness et al
When the combination of the unease of local authorities and the Covid-induced freezing of common cultural life made their local presence extremely difficult, a substantial subset of the community decided to move to Chiang Mai, and the creation of 4Seas was a result of that decision to relocate. Thus the spirit that informs 4Seas, and its ‘sister and cousin’ initiatives, is in some way, the recreation of a similar scenius in Chiang Mai. In my assessment, they have substantially been successful in dynamizing our local cultural life. If you want to check it out, Luma is the common agenda of the Web3 pop-up community
So my first invitation is generic, please consider coming to visit Chiang Mai this year, and consider participating in this flowering of pluralistic sharing and exchange, about creating positive futures for humanity, using the new distributed infrastructures of collaboration and sharing. It matters to be in one place with many other stimulating communities and individuals. My second invitation is very specific: join us on January 21, to discuss the very future of humanity at this civilizational threshold.
Towards Wamotopia: a new kid on the block
Wamo is different from 4Seas, but is a child of the same scenius in Dalifornia, and there is of course a substantial overlap in membership and participation. It was the name given to the first gathering that took place in Dali in 2022. The new event, dedicated to transforming AI in a positive force for humanity, will take place on January 21.
the thing we’ve not yet tried/seen: the unconditional part of left to own devices ness
[‘in an undisturbed ecosystem ..the individual left to its own devices.. serves the whole’ –dana meadows]
there’s a legit use of tech (nonjudgmental exponential labeling) to facil the seeming chaos of a global detox leap/dance.. for (blank)’s sake..
ie: whatever for a year.. a legit sabbatical ish transition
otherwise we’ll keep perpetuating the same song.. the whac-a-mole-ing ness of sea world.. of not-us ness.. of part\ial ness.. [again].. for (blank)’s sake..
What makes this edition of particular interest is its focus on a new vision for the use of AI, as a positive civilizational force, focusing on the creation of positive externalities for humanity, hence the moniker of Wamotopia, as a utopian project.
nothing to date has gotten to the root of problem
legit freedom will only happen if it’s all of us.. and in order to be all of us.. has to be sans any form of measuring, accounting, people telling other people what to do
how we gather in a space is huge.. need to try spaces of permission where people have nothing to prove to facil curiosity over decision making.. because the finite set of choices of decision making is unmooring us.. keeping us from us..
ie: imagine if we listen to the itch-in-8b-souls 1st thing everyday & use that data to connect us (tech as it could be.. ai as augmenting interconnectedness)
The real struggle then isn’t between control and coordination but over who controls the coordination mechanisms
to me.. rather.. over the unconditionality of the mechs.. again.. the thing we’ve not yet tried/seen: the unconditional part of left to own devices ness
“The technologies themselves are sites of contestation, not predetermined outcomes. Every algorithm can be hacked, every system can be subverted, every concentration of power creates its own opposition.
every tech/algo/et al .. to date.. has been immersed in predetermined outcomes.. ie: as long as any form of m\a\p
need global detox first/most.. ie: need means (nonjudgmental expo labeling) to undo hierarchical listening as global detox so we can org around legit needs
“We live in a time of immense possibility coupled with intensifying anti-humanism.”
mufleh humanity law: we have seen advances in every aspect of our lives except our humanity– Luma Mufleh
need to try a legit nother way
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be you. 