Our approach to design is a "localist" approach; Start with the smallest "unit", learn from what works & why, what failed & why. Improve, Adjust, Innovate.

This is an ancient design tradition.

Start with a focus on Systems of Water, Energy. The production of resources, food, goods, services, ideas... all link up across a Value Chain where the output of one process is an input into another. Overtime, the value chain bulks up, and the network Scales up. None of the nodes or processes are essential for the survival of the whole; each is Designed For Failure.

...kinda like I'm always redesigning and adjusting this site.

Some make it, others survive; by removing the drive to over-centralized, the network will "even descale" itself to fit in with the environment around it. If it regenerates the environment and grows with it, it will scale-up and grow further. The town, city, county will become antifragile. As if they together bound by Covenants, those systems regenerate their environment, and grow our civilization to reach for the stars.

Until hydrocarbons and their cheap energy, this is how we built and lived. We had to do so out of necessity. It makes more sense to relearn "localism", whether or not is becoming more expensive; to grow further, we need to move beyond sustainable development, and regenerate the world around us.

We had this once.

We can do it again.