4. The Ergonocracy Social Model – The Local  Community

4.1 Characterisation

In the previous chapter, we explained the Ergonocracy political model for the Global Community, focussing on topics related to all citizens.

In this chapter, we will tackle the social aspect, namely the Local Community, covering all aspects that are closely related to each citizen, including his or her residence, building, street, neighbourhood, and city.

The Ergonocracy Local Community replaces what in Western democracies is called the City Council. It proposes a new Local Community management model that will use similar direct democracy principles and mechanisms to those that have already been suggested for the Global Community. This includes the principles of dilution of power and total transparency. Also, a Concessionary Company chosen by the citizens, will handle the management of the Local Community.

As in the Global Community, communication among citizens and the various players in the process occurs via the Community Web Portal, where there will be a specific tab to that effect acting as a gateway for the citizen. This link will redirect a person to a sub-portal managed by the Local Community Concessionary Company. In this case, citizens will only be able to see the issues concerning their own Local Communities.

It is possible that Local Community management may only  deal with the daily activities of a specific geographical area. However, in Local Communities whose citizens so decide by a qualified majority vote, it is possible to extend this concept. Thus, the Local Community can be associated with a particular theme or common interest, becoming a Local Community of Common Interest. Therefore, two types of local communities41 can coexist:

• Neutral local communities whose management is handled by a Concessionary Company that will limit its activity to the current issues in its own geographical area, regardless of any thematic character.
• Local Communities of Common Interest, which combine a “Thematic Association” with the Local Community’s activities.

Thus, a Local Community of Common Interest is defined as a Local Community sustained within a delimited geographical space where people sharing common interests live together and are able to set a desired profile for new neighbours, selected according to the criteria chosen by a qualified majority of constituents.

This chapter also covers a new Habitation Model, which allows each citizen to invest in a “deed of habitation”, which simultaneously allows for increased mobility.

All these concepts will be described in subsequent chapters, starting with the basic principles on which the models are formulated.

4.2 Underlying principles

The principle of mutual identification

It is understood that most disputes between neighbours result from the fact that people with completely different lifestyles and interests feel like they are forced to live among people they do not understand or identify with, which can sometimes create feelings of fear or spite.

For example, a community that harbours people who are usually noisy and enjoy nightlife tends to be more tolerant, accepting behaviours that would be frowned upon in communities whose residents favour a more quiet and conservative lifestyle.

It is logical to assume that, for every human being, the more he or she identifies with others, the more integrated he or she will feel. This applies to those living in a Local Community. Similarly, our individual freedom will vary according to our level of integration and identification with the people in our Local Community. As our tastes and preferences are similar to those of our neighbours, there is less risk of any mutual discomfort or misunderstanding.

It is in this framework that this Ergonocracy Model: Local Communities of Common Interest is presented. Its aim is to facilitate and create the conditions for the harmonious coexistence of people with similar tastes and lifestyles.

The principle of the rejection of a sedentary nature

As previously mentioned, over hundreds of thousands of years, human beings, in their continuous evolutionary process, became accustomed to being nomadic, living according to nature’s cycles and adapting to climate changes and the migrations of their prey. It was in this context that the longest period of our evolutionary history occurred.

Throughout countless generations, nomadic tribes wandered across the planet, establishing temporary settlements. The length of their stay was proportional to the abundance of resources and dependent on natural and climatic conditions.

These were primitive communities that practiced polygamy and believed that children belonged to the tribe and not to any family in particular. Of course, once leadership was established, all interpersonal violence decreased because people felt very close to others, partly because they perceived the tribe as if it were - and often it was indeed - their extended family. And so, the sense of mutual assistance tended to be much greater in such communities.

The humans of today are a result of an adaptation to these nomadic characteristics. In fact, people first became sedentary only during a small fraction of our recent evolutionary path, i.e. about ten thousand years ago, with the invention of agriculture and the founding of the first permanent settlements. We are a product of hundreds of thousands of years of nomadic tribal evolution and, therefore, the last “sedentary” ten thousand years, has had little influence on our nature. In conclusion, we ought to take our nomadic and tribal nature into account, especially when defining these Ergonocracy Models.

Logically, this sedentary phase, although it was inevitable, is the source of most of humanity's problems, because humans have not entirely adapted in evolutionary terms to the consequences of this new reality. So, we must also consider that this sedentary phase is directly responsible for the following:

• The existence of feelings of territorialism and nationalism, which are the causes of most wars.
• The existence of negative feelings over property ownership and in particular, land ownership, which have caused humans to become increasingly selfish. Consequently, this has contributed to the exploitation of others, because now that someone has become the owner of a given parcel of land, he or she feels entitled to charge a share of the crops to those who farm the land, though he does nothing to contribute to the crop yield.
• The existence of the concept of power, with the inevitable emergence of leaders, including their armies, wars and privileged classes, which typically included members of the clergy.

The nomadic spirit is more present in some people than in others. Nonetheless, it is desirable that each person has freedom of choice in order to stimulate his or her best qualities and to maximise the adaptability of each individual to his or her surroundings.

Thus, the Social and Local Community Ergonocracy Model takes into account the circumstances and the framework of the technological age in which we live so that it can present a paradigm that will help to recreate the true nature of human beings. These issues of mobility and community integration are dominant criteria. It is in this framework that the housing model, which takes all these criteria into account, will be presented later in this book.

The principle of non-proliferation

The Social and Local Community Ergonocracy Model assumes a maximum number of human beings within a given environment. This is recommended not only for environmental reasons, but also especially because of sociological objectives, in accordance with the principle of the rejection of a sedentary nature as described above. This matter is explained through the following two principles:

• If it is true that human beings are adaptable by nature, then it is also true that they will be good if their surrounding environment encourages mutual assistance, altruism, and kindness, and provides no reason to feel any fear or anxiety. The reverse is also true. Environments with population in excess can cause people to develop defence mechanisms. This can lead to tension and the potential use of aggression.
• It is also important to consider the principle of human performance. This is the notion that every human being is unique and possesses value and dignity. This concept is applicable in a context where human resources are a “scarce commodity”. This emphasises the notion that this type of resource tends to be better appreciated. This principle will also be highlighted in the Ergonocracy Economic Model, which will be discussed later in this book.

4.3 Local Community management

The Local Community management model

Each Local Community will have the autonomy to organise  and manage itself the way its citizens prefer, whether they belong to a Neutral Local Community or to a Local Community of Common Interest. However, the Global Community has the obligation to set out an up-to-date list of all the best practices in each technical Local Community area of activity and to help the Local Community in these activities.

There are some basic principles that all local communities should follow. These consist of similar mechanisms to those that have already been established for the Global Community, namely:

• The election of a Concessionary Company responsible for managing the Local Community during a standard four-year mandate, which will be annually confirmed at the same time the budget is approved.
• Subjection to established monitoring mechanisms, including the controlling entities and the Neighbour Commission.
• Communication will be established through the Community Web Portal, with total transparency, so that each citizen can consult any desired information.
• All citizens are encouraged to participate by voting in decision-making processes, by presenting proposals and suggestions and by reporting irregularities, which may or may not involve signing petitions, etc.

Local Community laws will be divided into the following types:

• General laws (subject to the vote of every citizen in the community) or
• Partial laws (an office building, a street, a  neighbourhood, etc.).

A partial law will only be voted on by the constituents it applies to, unless the issue for some special reason is a broader one.

Local Community size

Local communities can expand into new, larger areas or they can split up into several smaller communities provided that such decisions are made by an overall qualified voting majority of the residents in these areas.

So, the size of each Local Community will be left to the decision of its citizens, regardless of its size at the time, or the number of inhabitants. However, if it is too small, it will not benefit from any economies of scale and its management costs will certainly increase. Residents will be directly responsible for such costs.

Thus, Local Communities may have very different characteristics, especially in terms of population density and size. In addition, some communities require a lot of maintenance and care, while others do well with little maintenance and require only basic necessities.

There are two types of small Local Communities:

• Those located in rural areas with small populations.
• Those in urban areas, but separated into independent communities.

In both cases, the best measure is to establish agreements with surrounding Local Communities, define service agreements, and invest in common infrastructures and integrated projects. This will allow for shared costs.

Also in the case of small Local Communities, their respective Concessionary Companies will be much more dependent on neighbouring Local Communities, with whom they will have to establish agreements for most services.

The Scope of the Local Community

To simplify the understanding of this process, imagine the Concessionary Company acting in a way similar to an ordinary condominium management company. For the Local Community, this provides the advantages of proximity and fosters a spirit of mutual assistance. Still, however, the Concessionary Company should deal with more complex issues and hold more responsibility.

The services provided by the Local Community Concessionary Company will provide a wide array of services, including the management of its own condominium or office building. However, each building's residents will have the right to refuse such a service, and come up with another solution.

The Local Community Concessionary Company must also provide each of its citizens with separate, basic service contracts, such as cleaning, repair services, etc. These corporate agreements should be previously negotiated so that each resident has the option to decide on the preferred services to use.

In theory, this can benefit the resident in terms of costs because deals are negotiated among a wide range of households. There is also the advantage of lower costs for the service provider, given the proximity of customers and the synergies, cost reductions and economies of scale that may arise in the process.

Besides, it allows citizens the advantage of having only one mediator, a single contact, for resolving most problems.

Using the same reasoning, it makes sense to allow the Concessionary Company to negotiate with all service providers in order to choose the best one for each of the services: water, electricity, gas, and so on.

Of course, the payment of such services must be guaranteed by each resident. The Local Community Concessionary Company should act only as a negotiator and controller, also taking on the responsibilities of invoicing and centralised billing42.

Local Community relations with the Global Community

The Ergonocracy Political Model defends the notion that each agent must carry out the functions for which he or she is best qualified. This is the reason why every Local Community must manage all the components related to Community Affairs.

However, it is clear that there are synergies, skills, and know-how that only exist within the Global Community. These are responsible for the efficiency associated with results derived from economies of scale. So, for each technical sector, the Global Community must provide the technical guidelines and standards that are considered the most appropriate, which, among other actions, requires providing information and training to Local Community technicians and providing technical advice upon request for a moderate fee.

Next, some of the actors in this process, namely the  Concessionary Company and the Commission of residents, will be examined.

Local Community Concessionary Company

The Local Community Concessionary Company will take on the following responsibilities:

• Identify problems, promote and propose solutions and submit them through a voting request process via the Community Web Portal. Urgent problems or issues that have a simple, direct and cheap resolution will not require a voting request, but will have to be registered in order to be followed up at a later stage.
• Carefully manage available resources and ensure the provision of various services to the Local Community, which can be achieved:

o By its own means.

o Through other subcontractors, that is, other Sub Concessionary Companies.

o By establishing partnerships with neighbouring Local Communities in order to obtain mutual synergies and economies of scale. The Local Community Concessionary Company is obliged to submit, as a voting request any proposal presented by these neighbouring Local Communities.

The choice of the best of these three options will depend on the size of the Local Community, its needs, its investment budget, and especially the pre-approved programme.

• In addition, the Local Community Concessionary Company should interact with all other public utilities  Concessionary Companies, for example, for the construction of schools, hospitals, etc.
• Coordinate the implementation of the pre-approved programme strategy and promote the implementation of all new projects.
• Nevertheless, for each new project that involves additional costs or revenue alterations, the Concessionary Company will have the obligation to submit a voting request.
• Monitor and assist the Global Community’s administrative staff and technicians whose projects are being undertaken in its area of influence, e.g. the construction of roads, pipelines, etc.
• Interact with citizens and respond to all claims and queries, serving as the “bridge” between citizens and service providers.
• Manage all financial processes, including payments, accounting, invoicing and local tax collection.

Neighbour Commissions

Every Local Community is supposed to elect its own Neighbour Commission, which will play a similar role to the Arbitral Council in the Global Community political structure.

The Neighbour Commission's most important task is to promote and organise the Local Concessionary Company's electoral process. This entity will not hold any decision-making power, and will only be responsible for the coordination, intermediation and controlling of assignments.

It is usually from the members of the Neighbour  Commission that a candidate for member of the Arbitral Council is chosen.

Members of the Neighbour Commission may receive a salary, but the citizens of each Local Community should decide on this issue themselves.

Financial management

As mentioned before, one of the aims of the Concessionary Company is to guarantee all the accounting, reporting, invoicing and collecting of all local taxes from each of the Local Community’s citizens. Local taxes are completely separate from Global Community taxes, as these are solely related to the Local Community’s activities. In fact, the Global Community’s Treasury is completely independent from all the Local Communities' financial structures and vice-versa.

Therefore, the Local Community Concessionary Company will have to assume all costs and share them with residents. In terms of costs, there are two distinct types:

• Fixed costs: these correspond to certain amounts that cannot be directly applied to each consumer, and so the total amount will be shared among households43
• Variable costs: these correspond to costs that each consumer is directly accountable for, and so these costs will be invoiced to each household, and rates will vary according to direct and proportional consumption.

Thus, the monthly invoice for this local tax should clearly specify these two components and all the calculations should be clarified, for it is understood that citizens have the right to know exactly what they are paying for.

This invoice, which may be electronically sent to each citizen by e-mail or as a reminder message on the Community Web Portal, would itemise every parcel and specify the origin of all costs for each of the above mentioned components:

• Value of Local Community Specific Services and investments:

o Share for each household (percentage)

o Partial value

• Value of (his) city specific services and investments:

o Share for each household (percentage)

o Partial value

• Value of (his) neighbourhood specific services and investments:

o Share for each household (percentage)

o Partial value

• Value of (his) street specific services and investments:

o Share for each household (percentage)

o Partial value

• Value of (his) building specific services and investments:

o Share for each household (percentage)

o Partial value

• Value of his apartment:

 o Property specific services (including all ordered services, and in this case there should be no need to itemise).

Property specific services (including all ordered services, and in this case there should be no need to itemise).

The total value to be paid by each household will be the sum of all the abovementioned partial values.

The share for each household will vary mostly according to the total number of citizens in each zone, and should reflect the relative ownership of this specific household compared to the group of households as a whole. Each citizen should only be responsible for the costs related to projects from which he or she did, in fact, benefit. For example, maintenance costs for the public structures network as well as the administrative and management costs charged by the Concessionary Company, are considered high-level costs (at the Local Community level) and should therefore be paid by all residents in that Local Community.

Investments that have a “neighbourhood” character should be paid for by the neighbourhood’s citizens, and so forth. Investments made with the intent to serve two or three neighbourhoods should be paid for by citizens residing in those areas.

Logically, all costs related to building maintenance should only be charged to that building's residents.

Regarding costs related to units’ services, those that had been requested directly by each citizen, should clearly be exclusively allocated to each consumer household.

As stated in previous chapters, it should make sense to include in this parcel all household utilities, such as water, electricity and gas, as they are directly consumed per household.

The advantage of this model is that each Local Community could have greater negotiating power, allowing it to make better deals from service providers. In this context, it will make sense, taking economies of scale into account, that only one service provider will be selected for a specific service in each Local Community.

One of the Local Community Concessionary Company's assignments will be to ensure the correct building and usage of ground structure networks by each of the providers, and try, whenever possible, to promote joint projects to avoid disrupting the lives of citizens, which often happens.

As mentioned before, each country can implement a formula with an index that is proportional to household income, so that richer people could contribute more. Of course, this is a delicate political issue that has nothing to do with Ergonocracy, and should be decided by a qualified majority of the citizens.

4.4 Diagram with an example of a Local Community

Here is a diagram showing the potential operation of a typical Local Community:

4.5 Two innovative models

As stated before, Ergonocracy models aim to recreate the true nature of human beings. Therefore, they accept and attempt to facilitate our nomadic lifestyle, which is in harmony with our current evolutionary phase. In line with this  framework, we present two innovative models:

• The Local Communities of Common Interest Model – this model intends to encourage and foster a feeling of identification with and integration of a neighbourhood in order to create social harmony, both in terms of lifestyle and common values.
• The Housing Model - this model promotes citizen mobility so that he or she is able to easily change residence. This will allow people to try several different environments and communities, until they are sure that they have found the right solution to maximise their overall level of satisfaction and effective integration into a community. If citizens felt that the community where they moved to did not match their expectations, they should have the chance to move somewhere else, without any major costs or administrative barriers.

The joint implementation of these two models44 will constitute a powerful tool that could help minimise conflicts and friction among people by promoting conditions for open communication and a general well-being.

 4.6 The Local Communities of Common Interest Model

How these Communities work

In each Local Community of Common Interest, interests are chosen and selected based on criteria determined by a qualified majority of its constituents.

Therefore, a Local Community of Common Interest, through the choices made by the majority of its citizens, could define its own internal rules and establish a set of rules for social coexistence. For example, each Local Community could set its own noise regulations or even decide to abolish all noise restrictions. In fact, this all depends on the profiles and desired lifestyles of those living in the community.

Thus, each Local Community of Common Interest will need to decide, through a voting process, the type of common infrastructure investment for the city, neighbourhood, street, etc. that it wished to adopt.

In the case of a condominium complex built from scratch, there is the advantage of allowing citizens to define the type of architecture to be used, which could be designed to meet the demands of the members of that specific Local Community and reflect their characteristics and preferences. This is because people will be living in communities with similar affinities and common social rules.

Thus, the characteristics of each type of accommodation as well as those of the Local Community should be properly explained in the sales or lease agreement so that each individual has the option to fit into the community whose rules he or she agrees with. The reverse is also true. The Local Community will have the option to accept or not, the citizen for the same reasons. In this case, it is clear that nobody can claim ignorance of the community’s rules, and each new resident should implicitly accept them when choosing to reside there.

Therefore, completely open communities can be created where members are highly participative and willing to collaborate with each other while, at the other extreme, other communities will exist whose members prefer to live apart  from each other and remain completely independent. It is in this framework that it makes sense to define the type of architecture as a result of these and other factors.

In addition, communities with specific common interests will be formed, for example, those related to sports, social issues, arts, aesthetics, sexuality, etc., which may require an investment in infrastructure in order to create the right conditions for the implementation of common interests.

It should be noted that each Local Community is free to choose more than one common interest. However, the criteria which define the common interests can never be related to gender, race or social condition, yet may stipulate that they accept only the followers of a certain religion. For example, a community can implement a restriction to accept only new neighbours who are members of a particular religion or belief, but no community should have the right to expel any residents who were already residing there before it became a Local Community of Common Interest. It will also be possible to take sexual preference into account, provided that this criterion is directly within the scope of the common interest in question, for example, if the common interest concerned the practice of polygamy and group sex, then this requirement will need to be defined at the outset.

Citizen’s profiles

The Local Community of Common Interest, in addition to the common interests as the main vector, could also stipulate an ideal personality profile for its members, distinguishing between outgoing, sociable people and timid, isolated people. Besides this, it could define the lifestyle of its affiliates, in which case the classification matrix will vary according to the  following types of common interest examples that these communities can define:

• Sports activities
• Radical activities
• Social activities
• Cultural activities
• Musical activities
• Artistic activities
• Sexual activities
• Aesthetic activities
• Religious activities, etc.

On the other axis there is the lifestyle of its affiliates:

• Introverted people versus sociable people
• “Night owls” versus “early birds”
• Noisy people versus quiet people
• Frugal people versus “big spenders”

Local Communities who decide not to promote any common interest in particular will be designated as neutral local communities whose Concessionary Company should limit its activity to everyday management within its geographical boundaries, as is the case today with city councils. Unlike Local Communities of Common Interest, these communities could lack a thematic quality, and could govern themselves with a more generic set of social behaviour rules, which, by default, the Global Community should apply in such cases. This happens today in most western democracies where the  central government defines generic social rules.

In conclusion, neutral Lo