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Network of European Technocrats
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The Network of European Technocrats (or NET) is an organisation that promotes a European adaption of Technocracy as an alternative socioeconomic system for a sustainable future. The NET group is not affiliated with Technocracy Incorporated and the two groups ideas are not connected except by shared terms adopted by Network of European Technocrats. The organisation is registered in Sweden but has a membership base across Europe and accepts members from outside the continent.
Formation of Organization NET became an organization in 2006. when a group of Europeans inspired by the idea known as the Technate design for North America (created by Technocracy Incorporated of North America), used several variations of some of that groups ideas and thus created NET, as a research and education organisation. NET was officially registered as an independent association in the Kingdom of Sweden in April 2006. NET considers itself part of a broad Technocracy movement, though it should be noted that Technocracy Incorporated is not connected nor does it endorse them in any way.
Organisation NET follows a decentralised, holonic organisational structure based around autonomous groups, but it does have a board of directors responsible for its overall direction. Currently, the board is composed of a director of NET and the heads of three sequences, one each for research, administration and finance. The current headquarters (EHQ) is located in Umeå, Sweden, where the current director, Dr. Andrew Wallace, lives.
Goals and Objectives The overall goal of the original North American Technate design is to provide citizens of that land area the highest possible standard of living for the longest possible period of time in an ecologically sustainable way (note the Technate design chapters in the Technocracy Study Course.
NET aims to promote their version of Technocracy and to develop a related scientific plan for Europe. As a Technate design can be viewed as "science applied to society", NET aims to validate its plans by conducting experiments and simulations with their Proto-Technate concept (which comes under the Sequence of Research).
The plan, currently under development by NET, does not follow the plan developed by Technocracy Incorporated in North America, but it does have some commonalities in relation to terms and descriptions, such as the use of Energy Accounting a term that describes the use of energy in an accounting system used instead of a monetary system. Also the word Technate is a term borrowed to a different meaning by NET.
NET states that their groups main difference compared to Technocracy Inc. is that NET is investigating decentralised methods of resource and information distribution as well as being concerned with political Democracy within their proto-technate organisation.
The European Technocratic Plan NET's plan for Europe is under development. Aspects of their plan call for localisation and networking and the creation of a "Proto-Technate" a kind of transition phase between the Price system and a Technate. The proposed organisation of this centers around Sustainable communities called "Eco-Units" (with about 200 people), which have some degree of Self-sufficiency in energy production, waste management and food production. These eco-units would then group together to form Urbanates (with about 10,000 people). Eco-units and Urbanates would also have some additional production capacity to produce goods for local consumption. These Urbanates would be autonomous units that would then network with other Urbanates when needed. NET's current plan is to use Energy Accounting on the inside and a Price System run by their administration on the outside for their beginning version of the Proto-Technate idea.
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