FRACTAL_VERSING

A BUSINESS FROM AN ECONOMIC AND ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

In this example we are going to look at a small business from an economic and ecological perspective. So we'll create two different FractalVersing ontologies, one from each perspective.

Full disclosure, I am neither a business founder, economist, nor ecologist, so you'll have to use your imagination and allow me some artistic licence.

Economic Transaction FractalVersing

IDENTIFY ENTITIES

Seller, buyer, product

IDENTIFY DIFFERENCE-DIMENSIONS

Cost, persuasion, motivation, value, budget

IDENTIFY BOUNDARIES, ENVIRONMENT, CONSTRAINTS

Physical distance, market, regulations, economic climate

IDENTIFY ACTIONS AND VERBS

Buy, sell, use, return, negotiate, evaluate, support, convince

TRANSFORM ENTITIES AND NOUNS INTO VERBS

Produce, become-seller, become-buyer, become-product, cost, price, price-hike, discount, save, persuade, put-off, motivate, demotivate, value, revalue, devalue, save, spend, forecast, meet, shop, order, aspire, imagine, resign, regulate, restrict, protect, risk, conserve

CREATE A MULTI-SCALE VERB HIERARCHY

CREATE INTERPRETATIONS

COMPOSE VERSES

Ecological FractalVersing

IDENTIFY ENTITIES

Materials, product, worker, waste

IDENTIFY DIFFERENCE-DIMENSIONS

Growth, energy consumption, pollution, scarcity, volume, population

IDENTIFY BOUNDARIES, ENVIRONMENT, CONSTRAINTS

organization, community, municipal, environment

IDENTIFY ACTIONS AND VERBS

extract, mine, create, construct, commute, produce, dispose, transport

TRANSFORM ENTITIES AND NOUNS INTO VERBS

become-material, become-product, become-worker, become-waste, materialize, work, waste, reuse, recycle, re-waste, grow, consume, become-energy, pollute, run-out, over-produce, industrialize

CREATE A MULTI-SCALE VERB HIERARCHY

CREATE INTERPRETATIONS

COMPOSE VERSES

INTERPRETATION

For this example we're going to use a small business that's creating a brand new soft drink.

We'll create an interpretation for each of the verses we created above.

When motivated, we seek value. From value comes motivation.

Thirst is a powerful feeling. Hydration is essential for health. When we reach out for a drink, are we thirsty, dehydrated, or simply craving?

Through aspirations are we primed to buy.

What does the consumer aspire to? Healthier, fitter lifestyle? Better at sport? An active and exciting social life? A moment of peace and quiet?

When the conversation turns to price, we become the seller.

The price has to match the aspiration. Low price means accessible, high price means luxury or scientific. But we must keep an eye on margins or risk quality.

Saving money creates the capacity to spend money

Consumers are unlikely to buy soft drinks in order to cut costs. They are either purchased out of necessity (out and about), or as a treat.

When we put a price on something, it becomes-product

Are we selling a product, or a lifestyle? A philosophy, or a solution? A soft drink is fundamentally a product, but the price and brand we set will make that more or less obvious.

The transformation from nature to raw material at human-scale is finite, at geological-scale it is futile

We have to take responsibility for the impact we create on ourselves and our environment. Packaging, especially plastic bottles, are a huge ecological problem, and microplastics are now everywhere. Ultimately we will have to balance profit against sustainability.

Consuming energy creates waste. All waste is wasted energy.

It costs energy and resources to obtain raw material, to create soft drinks, to distribute them to consumers, to manage the waste they create. Every step consumes energy and creates waste.

As we grow, so do our needs. Exponential growth creates super-exponential waste.

Soft drinks are big business. Does the world really need yet another soft drink? Could we do something different, that brings balance? Could we somehow reduce the amount of soft drinks consumed in the world?

We work to consume, and consume to work. What responsibilities do we hold on either side of the equation?

Our target consumers are workers, members of society, each playing a role. Our own staff are included in this too. Is how we run as a business, how we treat our staff, consistent with the ethos of the brand?

CONCLUSION

As the founder of this fictitious soft drink brand, we looked at the verses, reflected on them, and thought about the implications on our idea. Perhaps profit is what we're going for, and we ignore the environmental impact. That's someone else's problem. We're just giving people a choice, ultimately it is their responsibility. But maybe there's a different way. The Anti Soft Drink. A recipe book that allows people to create their own soft drinks at home. Sustainable bottles made from natural materials. A subscription of ingredients that allows people to easily make delicious natural drinks at home.

Ultimately it is for the founder to decide how to proceed. But through FractalVersing they have at least considered a different perspective, a broader perspective, a perspective that could lead to better decisions.