Introduction to the Resource-Based Economy

The main difference between a Resource-Based Economy (RBE ^[1]) and the current monetary economy is that it is not based on exchange or a bidirectional system.

The word economy derives from the concept of economizing, although it’s not hard to realize that the original idea doesn’t quite match how the monetary system functions today. Our shift from barter to monetary systems was necessary for tremendous technological progress, allowing us to accumulate large values without deterioration over time. We could never have built microchip and computer factories by exchanging pears and apples. The monetary system was essential during times of scarcity, when satisfying all human needs was impossible. It provided us with more goods and improved our quality of life. None of this is inherently negative, as some might think. The problem arises from the side effects of bidirectionality, which has ongoing and catastrophic consequences.

In simple terms, the current monetary system involves obtaining one good in exchange for another, not out of pure and sincere giving, but out of interest or need. Likewise, goods are only acquired through work that likely isn’t your passion or pleasure. If you built a chair for yourself, you’d try to make it with the most durable materials, ensuring it looks nice and offers maximum comfort. This is an example of doing something without expecting something in return. If it were about that, you’d first try to produce many chairs to sell more. Your priorities would shift to using cheaper materials regardless of quality. Worse, in some cases, chairs would deteriorate over time so you could sell the same chair again or even intentionally damage it to resell.

Many advocate barter as a solution or alternative to the monetary system, but this would merely be a regression in our evolution. It would force us to live worse and inevitably lead us back to the monetary system, which is simply a more efficient form of barter.

Finally, to better understand the monetary system, I will summarize its most important features:

Its operation requires scarcity, not allowing abundance: In short, what is scarce has value, like diamonds or gold, which facilitate trade. Conversely, air or water, which are abundant, have little value and are hard to sell. Realistically, air and water are far more vital to our lives than diamonds or gold, not only for survival but also because they are fundamental ingredients in producing most of our goods. For example, food production depends on water; cement, paper, clothing, and even metals require it. The problem with valuing scarcity over abundance is that wars will always be fought over resources in areas where they are more plentiful, such as oil, uranium, or arable land. Scarcity also promotes social inequality and poverty, where cheap labor is exploited for others’ comfort. For instance, if someone had to work in the fields the necessary time to afford a private jet, they’d never reach that comfort unless their wages were much higher than those of low-wage workers.

The monetary system also presents other issues: Such as higher costs for including environmentally friendly or recycling processes. Automation and technological advances generate unemployment instead of freeing people from slave labor. Additionally, it encourages continuous consumption and resource exploitation without regard for ecological impact and planetary deterioration. Competition, rather than collaboration, prevails. All this, though seemingly normal and necessary, is rooted in corruption from the start, aiming to sustain the system. Many find talking about a purer and fairer way of functioning too utopian or impossible, due to preconceptions ingrained by our civilization. However, exploring ideas of a resource-based economy reveals its enormous potential: its simple operation and its capacity to solve many issues, including those as disparate as cruelty and animal abuse.

Resource-Based Economy

A RBE ^[1] requires no trade or exchange. Its goal is to distribute goods equitably and efficiently among the entire population. It does not depend on scarcity but promotes abundance. Labor slavery would be replaced by automation in production, which is already underway and responsible for global unemployment, even as people believe there’s no money and we live in an era with the most money in circulation.

We’ve all wondered why one person might have fewer rights than another under equal conditions, but this prompts us to question whether there are enough resources on Earth for everyone, and what environmental impact that would have. A study states that if all humans on the planet gathered in one place, they would fit in California, each with a house and garden. Remember, all resources come from this planet, have always been here, and matter, though it changes form, is never destroyed. The difference between a barren field and one full of vegetation is the combination with other elements like water and nutrients that enable massive growth of plant and animal life, creating new nutrients and oxygen. This is part of a cycle of combinations that has always existed and will continue to do so. Thanks to advanced technology, we can recycle components or return them to their natural state. The reason we don’t do this in our current system is that it involves additional costs that aren’t profitable.

In summary, we are a tiny part of this planet, and the amount of resources available, which we can use or even create, exceeds imagination.

Lifestyle in a RBE

Give a man a fish, and he eats for a day. Teach him to fish, and he eats for a lifetime.

— Chinese Proverb

Similarly, a resource-based economy aims for people not to have to work to eat, but to use existing knowledge and capabilities to automate monotonous and repetitive processes, eliminating servitude to survival needs. When processes are automated and people don’t need to barter to live, there’s no reason for them to receive without giving. At that point, people will spend their free time on what truly interests them: passions, creativity, learning, and creating for pleasure, not just necessity. To understand this, recall how your life was as a child when everything was taken care of, and you learned and did things for fun or to help others.

The biggest question about a RBE[] is who would build or maintain the machines. Full automation could be achieved in about ten years. Cities would be self-sufficient entities producing their own food, freely available for all. The supply would be like a library: people access what they need, take it, and return it when done. Property would be replaced by usage. For example, instead of owning a car in the garage, each person would have access to transportation anytime, with the best comforts.

For instance, imagine transportation systems like current buses but more efficient, comfortable, and personalized. Since people have free time, collaborating to improve the system would be a motivation and pleasure. They could design more attractive buses, energy-efficient, or with better schedules. But let’s go further: why not use small personal transport devices? Electric, autonomous cars guided by GPS, no driver needed, reducing accidents. When arriving at their destination, they would automatically head to charging stations and be available for others. Construction of these vehicles would also be automated.

The same applies to homes: instead of building with bricks, they could be made using molds or extrusions with insulating and fireproof materials. People could design and fabricate their own homes from architect-created plans, without manual construction.

All this might seem hard to imagine in today’s society, where, for example, someone thinks they need a vacuum cleaner, when in reality, they only need a ventilation system with filters and ionizers that automatically eliminate dust. If technology allows, automated, eco-friendly systems are far more efficient than manual tasks.

In a system where recycling and environmental care cost nothing, protecting the planet would be a priority and necessity. Ecological restoration would be integral, using automated technologies to repair or transform damaged environments, like turning deserts into green fields. The misconception that technology destroys the environment is false: technology is knowledge and can be used to protect and improve our surroundings. An example would be replacing wood burning for heating with clean electric systems, powered sustainably by solar energy.

Thanks to high-efficiency automated production, resource management, and continuous recycling, abundance can be provided to all with minimal human effort and resources.

Procedures and operation of a Resource-Based Economy

Resource monitoring and distribution: Using resource monitors in each location, connected via databases of availability and demand, resources are distributed automatically, fulfilling specific needs, anticipating shortages, and planning substitution investments. All based on programmed mathematical procedures executable by any computer.
Production decision-making and prioritization: Similarly, decisions on what to produce depend on needs and importance. For example, food, water, housing, or advanced technologies would take priority over leisure or entertainment items, which are linked to technological progress. For instance, there would no longer be a need to produce film rolls when photos are stored digitally. All products would stem from scientific and technological knowledge, constantly updated with progress. Our current system, which produces disposable and obsolete products, aims only to keep companies and the economy running. Outdated technology is maintained until it’s no longer profitable, like phone companies delaying adopting newer tech to sell more devices over time.
Optimization of production methods: Focuses on reducing environmental impact, energy consumption, and material use, favoring durable or abundant materials, and minimizing workforce needs. Also involves designing modular products that allow replacing parts instead of discarding entire items.
Product distribution: Products would be shipped directly from warehouses to homes or displayed in stores where people can try and select them. Acquisition would resemble online shopping: request the item, it arrives, and is returned when no longer needed.
Recycling obsolete products: In our current system, recycling isn’t profitable, but when there’s no profit, there’s no cost. Automated technologies would efficiently recycle materials, minimizing environmental impact and returning components to nature or reusing in new products. Technology would enable transforming deserts into green areas and actively improving the environment. The misconception that technology destroys ecosystems is false; it can be harnessed to protect and restore the planet. For example, replacing wood burning for heating with clean electric energy, sustainably sourced from solar power.

Thanks to the efficiency of automated production, resource management, and continuous recycling, abundance can be achieved for all with minimal human effort and resources.

Small introductory video about the RBE