A Vision for the Future: 

Smart Village-Cities and a New Economy

Is there more to the Montague Odyssey than just a story? 

Yes. A road map to a real-world, achievable future. 

The world is at a tipping point. Environmental collapse, economic instability, and societal disconnection demand radical change—not minor reforms, but a complete rethinking of how we live.

Technology, rather than being a threat, holds the key to a brighter future. Advanced AI, robotics, automation and sustainable design will enable self-sufficient, high-tech communities that support both human well-being, innovation, creativity and environmental restoration. This vision is not utopian fiction—it is practical, achievable, and already within reach.

In the future, cities will be smaller, smarter, and greener. Each Lumos City style village-city will house 3,000-5,000 residents and be fully self-sufficient, powered by clean energy and AI-managed infrastructure. Food will be grown locally in high-tech vertical farms and ground based permaculture systems. Locally situated, advanced automated factories will manufacture housing, transportation, harvesting food and producing goods on-site, reducing waste and environmental impact.

These village-cities will be surrounded by vast rewilded landscapes, reconnecting people with nature while preserving biodiversity. Many of these village-cities will be linked by high-speed rail, and they will function as a decentralised global network, united in a mission to restore our biosphere and improve life for all.

A smooth shift from capitalism to a post-scarcity world requires a transitional model. This is achieved by running two economies side by side:

1. Capitalism below ground – Automated 'gigafactories' operate beneath the Lumos City, producing and exporting goods to participate in the global economy. Revenue funds environmental restoration, new technology, and local developments. Exports include robotics and new-gen CPUs. These facilities will be highly reconfigurable, able to adapt to need. Lumos City operations will contribute to international aid responses - sending small amphibious aircraft for remote supplies, prefab housing, cooking equipment, furniture and more. Lumos City's automated vertical farms and ground based agriculture will also be positioned to supply food to countries impacted by disasters.

2. Abundance Economy above ground – Essential resources like food, housing, healthcare, and education are provided freely, enabled by AI, robotics and automation. Without financial concerns, people are free to pursue science, creativity, and meaningful contributions. This is a 'starfleet' style world --there is no money and people are no longer driven by material acquisition. Status is determined by how much you contribute to the greater good. Your reputation is the new 'currency', and it allows you greater access to resources than less motivated peers.

This dual system allows society to evolve gently, without causing the distress of those deeply invested in money, and without the dangers of economic collapse, ensuring stability while gradually transitioning to a world of shared abundance.

In The Montague Odyssey story-world, there is a creative district inside Lumos City - known simply as 'Old Town'. It is modelled after an old European style village, with old stone buildings and cobblestone lanes, and features traditional arts from every culture on Earth. There are painters, sculptors, poets, musicians, blacksmiths, film makers, chocolate makers, Karate dojos, archery, on and on. The future is not all high-tech, it is all about balance, and whilst science and innovation do the heavy lifting in Lumos City, the creative citizens are highly esteemed for their contributions - for creativity is known by all as essential to flourishing.

Freed from survival-based labour, people will focus on two core pursuits:

• Science & Exploration: Collaborative research in climate solutions and biosphere restoration, medicine, clean energy, space exploration and more.

• Arts & Human Expression: Creativity flourishes as people engage in music, storytelling, fine arts and more - all manner of traditional and innovative forms of creativity.

Rather than fostering laziness, this structure unlocks human potential. As seen during COVID lockdowns, many turned to learning and creative pursuits when freed from mundane jobs and associated constraints.

Where Nature, Technology, and Vision Flow as One

Seawater Pipeline: The Lifeblood of a Regenerative City

Drawing inspiration from large-scale Australian water projects, such as the SEQ Water Grid, Lumos City envisions an advanced pipeline system. This pipeline system, laid by autonomous construction robots, will transport seawater inland to fuel vital systems, harmonising with Earth's rhythms.​ This approach is reminiscent of the Bradfield Scheme, a historical proposal aimed at redirecting water to arid regions.

Lake Symbiocene: A Reservoir of Life and Balance

At the city's elevated core lies Lake Symbiocene, our purpose-built freshwater reservoir. Desalinated water flows into its vast basin, from which it cascades through gravity-fed channels—irrigating the engineered Arcadia Forest, city based vertical farms and agricultural zones, and the living green lungs of our city. This concept aligns with the principles of sustainable water storage and distribution seen in projects like the Gold Coast Desalination Plant.​

Desalination Hub: Clean Water, Pure Intention

Powered by solar, bioreactor, and potentially geothermal energy, our desalination system purifies seawater into life-giving freshwater. This approach draws from technologies used in the Gold Coast Desalination Plant, which employs advanced reverse osmosis techniques.​

Concrete from the Sea: Carbon-Negative Foundations

Utilising magnesium extracted from seawater, Lumos City manufactures revolutionary carbon-negative concrete. This method is inspired by research from Northwestern University, demonstrating the feasibility of seawater-derived magnesium cement that sequesters CO₂.​

Bioreactors: Alchemy Beneath the Earth

Concealed beneath sculpted mounds of soil, our Hobbit Bioreactors convert organic waste and wood into electricity, biochar, syngas, oils and algae based fertilisers. This concept aligns with sustainable waste-to-energy practices, contributing to a closed-loop system that supports soil enrichment and energy production.​

Inspired by Regenitech’s revolutionary Green Power House, these underground systems function as closed-loop biorefineries, turning organic waste, forestry offcuts, and even algae into a symphony of life-giving resources:

Electricity to power our factories, desalination, and daily life
Biochar to heal and enrich the soil, locking carbon away for centuries
Syngas and bio-oils as clean fuels and industrial materials
Algae-based fertilizer, cultivated by feeding CO₂ emissions back into photobioreactors, completing a cycle of breath, bloom, and renewal.

A Closed-Loop of Life

Every system in Lumos City is designed to feed another, creating a regenerative cycle. This holistic approach mirrors the interconnectedness found in natural ecosystems and is supported by sustainable infrastructure practices.

AI will optimise city management, ensuring efficient energy use, waste reduction, and resource distribution. In the future, AI may evolve to become an equal partner in global decision-making.

Each village-city will be independently governed, a 'City-State', yet also part of a larger alliance, in the Montague Odyssey it is called the Sol Harmonium—a cooperative network of smart cities working together to share knowledge, resources, and planetary stewardship, much like Star Trek’s Federation.

MOONSHOT: pending advanced 'mature' tech AI and robotics, construction will begin in 2045. This fully self-sufficient prototype village-city will demonstrate this dual economy and sustainable design in action. Enabled by AI-driven project management and advanced robotics, this Lumos City will prove that a better way of living is possible.

This is not a distant dream—it is a path already forming. By embracing technology, cooperation, and purpose-driven innovation, we can transition to a future where humanity thrives in harmony with nature, unlocking freedom and potential as never before. 

Let's create something worthy of us, something bright, something extraordinary.

'May all living things, live long and prosper!'