Andreas Gmeiner

Andreas Gmeiner

Team Culturing Information

last updated: 31. May, 2011

WHO are you?

• Name - Andreas Gmeiner

• Location (city, country) - Regensburg, Germany

• Contact Information (email, phone, Skype) - GmeinerAndreas (at) gmx (dot) de, I will send my phone number if you ask via Mail

• Introductory Video -

• Resume/CV -

Education: 2004 finished school
2005 educational Work with difficult children
since 2004 studying computer sciences and mathematics
2008 internship at IBM in Boeblingen
2011 KIT climate Research Center
since end 2011 located in Brazil

Political/Social:
2006 - 2010 head of students council, doing political work and establishing a strong influence of students on major university topics as well as organizing some conferences
2008/2009 Established the Campusfest in Regensburg
since 2008 working on private permaculture project in Altmugl (little overview: http://pekoson.net/mugl.html [german])
since 2009 establishing planraum in Regensburg: OpenSpace, including Hackerspace, ecological topics as well as artist works

WHY are you motivated to support/develop this work?

• Do you endorse open source culture?

Of course, what a question. The future is open and free.

• Why are you interested in collaborating with us?

We have started a project called planraum in Regensburg. This Project is a very widely defined project to unify ecologic ideas, arts and technology. In the first part by creating a physical room like a hackerspace to create a melting pot where the ideas can spawn. As second part there is the subproject wurzelwerk and the associated Farm where a technology based community will try to reform the rural economics. This project is very in the beginning, but as there is plenty of land and some buildings availabe it could emerge to something like a factor e farm in Germany. The project is in the very beginning and the planned arrival of people in this place is in 2012 or 2013. Yeah, and we're interessted in contributing to the mill-drill-lathe as we have some people experienced on this topic in our group. So actually I am interessted in collaborating as you share my visions, perhaps you would say, I share your vision. However, OSE rocks.

• How do you think that the GVCS can address pressing world issues?

There is this idea, that societies fail due to there complexity. Complexity in the sense of always larger specialisation of individuals in the society as well as further vertical differentiation (Tainter summary in German: http://uharc.net/wiki/collapse ) leads to an always lower net benefit when introducing more complexity to the system. This leads to loads of social difficulties, problems and if not cured perhaps to collapse. I do not believe that there exists the immediate chance for collapse in the western world, but we have to reduce complexity by keeping the benefits whereever we can. And there enters relocalisation and redistribution of the means of production the stage (and with this OSE), as it is one of the most natural and best proven ideas to create resilient communities with low complexity and high output. If OSE is used as foundation for this thinking we can overcome loads of the present day problems in the world, in the developed as well as in the developing world

• What should happen so that you become more involved with the project?

I think nothing. At the moment other projects are developing, and sooner or later I will grow in the shoes which are made for me, but don't fit yet.

• What are you missing in the project?

Perhaps I haven't found it yet, but while building up new means of production there also should be an social scientific assessment of the whole project to get an idea of the real impact of local production.
More social scientific assessment perhaps, as there lie also big dangers in widespread means of total production (of course the current system has also large dangers). But perhaps this dangers should be reviewed.
More women, as I think a solely male community is quite unhealthy

• What are your suggestions for improvement of the project?

see above.

WHAT

• List all of your skills in these areas: Communications - Organizational - Computer Support - Finances - Design - Natural Building - Electronics - Automation - Metallurgy - Engineering - Fabrication - Agriculture - Energy - Architecture - Video/Graphics/Art - PR/Marketing - Education - Construction - Industry - CNC - Chemistry - Product Design - Other

Organizational/Communications: Worked in political as well as non political student organisations in leading positions, organized some conferences and established a festival
Agriculture/Permaculture: Grew up on a small industrial Farm. Having my own permaculture project running.
Education: worked with difficult children, held some lectures on Computer Scientific and Mathematical Topics.
Mathematics: Studied it, actually still studying it
Unix System Administration, Programming etc.: Doing it all the time

• How have you already contributed to the project?

Propaganda. And yes, more Propaganda.

HOW can you help?

• How are you interested in contributing to the work of GVCS development?

Very much I'm interested in creating a OSE fabrication and research site somewhere in middle Europe, as well as building up a team of professionals. As I am associated with a university of applied sciences I also want to distribute some the the design and research to bachelor as well as master students in the areas of computer sciences, mechanical engineering as well as electrical engineering.
I'm very interested in bioplastics and we are developing a method to gain Polyactid Acid.

• Can you volunteer to work with us, and if so, how many hours per week?

Of course, it depends on the work. I'm volunteering all the time I'm not working.

• Are you interested in working with us for pay? If so, what services can you offer, and what is your hourly or per-project rate?

huh? how that? I think yes...

• Are you interested in Dedicated Project Visit?

No, not at the moment.

• Are you interested in purchasing equipment from us to help bootstrap development?

I think we can build everything on our own.

• Are you interested in bidding for consulting/design/prototyping work?

Not as long I'm involved in so much other projects.

• Are you a True Fan? If not, why not?

Yes

• Would you like to see yourself working with us on a full-time basis?

When I can make a live of it.

• Are you interested in using the technologies that we are developing directly?

Of course. I want to have them all

• Are you interested in being part of the world's first, open source, resilient community? The GVCS is the preparatory step for the OSE Village Experiment - a 2 year, immersion experiment (2013-2014) for testing whether a real, thriving, modern-day prototype community of 200 people can be built on 200 acres using local resources and open access to information? We are looking for approximately 200 people to fill a diverse array of roles, according to the Social Contract that is being developed. This may be the boldest social experiment on earth - a pioneering community whose goal is to extend the index of possibilities regarding harmonious existence of humans, ecology, and technology - as a beacon of light to benefit of all people on Earth.

Yes I am interested, but there's loads to do in the old world