Holigent

The pictures of the little villages look like dormitories.  If they still expect to drop their sewage into the river like everyone else, and work ten miles away at a factory, and import their food from the other side of the world, and heat their homes with dirty fuel - their project is not doing what it needs to, to be "sustainable".  Building to LEED's standards is really just the start of what needs to be done. 

Nothing presented addresses the infrastructure needed to feed, employ, clothe,warm/cool,  bury the dead.........we can not all be social workers, city councillors and environmentallists.

Where is the hospital, fire services, garbage dump,school,........?

How do we finance the original construction, and do the taxes we pay go to the enviro village or the big black hole we are attached to with a rail line that gets fuelled from the earth's energy core?

Yes it is most definitely an economic problem, but we can do nothing about that because government gave control of the money business to the Federal Reserve (which is a private business) in 1913 - and they will not give it up untill ourpresent financial system proves to be unworkable.  When all dollars are absolutely worthless we can set up a new system owned by the public (with zero interest - it is possible with current technology) and we start all over again.  The rich won"t get richer as easily, and the poor will have a chance to actually do something about their situation.  What are we going to do with all the financial experts and money lenders, politicians and lawyers?

And how can we make the change without social upheavel? 

It just might be happening with zero interest credit, government grants, and philantropic donations, but the change could happen sooner.

Jeff - are you back in the stock market? - it's really not good for your blood pressure.