Regenopolis work is grounded in a number of economic, social and environmental theories that together frame our approach to projects.
- Theory U
Change doesn’t start with action—it starts with awareness. Developed by Otto Scharmer at MIT, Theory U is a journey of transformation that moves from ego-system to eco-system thinking. It offers a roadmap to shift collective behavior by sensing, presencing, and co-creating from the future that wants to emerge.
- Doughnut economics
What if the goal of economics was to thrive, not just grow? Kate Raworth’s Doughnut puts planetary boundaries and social foundations at the heart of economic design, redefining prosperity for the 21st century. Think of it as a compass for a just and safe future for all.
- Planetary boundaries
We live on a planet with limits—and exceeding them risks destabilizing Earth’s life-support systems. The Planetary Boundaries framework, developed by the Stockholm Resilience Centre, defines nine ecological thresholds we must respect to maintain a safe operating space for humanity.
- Regenerative frameworks
Regeneration is not just about sustainability—it’s about enhancing the potential of life itself. The Regenesis Institute offers a deep systems-based approach to regeneration, integrating place, people, and purpose. It’s about working with the unique essence of a place to catalyze whole-systems vitality.
- Living systems
Nature doesn’t operate in silos, neither should we. Living systems thinking invites us to see the world as dynamic, interconnected, and evolving. It’s a lens that reveals patterns, relationships, and flows – helping us design with life, not against it.
Learn the principles
- Place-rooted regeneration and bioregional weaving centers
True transformation grows from the ground up. Place-rooted regeneration recognizes that each landscape, each community, each city, holds unique environmental, cultural, economic and spiritual wisdom. Each region is so unique that the concept of transfer of technology is irrelevant. What is relevant is the transfer of capacity to develop technology and institutions that are consistent with the cultural and resource endowment of each region. Until that is done, no sustained solutions can be attained.
Read more through Regenerative Communities Network (Capital Institute)
Read about Bioregional Weavaing Labs (Ashoka, Commonland), – a geographically grounded multi-stakeholder partnership process that weaves together people and solutions, equipping and helping them to organize for transformative systems change.
Read more about the rationale for (add links to reports / briefing papers):
- Regenerative travel
Future of Travel and Tourism: Embracing Sustainable and Inclusive Growth (WEF, January 2025)
Travel and Tourism at a Turning Point: Principles for Transformative Growth (WEF, July 2025)
- Regenerative cities
BiodiverCities by 2030: Transforming Cities’ Relationship With Nature (WEF, January 2022)
Nature Positive: Guidelines for the Transition in Cities (WEF, May 2024)
- Regenerative ecosystems
???
Preferred quotes (to use – with restraint – throughout the website)
Systems Change
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” Buckminster Fuller
“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” Native America Proverb.
“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference”, Marc Aurèle.
“Sustainability is about maintaining the status quo. Regeneration is about evolving into our potential.” Bill Reed, Regenesis Group
“Regeneration is not a technical fix. It is a shift in mindset—from extraction and domination to reciprocity and care.” Laura Storm, Regenerative practitioner and co-author of Regenerative Leadership
“Regeneration is life expressing its potential.” Carol Sanford, author of The Regenerative Business
“To attempt, to brave, to persist, to persevere, to remain true to oneself, to wrestle with destiny, to astonish catastrophe by the little fear it inspires, to sometimes face unjust power, to sometimes insult drunken victory, to stand firm, to stand tall—this is the example people need, and the light that electrifies them.” Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
“If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster ,And treat those two impostors just the same; (…)Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it”…Rudyard Kipling
Travel / Hospitality
“The real travel of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”Marcel Proust
« To travel around the world is also to understand that every piece of land is precious, every tree has a story, every river has a role to play. » Wangari Maathai.
“A journey is not measured in kilometers, but in what remains within us once we return.” Joseph Kessel, Les Cavaliers
Nature
“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for your senses to grow sharper”. WB Yeats.
“We are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness”, Thich Nhat Hanh
“The truth is: the natural world is changing. And we are totally dependent on that world. It provides our food, water, and air. It is the most precious thing we have and we need to defend it.” David Attenborough
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” Lao Tzu
