The 3.5% Strategy: How to Starve the Old System & Build a Well-being Economy
From Root to Fruit: Scaling Community Wealth & Economic Transformation
Economic transformation isn’t theoretical—it’s built, tested, and proven in real communities. Across the world, communities are shifting power from extractive systems to regenerative models that foster local resilience, ownership, and sustainable prosperity. By strategically redirecting capital, labor, and resources, we can starve exploitative economies and build thriving, community-driven ecosystems.
For me, this work started as a calling. I saw it firsthand in my family. My grandfather, who helped start a union for rail workers in Croton Harmon, NY, fought to keep the mob out while ensuring fair wages. He also ran a local grocery store and would quietly deliver boxes of food to struggling families at night, making sure no one was embarrassed for needing help. My mother carried that same ethic forward, dedicating herself to community advocacy and service.
I took that same spirit into my own work. For years, I did this pro bono, as a volunteer, because I believed in it. And because I learned AI and automation early, I had more time to dedicate to learning, building, and experimenting with these systems. Now, I do this full-time—helping others reclaim their time, wealth, and local economies through smarter, regenerative systems.
Flow: The First Principle of Real Power
“If people don’t know an alternative exists, they’ll keep investing in the status quo.”
Power moves like water. The extractive system forces money out of communities, concentrating wealth in the hands of a few. A well-being economy keeps wealth circulating locally, increasing prosperity and resilience.
One of the clearest examples of this is the velocity of money—a principle that shows how fast and how often money circulates within a community before leaving it. When a dollar is spent at a local farm, a co-op, or an independent business, up to 70% of its value remains in the community. That same dollar, spent at a corporate chain, often vanishes instantly, extracted into distant shareholders' accounts.
This isn’t just theory—it’s happening. In Hudson Valley, strengthening local food processing, distribution, and sales created triple the economic benefit compared to traditional supply chains. Farmers, small distributors, and restaurants all thrived by keeping their transactions within a shared ecosystem.
When we control where the money flows, we control what thrives.
I've seen this work firsthand—from Newburgh to the Hudson Valley, small shifts in spending create massive ripple effects.
The 3.5% Rule: How to Starve an Extractive System Like a Fire
The fastest way to collapse an unsustainable system? Make it irrelevant.
History shows that only 3.5% of a population needs to actively participate in an alternative model for an entire structure to shift. And like fire, extractive systems only survive as long as they have fuel.
When we stop feeding them—when we redirect spending, labor, and attention—they suffocate.
📌 Mondragon’s worker-owned model has outlasted global financial crises for over 60 years—without layoffs.
📌 Community land trusts are reversing gentrification and ensuring permanently affordable housing.
📌 Seattle’s $30M participatory budget strategy is shifting public funding into community wealth-building initiatives.
“We don’t need to convince everyone. We just need enough people to move first.”
These principles aren’t just theoretical—they’ve been recognized at the highest levels. The work I’ve done in community wealth building has earned Congressional recognition, proving that these regenerative models aren’t just viable, they’re essential.
Distributed Ownership: The Final Shift
“The more people own their future, the harder it becomes to take it away from them.”
We don’t need wealth redistribution. We need wealth restructuring.
Ownership is the foundation of economic security. Worker cooperatives ensure that employees, not distant investors, reap the rewards of their labor. Community land trusts prevent speculation-driven displacement by keeping housing and commercial space permanently affordable. For-purpose enterprises prioritize long-term community impact over short-term profit. And public banking & participatory budgeting put investment decisions back in the hands of local citizens.
When we own what we build, we create economies that work for people, not profit.
The Decentralized Systems They Fear Most
📌 The real power move isn’t just economic—it’s digital.
📌 The future isn’t owned by corporations—it’s decentralized.
📌 And that’s exactly what they fear the most.
Decentralization isn’t complicated. It simply means power is spread out instead of concentrated at the top.
Instead of corporations owning platforms, people own their networks.
Instead of banks controlling transactions, communities create alternative finance.
Instead of billionaires dictating economic policy, local citizens direct their own investment.
This is already happening. Through the Fediverse, Web3, DAOs, and decentralized finance, the next economy is forming—one that no single entity can control.
“Once a system decentralizes, it can’t be stopped from the top down.”
🔜 Next up: The Decentralized Systems That Are Already Replacing the Old Guard.
3 High-Impact Actions to Start Today
1️⃣ 🔥 Starve the Fire: Move Your Money
Stop feeding extractive corporations—redirect spending to local businesses, co-ops, and regenerative supply chains. Find one local alternative for something you regularly buy and switch permanently.
2️⃣ 🌱 Build the Loop: Strengthen the Velocity of Money
Support businesses that hire local, buy local, and reinvest locally. Map out three businesses in your community that already operate this way and actively support them.
3️⃣ 🏡 Take Ownership: Shift Power from Corporations to Communities
Invest in local ownership models—worker co-ops, land trusts, and collective enterprises. Research one near you or start a conversation about launching one with your network.
Join the Movement: Where to Connect & Collaborate
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🤝 Looking to collaborate? → I work with mission-driven entrepreneurs, organizations, and communities designing the next system.
📖 More ways to connect with me here
"We don't need permission to build a well-being economy. We just need to start."