Research
THERE IS NO WEALTH LIKE KNOWLEDGE
AND NO POVERTY LIKE IGNORANCE
— Buddha
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Fields of research
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Our world evolves at an exponential pace. Technology infiltrates our lives and our economic system changes every day. Our research investigates both the positive and negative impact of existing human-made systems — systems like our economy — not as an endpoint, but as a starting point for designing systems that serve us better.
We explore interdisciplinary research questions at the intersection of biology, psychology, economics, systems theory, ethics and technology, rooted in a single premise: how can we build systems that reverse the current damage to ourselves, our fellow humans and our planet so that we wake up in a future full of life.
The Happonomy Models
You know what they say about models: no model is correct and only some models are useful.
In this section you will find four tools to advance your own quality of life or that of others. All models have a solid scientific basis and are designed to increase value, individually, organizationally and at the societal level.
The Happonomy Value Canvas
The Value Canvas is a compass for sustainable living and for a sustainable economy. The model helps you determine what sustainability really means.
Discover the Value CanvasSustainable Money
A model that provides insight into how our monetary system works and how it can contribute to a more sustainable economy where prosperity and well-being are central.
Discover Sustainable MoneyLeap
Building a sustainable organization as a value-driven entrepreneur requires courage and perseverance.
Whether you are creative, social, ecological or visionary, the Leap process model helps you get your vision sustainably into the world. Leap helps you map out the journey of yourself and your organization concretely.
Discover the LEAP modelSlingshot
Slingshot is a legal model that makes a company truly value-driven: it protects the financial security of everyone who contributes, shares value fairly with all who help create it, and channels profit into lasting impact for people, society and planet.
The model is built to be more inclusive and fair, enabling people to work together flexibly and relationally on a common, intrinsically valuable mission while everyone shares in the security and impact they create together.
Discover the Slingshot modelCurrent research
Our current scientific research delves deeper into the role of money, work and technology on our quality of life, a topic we approach both economically and non-economically. We investigate the concept of value, to what extent behavioral capitalism provides the things we find intrinsically valuable, or distorts our choices and affects the quality of our lives. Increasingly, we are also examining the role our economic system plays in shaping the development and outcomes of artificial intelligence.
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AI & Our Economic System
We are increasingly interested in researching how our economic system shapes the development and outcomes of artificial intelligence. Who funds AI, which incentives drive it, and which values get encoded into it help determine whether AI amplifies today's extractive dynamics or helps build regenerative ones. We want to understand — and help redesign — the economic forces steering AI, so that this technology serves life rather than short-term profit.
Research it with usScientific Publication: Money Systems
"Exploring the Fairness Dimension of a UBI"
Authors: Bruno Delepierre
Published: 2018
DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.12515.67360
This dissertation explores the fairness considerations and ethical implications of implementing Universal Basic Income policies, examining distributional effects and social justice perspectives.
"Computational Analysis of the Properties of Post-Keynesian Endogenous Money Systems"
Authors: Stef Kuypers, Bruno Delepierre, Thomas Goorden
This research paper quantitatively analyzes the stability of our current debt-based monetary system. This paper mathematically supports that we have monetary system instability. We are currently investigating whether this has an impact on sustainable behavior.
"An alternative general-purpose money supply model for a future-proof sustainable economy"
Authors: Stef Kuypers
Published: March 2024
License: CC BY-SA 4.0
This paper proposes an alternative general-purpose money supply model to expand the current set of viable monetary models and introduce a new behavioral economic context for a sustainable economy.
Will you join our research?
Are you a scientist who wants to advance scientific research on regenerative systems? Or are you just someone who likes to think along with us? Good news: you can help! Research with us how we can build systems that leave us and the planet better than we found them.
Nerd out sessions
We don't know about you, but we sometimes like to be real nerds! That's why we organize sessions for brainiacs, designed to dive deep into specific topics. Check our calendar for more information about what, where and when.