Press Releases

Peter Thiel Offers $100,000 in Matching Donations to TSI, Makes Grant of $250,000

nthmost — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:16:48 -0500

Peter Thiel, president of Clarium, technology investor, and libertarian philanthropist, has renewed his financial support of The Seasteading Institute (TSI) for 2010. He has pledged to match every donation to TSI made before July 24th, 2010, dollar-for-dollar up to $100,000. In addition, he is giving TSI a $250,000 grant.

“I think seasteading is not just possible, or desirable, but necessary,” said Thiel in his keynote address to the second Seasteading Conference, held September 2009 in San Francisco, CA. “Seasteading is one of the few technological frontiers that has the promise to create a new space for human freedom.”

“Peter Thiel is one of the most rigorous and effective defenders of liberty. His vision and generosity challenge us all to think big in what we can do to expand the frontiers of freedom,” said TSI founder and executive director Patri Friedman. “Thanks to his support, we will stay on track to launch the first seastead in 2015 and to keep building our large, diverse community.”

About Peter Thiel

Peter Thiel is president of Clarium, a global macro hedge fund manager. A co-founder of PayPal and its first CEO, he is also a founder and partner of the Founders Fund, which helps launch new technology companies; the founding investor and board member of Facebook, which serves more than 350 million active users; and the head of The Thiel Foundation, which defends and promotes political, personal, and economic freedom.

For all press inquiries, please see the press info page.

Find out more about The Seasteading Institute's vision and goals for the future.

TSI Receives 501c3 Tax-Exempt Status

Patri — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 19:22:18 -0400

The Seasteading Institute is pleased to announce that it has received its Letter of Determination from the Internal Revenue Service, stating that we are exempt from Federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Among the many benefits this allows, donations to us are tax-deductible (including past ones). The IRS has also determined that we are classified as a public charity.

We thank our generous donors for their initial support, especially Peter Thiel, whose $500K contribution in early 2008 has been our primary source of funding. Now that we have received this determination, new areas of development are open to us, such as government and foundation grants. In conjunction with our existing strategy and timeline, we will be creating a development plan to sustain this new movement over the long years that will be necessary to make our vision a reality.

Patri Friedman, Executive Director and Co-Founder, says: "The Seasteading Institute was founded to conduct the basic research and education necessary to develop the technology of seasteading and build a community around this bold new vision of human advancement. Our tax-exempt status recognizes the charitable nature of these efforts."

We still need your support, so please consider joining TSI as a member or directly funding a research project to help open the oceans as the next frontier for human development. If you're interested in learning more about seasteading, consider attending our upcoming conference, September 28-30, in San Francisco, CA.

This release can be linked as http://seasteading.org/stay-in-touch/press-releases/tsi-receives-501c3-tax-exempt-status

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

About TSI: The Seasteading Institute is a California nonprofit corporation that tax exempt under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code. TSI's mission is to establish permanent, autonomous ocean communities to enable experimentation and innovation with diverse social, political, and legal systems.

The Seasteading Institute Announces its Second Annual Conference

Patri — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:22:52 -0400

August 10, 2009 -- The Seasteading Institute is excited to announce that registration is open for the second annual Seasteading Conference, to be held September 28-30, 2009 in San Francisco, California.

Building on the success of last year's conference, TSI has expanded this year's schedule to 3 days and recruited a lineup of prominent speakers, including executive director Patri Friedman, Paypal cofounder Peter Thiel, and ~~Stanford economist Paul Romer~~ (more listed below). TSI invites the community to learn more about our work and participate in talks, workshops, socials, and a seasteading simulation!

Conference attendees are also invited to join TSI for our first-ever floating festival, Ephemerisle, conveniently scheduled for the weekend following the conference. To be held October 2-4 in the Sacramento River Delta, Ephemerisle will celebrate political experimentation, community, and art. Join us as we take our ideas to the water!

To learn more and register for the conference, please visit us here: http://seasteading.org/interact/events/conference09.

Patri Friedman founded The Seasteading Institute in 2008 with the goal of establishing permanent, autonomous, politically innovative ocean communities. TSI is taking an incremental approach to creating homesteads on the high seas, and welcomes input and participation from the community.

Speakers include:

Patri Friedman: Opening Keynote (Executive Director, The Seasteading Institute)
Peter Thiel: Back To The Future (Philanthropist and PayPal co-founder)
Michael Strong: Seasteading for Entrepreneurial Government, Innovation, and Letting a Thousand Nations Bloom (CEO and Chief Visionary Officer, FLOW)
~~Paul Romer: Charter Cities (Senior Fellow, Stanford Center for International Development and Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research)~~
David Friedman: Legal Systems Very Different From Our Own (Professor, Santa Clara University)
Joe Lonsdale: Ocean-Based Business Models (Chairman of the Board, The Seasteading Institute)
Sean Hastings: Experiences with HavenCo and SeaLand (Co-founder, HavenCo)
Erwin Strauss: How To Start Your Own Country (Author, How To Start Your Own Country)
Russ George: Ocean Stewardship (Founder, Planktos Science)
Rodney Mims-Cook: How Architecture Shapes Society (Founder of Rodney M. Cook Interests, Founding Trustee of The Prince of Wales' Foundation for Architecture)

and many more.

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

This release can be linked as: http://seasteading.org/stay-in-touch/press-releases/the-seasteading-institute-announces-its-second-annual-conference.

About TSI: The Seasteading Institute is a California nonprofit corporation that is in the process of applying for recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code. TSI's mission is to establish permanent, autonomous ocean communities to enable experimentation and innovation with diverse social, political, and legal systems.

The Seasteading Institute Announces the First Annual Ephemerisle Festival of Politics, Community, and Art

Patri — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:05:12 -0400

The Seasteading Institute is excited to announce that public registration is open for the first annual Ephemerisle Festival, being held October 2-4, 2009 in the Sacramento River Delta. Ephemerisle is a floating festival of politics, community, and art in celebration of political freedom and diversity. Opportunities to connect, learn, and play will abound: there will be music, dance, open mic performances, and even classes on how to build your own floating platform.

Ephemerisle will not be a spectator event, though there will be plenty to see. Participants will shape the festival's very foundation by bringing their boats, rafts and unique homebuilt floating structures to expand the event's central platform. They will also bring their own art, activities, and ideas to shape the Ephemerisle experience.

This event has been over 8 years in the making. Back in 2001, tired of people talking about alternative social systems instead of trying them out, TSI's founder Patri Friedman envisioned a floating festival in international waters. Participants would gather to temporarily live their own utopian visions, and return enriched and inspired to turn those dreams into real societies. In 2009, this dream will finally become a reality.

Ephemerisle will provide a fun and innovative venue for the public to get their first taste of seasteading. We intend to stretch Ephemerisle every year, growing it in size and duration, and also moving it further and further out towards international waters, until it becomes a de facto seastead city. We aren't content to simply dream of a freer world: we want to live it! This will be a long process -- but it starts this October.

To learn more about Ephemerisle and how to get involved please visit: http://www.ephemerisle.org/.

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

This release can be linked as http://seasteading.org/stay-in-touch/press-releases/the-seasteading-institute-announces-first-annual-ephemerisle-festival-p

The Seasteading Institute Announces The Winners Of The Seastead Design Contest

Patri — Mon, 18 May 2009 17:23:40 -0400

The Seasteading Institute has crowned the winners in its first Seasteading Architectural Design Contest. The Contest, which ran from February 1st to May 1st, invited participants to design the floating city of their dreams. The winning design was awarded a $1000 grand prize, and there were four additional $250 prizes for specific categories.

Seasteads are permanent, stationary structures specifically designed for long-term ocean living. Entrants into the contest were provided with a 3-D model of TSI's patent-pending base platform, on which they built creative architectural designs for a new society of ocean pioneers. The specifics of the design, aesthetics, and intended use were entirely up to each designer.

Entrants ranged from amateur 3D designers to professional architects and architecture students. 41 qualified designs were entered, including sports arenas, medical facilities, universities, hotels, and residences. The designs were judged by a panel of TSI staff, volunteers and board members.

The Winning Designs:

$1,000 Grand Prize: The Swimming City -- András Gyõrfi (Runner Up: Seagull Hotel -- Matias Perez)
$250 Prize for Aesthetic Design: SESU Seastead -- Marko Järvela (Runner Up: Entwined Dragon Seastead -- Patrick Kenny)
$250 Prize for Personality: Rendering Freedom -- Anthony Ling (Runner Up:The Arch -- Rory O'Hagan)
$250 Prize for Best Picture: Oasis of The Sea -- Emerson Stepp (Runner Up: La Gallerie de la Mer -- Hakeem Bux)
$250 Prize for Community Choice: Refusion -- Team 3DA (Runner Up: Micro City Community -- Ettore Mele)

Overall Winner	Best Picture Category Winner	Aesthetics Category Winner	Personality Category Winner	Community Choice Category Winner

Winners will receive a cash prize, along with free admission to the 2nd annual Seasteading conference, a free membership with TSI, and a commemorative piece of merchandise with their design on it.

The wealth of creative talent that was brought to bear for this contest has provided TSI with a wonderful vision for the future of seasteading. "I am awed by the creativity and effort put into these entries, which portray a compelling and beautiful vision of a new way of life." says Executive Director Patri Friedman. "Before something can be built it must be imagined and expressed, and these imaginative models express the possibilities for seasteading."

Full details on the contest winners and pictures of the winning designs can be viewed on the TSI website at: http://seasteading.org/design-contest-winners

If you enjoy these visions, please join The Seasteading Institute to support future projects.

Contact:

The Seasteading Institute

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org http://www.seasteading.org/

The Seasteading Institute Announces Membership Program; Annual Report

ipsafictura — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:28:02 -0400

April 15th, 2009 - Palo Alto, CA -- The Seasteading Institute Announces Membership Program; Annual Report

The Seasteading Institute announced its new membership program today, inviting enthusiasts to become a part of the growing global seasteading movement. The program, which includes four membership levels and a special ten-year pledge membership, will allow the community to share in the ownership of seasteading's future. The program is being announced as part of The Institute's first anniversary celebration, in conjunction with their 2008 Annual Report.

As a non-profit organization, The Seasteading Institute relies on the donations of supporters to meet its goals. Beyond simply writing a check in support of TSI's activities, members become part of the organization. In order to support donor involvement and transparency, members are invited to participate in special events such as the annual open board meeting where they can discuss future strategy, as well as ask questions of the board and staff.

The membership levels are structured in order to make options available to everyone from students to CEOs. Each level comes with its own membership benefits, from invitations to events to TSI keepsakes. Their are four basic membership levels, and a special pledge level. The basic membership levels are:

* Seahorse - $25 annually
* Jellyfish - $100 annually
* Octopus - $240 annually or $20 per month
* Dolphin - $600 annually or $50 per month

Because seasteading is a long-term project (TSI's timeline aims for 100,000 seasteaders in 25 years), the program includes a special pledge membership for those pioneers who wish to make a long term commitment to the future of seasteading. The Argonauts - named for the ancient Greek heroes who explored the seas - pledge $1000 a year for ten years towards making seasteading a reality. The Argonauts will make up the backbone of The Seasteading Institute's support, allowing the organization to continue to grow.

The 2008 Annual Report, made available to members and the public at large, outlines the financial status of the organization and provides valuable insight into the current efforts and future plans of The Seasteading Institute. It is also an opportunity for TSI to thank the donors, volunteers and community members who have supported their efforts over the past year. The Institute hopes to draw even more supporters and is eager to welcome new members at every level.

"Seasteading is a social movement at a massive scale - we're going to settle a new frontier, and create entire countries in the process," says Executive Director, Patri Friedman. "Such a great challenge requires an entire community dedicated to the cause. By joining The Seasteading Institute, you will take your place among our community of 21st century pioneers."

For full details on the membership program, see here:

Contact:

The Seasteading Institute

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

The Seasteading Institute Announces Architectural Design Contest for Seasteads

ipsafictura — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 15:07:32 -0500

Palo Alto, CA. - Feb. 2nd, 2009 - The Seasteading Institute Announces Architectural Design Contest for Seasteads

The Seasteading Institute announced an open contest today which gives architects, engineers, students and hobbyists the opportunity to design the seastead of their dreams. Participants will compete for $2000 in prizes by creating 3-D models of working seasteads. Seasteads are permanent, stationary structures specifically designed for the purpose of long-term living in the marine environment.

Entrants into the contest will be provided with a 3-D model of TSI's patent-pending base seasteading platform, on which they will build creative architectural designs for a new society of ocean pioneers. The specifics of the design, its look and intended use are entirely up to each contest participant. The contest will run from February 1st to May 1st, at the end of which all entries will be judged by the public and a panel of judges.

Prizes will be awarded in the following categories:

$1,000 Grand Prize to the best overall design.
$250 Prize for Aesthetic Design to the model that is the most visually appealing and enticing.
$250 Prize for Personality to the design that creates the best sense of human influence or presence (people walking, smoke coming out of a chimney, a colorful sign in front of a business, etc.)
$250 Prize for Best Picture to the best-looking still image of a seastead model.
$250 Prize for Community Choice will go to the design that garners the most votes in a public poll.

The goal of the contest is to provide the public with a vision of the future of seasteading. "The idea of seasteading offers hope for a better way of life on the oceans, our birthplace. But words alone are not enough to light our minds on fire. This contest offers designers a chance to make these ideas real - to inspire us with their vision of how seasteaders can make a home on the next frontier," says TSI Executive Director Patri Friedman.

Full rules for the contest can be found here: http://seasteading.org/interact/design-contest

Inquiries about the contest should be directed to contests@seasteading.org.

For more information, see the Institute's website, www.seasteading.org.

Contact:
The Seasteading Institute

Press Inquiries:
press@seasteading.org
http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

Beat High Housing Costs - On the High Seas!

Patri — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:12:23 -0400

Mountain View, CA, August 18th, 2008.

Despite the recent downturn in real estate, the cost of a new home in many parts of the country remains beyond the reach of many people. For example, the median home price in the San Francisco Bay area hovers around half a million dollars. The Seasteading Institute, a new non-profit (*) based in Mountain View, CA hopes to reduce housing costs in a unique fashion -- by promoting the colonization of the oceans.

"Building houses in the U.S. is heavily regulated, so the supply of new housing grows very slowly. As a result, the price of housing remains high." said Seasteading Institute founder Patri Friedman. A study by University of Washington economics professor Theo Eicher found that between 1989 and 2006, the median inflation-adjusted price of a Seattle house more than doubled from $221,000 to $447,800. According to that study, fully $200,000 of that increase was the result of land-use regulations.

"There is plenty of room on the ocean, and by building there we can avoid the costs imposed by zoning and land-use regulation. Seasteads can be built anywhere in the world, then towed into place, so we can save costs by hiring third-world labor, while benefiting poor countries. Floating homes are also protected against rising oceans from global warming."

Seasteading advocates point to the Netherlands as an example of a country that is gradually moving to an aquatic lifestyle. "In the Netherlands, many homes are built on floating platforms moored to canal bottoms. If the sea levels rise, the homes simply float on the water."

Seasteaders acknowledge that the deep ocean seasteads face higher hurdles than houseboats. "We have to solve a lot of problems -- how do you deal with rogue waves? Generate power? Find work? These are not easy, but given the amount of time people already spend at sea on cruises, we think the time has come for permanent ocean settlements."

The Seasteading Institute will host the first annual Seasteading Conference in Burlingame, CA on October 10th, 2008, to explore these and other problems.

For more information, see the Institute's website, www.seasteading.org.

Contact:

The Seasteading Institute

Press Inquiries:

press@seasteading.org

http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:

info@seasteading.org

http://www.seasteading.org/

(The Seasteading Institute is a California nonprofit corporation that is in the process of applying for recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.)

Vote With Your House

Patri — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:12:01 -0400

Mountain View, CA, August 18th, 2008.

If the Seasteading Institute has its way, you will soon be able to relocate your house--or even your entire town--as easily as you move your car.

"We are going to build permanent floating settlements on the ocean. The first prototype will likely be built in the sheltered waters of the San Francisco Bay, but future designs will be capable of withstanding open ocean conditions." says Patri Friedman, founder of the Mountain View based non-profit. The Institute recently received some substantial backing for their approach, in the form of a $500,000 grant from Paypal co-founder Peter Thiel.

Unlike some past projects which envisioned enormous, multi-billion dollar cities, The Seasteading Institute advocates a modular, incremental approach, where cities are built up one block, or even one house, at a time. Patri says: "Cruise ships already demonstrate that people can live on the ocean in big, movable buildings at reasonable cost. We've got a slightly different design: we're going to build a city out of interconnected floating platforms. That way you'll be able to move cities, and take your house and yard with you! And we are designing these platforms to be comparable in cost to high-end land-based homes."

Friedman and many other "seasteaders" are motivated by a desire to try new forms of government:

"The founders of the U.S. intended for the states to be laboratories of democracy, experimenting with different laws to compete for citizens. But so much power has been centralized by the federal government that now states have very little freedom to experiment. And all around the world, people feel alienated from their governments."

The seasteaders believe that their cities will restore that competition. "Modern democratic governments are often unresponsive to the needs of their citizens. Our floating cities will change that - if you don't like your government, you'll be able to pull up anchor and sail to a better one, or start your own. Imagine the reduction in worldwide violence if Israel could just move away from Palestine, Georgia from Russia, or Hong Kong from China. On floating cities, this is actually possible!"

"Unlike the Dutch floating homes, we plan to build unmoored platforms suitable for the high seas,", Friedman says. "So we have to solve additional problems, such as how to stay in one area without an anchor, and how to deal with big waves and storms." He also sees positive environmental aspects: "Seasteads will be well-positioned to use wind and solar power, and of course, seasteaders will not require cars. That means the environmental footprint of the seasteading lifestyle will be far smaller than on land".

To help solve some of those problems, the Seasteading Institute will be holding its first annual conference in Burlingame, CA on October 10th.

For more information, see the Institute's website, www.seasteading.org.

Contact:

The Seasteading Institute

Press Inquiries:

press@seasteading.org

http://seasteading.org/learn-more/press

General Inquiries:

info@seasteading.org

http://www.seasteading.org/

(The Seasteading Institute is a California nonprofit corporation that is in the process of applying for recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.)

Introducing The Seasteading Institute

admin — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:11:17 -0400

Organization Aims To Create New Societies On The Ocean

Mountain View, CA, April 15th, 2008.

The Seasteading Institute today announced that it has been established in order to establish permanent, autonomous ocean communities to enable experimentation and innovation with diverse social, political, and legal systems. It will continue and expand on the work of Patri Friedman and Wayne Gramlich, authors of "Seasteading: A Practical Guide to Homesteading the High Seas".

"The public sector is simultaneously the largest industry in the world and the least innovative, with a barrier to entry and lock-in on its customers that dwarfs any private monopoly", says Patri Friedman, TSI's Executive Director. "The world needs a new model of politics where a diverse ecosystem of providers offers a variety of institutions that evolve to serve their citizens. The open oceans, Earth's last frontier, are the ideal place to nurture this vision of a better world. By making it safe and affordable to settle this frontier, we will give people the freedom to choose the government they want instead of being stuck with the government they get."

To help launch the organization, entrepreneur and philanthropist Peter Thiel has pledged $500,000 to The Seasteading Institute, saying: “Accelerating innovation is rapidly transforming the world: the Seasteading Institute will help bring more of that innovation to the public sector, where it’s vitally needed. Decades from now, those looking back at the start of the century will understand that Seasteading was an obvious step towards encouraging the development of more efficient, practical public sector models around the world. We’re at a fascinating juncture: the nature of government is about to change at a very fundamental level."

The Institute will initially focus on three major areas:

Community: Building a network of potential residents who are inspired by the possibilities of seasteading and have the skills and resources to establish vibrant new communities.
Research: Exploring the core requirements for seasteading to be safe and affordable, such as structure design, political feasibility, and infrastructure (power, heat, food) and advancing key seasteading technologies through independent research and partnerships.
Engineering: Proving that the mission is viable by building a safe, cost-effective, gorgeous seastead, based in the San Francisco Bay and able to travel in the open ocean.

For more information, see the Institute's website, www.seasteading.org.

Contact:

The Seasteading Institute
info@seasteading.org
http://www.seasteading.org/

(The Seasteading Institute is a California nonprofit corporation that is in the process of applying for recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.)

Translations:

Dutch