It seems to me that the next step for the lab is to develop a community of interest around the idea of planetary intelligence. It makes sense to have that be bioregional, as one of the first tasks is to build a practical example of bioregional intelligence using the Genesee Finger Lakes region. I’d like to extend an invitation to members of the Design School, as well as Medium and Substack readers, to join me in developing further inquiries focused on the health and ecological integrity of the bioregion.
That instinct is sound. Before tooling, pilots, or formal governance, a community of shared inquiry is the missing substrate. What you are proposing is not a “network launch” or an “initiative announcement,” but an invitation into a learning commons anchored in place.
Below are three tailored invitations, each for a distinct audience, all aligned around the Genesee–Finger Lakes bioregion and the idea of planetary intelligence as practice.
I’ve kept the tone invitational rather than promotional, and inquiry-forward rather than declarative.
1) Invitation for the Design School for Regenerating Earth
(Peer-to-peer, practitioner/researcher framing)
Dear friends and colleagues,
Over the past several months, I’ve been working through Possible Planet Lab to explore what it might mean to speak seriously—not metaphorically—about planetary intelligence: the capacity of human societies to sense ecological conditions, understand their meaning, and make collective decisions that sustain life over time.
One conclusion has become increasingly clear: planetary intelligence cannot be built in the abstract. It must emerge bioregion by bioregion, grounded in place, ecology, culture, and lived relationships.
With that in mind, I’d like to invite members of the Design School for Regenerating Earth community to join me in a focused inquiry into bioregional intelligence in the Genesee–Finger Lakes region.
This would not begin as a formal project or curriculum, but as a shared inquiry, asking questions such as:
- What do we actually know about the ecological health of this bioregion—and what don’t we know?
- How do watersheds, soils, land use, food systems, and governance structures interact here?
- Where are signals of regeneration, and where are signals of stress?
- What kinds of intelligence—human, ecological, cultural, technological—are already present but unconnected?
The intention is to co-develop a practical example of bioregional intelligence: a living case study that could inform broader planetary-scale thinking without losing humility or local specificity.
If this resonates, I’d welcome your participation—whether through dialogue, shared research questions, mapping exercises, or simply thoughtful presence in the early stages of exploration.
More soon, but for now, consider this a gentle opening of a door.
Warm regards,
Jonathan Cloud
Possible Planet Lab
Would you like this version to be more exploratory or more action-oriented for the Design School audience?
2) Invitation for Medium & Substack Readers
(Public-facing, reflective, accessible)
An Invitation: Exploring Planetary Intelligence, Starting Where We Live
What would it mean for a region to become more intelligent—not in a technological sense, but in its ability to understand its own ecology, care for its living systems, and make wiser collective decisions over time?
At Possible Planet Lab, I’ve been exploring the idea of planetary intelligence: the emerging capacity of humanity to sense planetary conditions, learn together, and adapt fast enough to sustain life on Earth.
But planetary intelligence can’t be built all at once. It has to start somewhere specific.
I’m beginning a focused inquiry into bioregional intelligence in the Genesee–Finger Lakes region—a place defined by watersheds, soils, forests, farms, cities, and long human histories, not just political boundaries.
This is an invitation to join me in asking questions such as:
- How healthy is our bioregion, really?
- What do we measure—and what do we ignore?
- What local knowledge already exists, quietly, in communities and landscapes?
- What would it look like to align human activity with the long-term vitality of this place?
This is not a campaign or a polished program. It’s an open inquiry, rooted in curiosity, humility, and care for place.
If you’re interested in participating—through reading, reflection, dialogue, research, or shared exploration—I invite you to follow along and step in.
Planetary intelligence begins close to home.
Do you want this version to include a concrete “next step” (e.g., a signup link, call, or working group), or remain open-ended for now?
3) Short Cross-Audience Invitation (Website / Newsletter Friendly)
An Invitation to a Shared Inquiry
Possible Planet Lab is beginning a place-based exploration of bioregional intelligence in the Genesee–Finger Lakes region—an effort to understand the ecological health, cultural knowledge, and decision-making capacity of the bioregion we call home.
This inquiry asks:
- What do we truly know about the state of this region’s living systems?
- What knowledge is missing, fragmented, or undervalued?
- How might human, ecological, and technological intelligence be brought into better alignment?
We are inviting researchers, practitioners, residents, and readers to join a growing community of inquiry committed to learning from this place and with one another.
Planetary intelligence starts locally. This is one place to begin.
Would you like this tightened further into a single paragraph “standing invitation” for the Lab homepage?
Strategic note (not text, just guidance)
You are making a wise sequencing choice:
- Community of inquiry first
- Bioregional grounding second
- Tools, metrics, and pilots third
That ordering protects the work from becoming extractive, technocratic, or prematurely institutionalized.
If you want, next steps could include:
- a simple inquiry charter (what this is / isn’t),
- a starter set of bioregional questions (ecology, land use, governance),
- or a low-pressure convening (listening session rather than workshop).
Tell me which audience you want to engage first, and how formal you want the invitation to feel, and I’ll refine accordingly.