Submit a storyContact us

In a world where it can feel like politicians, economists and business leaders have stopped trying to imagine an economic system other than “late stage capitalism”, the SciFi Economics Lab has been launched to argue that alternatives do exist.

The Lab takes its inspiration from science fiction, not just as a flight of fancy, but as a space to use storytelling, games, artwork and discussion to try out ideas and solutions that fallout outside the mainstream orthodoxy.

Within the SciFi Economics Lab, Witness is the experiment. A mega city floating the oceans of a post-climate collapse world, Witness is divided into “Distrikts”, each with their own culture, ideology and economic systems. Every distrikt is unique, independent, yet interconnected with their neighbours.

We want to see Witness’s distrikts from every angle- both how they are administered or governed, and what they look like from street level. How are ordinary people’s lives changed when their life isn’t governed by chasing a per-hour wage to feed a conveyor belt of bills? What are the alternatives? What could they achieve?

These short stories are “catalysts”, openings that help introduce the setting and can be taken to inspire a wide range of different ideas. Enjoy!

Witness has its own online forum, animated by a global community. To join it, simply head here and reply to any topic. You will be prompted to create an account on the Internet of Humans forum hosted within the online platform hosted by Edgeryders (edgeryders is the organisation behind the Witness initiative).

--