PowerPoint Presentation

[Audio] "Welcome to NeoState. In this lecture, we're going to explore a systems-engineered blueprint for building legally compliant, digital-first micro-cities within the United States. NeoState is not a fictional idea, and it's not an attempt to create sovereignty outside the law. Instead, it is a highly structured framework that brings together five major disciplines: governance engineering, digital identity systems, legal architecture, urban planning, and multi-decade economic modeling. What we're building here is an open-source model—a replicable governance framework that any community, organization, or research group can adopt or adapt. This means NeoState is intentionally designed to be transparent, academically grounded, and accessible so other communities can build their own internal governance systems responsibly. Every component in this presentation is rooted in real U.S. legal pathways, established institutional precedents, and best practices drawn from systems engineering, civic technology, and international high-density urban development. This deck represents Version 1 of the NeoState Framework—a foundational concept meant to educate, inform, and empower people who want to understand how micro-cities can operate both digitally and physically while remaining fully compliant with U.S. law and aligned with long-term economic sustainability. Whether you're a member of The Leopard Society, a researcher, a policymaker, or someone curious about building future-ready communities, this presentation lays the groundwork for a model that is academically rigorous, legally sound, and practically implementable.".

[Audio] "My name is Jason Von Holmes. My background begins in the U.S. Air Force, where I served for 15 years in Civil Engineering—specifically as a 3E5X1 Engineering Assistant. That role fundamentally shaped how I think about complex systems, infrastructure, compliance, and real-world engineering constraints. I worked on surveying, drafting, construction oversight, and engineering coordination at a level where failure is not an option—skills that directly inform NeoState. Professionally, I've also worked in contracting with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Forces Korea, where I advised on preconstruction, REAs, federal compliance, stakeholder alignment, and engineering review. That experience forced me to deeply understand federal contracting laws, DFARS, risk allocation, and organizational decision-making—critical components of designing governance. I'm also an entrepreneur and co-founder of The Leopard Society, with ongoing academic work in Computer Science and planned graduate studies in Systems Engineering at the Master's and PhD levels. I am a father, and a Black-American living in South Korea. All of these layers influence NeoState—because what I am building is not theoretical; it's informed by lived experience across government systems, international environments, digital technology, and community building.".

[Audio] "One of the core problems NeoState addresses is fragmentation. Communities today operate across uncoordinated systems: some use Discord, some use group chats, some have informal rules, but very few have legal and organizational coherence. This fragmentation makes it impossible to scale, govern disputes, enforce accountability, or plan long-term. Governments and cities are also struggling. Urban planning often lags behind demographic change, economic conditions, and technological advancements. Many cities face affordability crises, infrastructure failures, underfunded services, and failing local governance systems. Most importantly, communities lack frameworks that integrate legal protections, digital infrastructure, internal governance, and sustainable economic systems. NeoState solves this by treating communities not as ad-hoc groups, but as engineered systems built for resilience, clarity, and long-term stability.".

[Audio] "NeoState functions as a system-of-systems. Each layer has a precise function and legal identity. The PMA forms the private constitutional foundation. The 501(c)(3) manages public-facing educational and civic work. The holding company manages commercial operations. The subsidiary companies manage utilities, housing, transportation, and essential infrastructure. Then we add the digital governance layer—identity, treasury, rule enforcement, member rights, and digital courts. This digital layer acts as the connective tissue across the entire framework. Finally, urban and physical systems provide the real-world environment communities need to thrive. The power of this model is not in any single element—it's in how these elements interoperate to create a legally compliant, economically stable, technologically modern micro-city.".

[Audio] "The PMA is the sovereign interior of NeoState—though sovereign in the private legal sense, not in the geopolitical sense. PMAs have existed in the U.S. for generations: religious orders, fraternal organizations, private clubs, and mutual-benefit associations all operate under the same legal principles. Within a PMA, members voluntarily agree to internal rules and internal governance mechanisms. This allows the creation of internal tribunals, codes of conduct, voting mechanisms, and member rights frameworks. It is one of the only legal structures in the U.S. that allows a group to govern itself internally without state interference—as long as activities remain private. For NeoState, the PMA forms the constitutional layer. It enables internal governance, dispute resolution, digital identity verification, and the rule architecture that keeps the entire system coherent.".

[Audio] "The 501(c)(3) layer is essential because NeoState is not intended to be a closed or isolated community. It must engage with the world—academics, researchers, policymakers, donors, and the public. A nonprofit provides the legal pathway to operate in public spaces, receive funding, form partnerships, and run civic-tech or educational programs. This separation protects the PMA's integrity. The public-facing nonprofit cannot run PMA governance, tribunals, or private membership affairs. But it can conduct research, create public education materials, host conferences, run open-source civic software programs, and partner with universities. This dual structure—private PMA paired with a public nonprofit—is the backbone of many long-standing institutions in the U.S., from churches to fraternities to universities.".

[Audio] "A micro-city cannot survive without an economic engine. The holding company is the financial backbone, responsible for revenue, commercial partnerships, utilities, rental operations, and long-term economic health. This structure mirrors the municipal corporation model used by large-scale community developments and city-owned utility companies. By centralizing commercial operations, the holding company ensures transparent accounting, tax compliance, and internal financial governance. It also limits liability and operational risk. Importantly, the holding company reinvests in the community—funding infrastructure, technology, and long-term development. This separation—private PMA, nonprofit 501(c)(3), and commercial holding company—is what makes NeoState legally stable, scalable, and economically resilient.".

[Audio] "Cities work because public services work. Water systems, power grids, waste management, housing authorities, school systems—these are not optional parts of a community; they are its organs. NeoState adopts a municipalization model where each service operates as a subsidiary entity. This ensures pricing accuracy, service-level accountability, clear financial management, and regulatory compliance. It also allows members or residents to interact with services in a structured, predictable way. Subsidiaries can hire staff, sign contracts, and operate within the holding company's governance system. This creates a micro-city that runs like a well-governed municipal district—but with modern design and complete internal coherence.".

[Audio] "Within the NeoState architecture, internal tribunals serve as the cornerstone of self-governance. They operate under the legal authority of the PMA, which means members voluntarily consent—via contract—to participate in internal judicial processes. This is not about creating a 'parallel legal system.' Instead, it is structurally similar to established arbitration systems, church tribunals, union boards, and other long-standing private justice mechanisms recognized under U.S. law." "These tribunals are designed with due process in mind. Members receive notice of complaints, the right to respond, and access to clearly defined procedures. The system emphasizes proportionality, transparency, and restorative paths wherever possible. This promotes community stability, reduces conflict escalation, and reinforces the culture and norms that guide the NeoState community." "A critical systems-engineering advantage of internal tribunals is that they create a feedback loop between member behavior, community values, and governance policy. Decisions, patterns, and disputes all become inputs to the governance refinement process. This means NeoState is not only governed — it is learning. The tribunal system becomes a living instrument of institutional adaptation.".

[Audio] "NeoState's legal architecture is intentionally designed to fit squarely within U.S. legal norms. Every component — the PMA, the 501(c)(3), the holding company, and the subsidiaries — mirrors a structure that already exists in thousands of organizations across the United States. We're not introducing new sovereignty; we are using well-established legal pathways that provide autonomy, flexibility, and institutional legitimacy." "Private Membership Associations derive their authority from the First Amendment's freedom of association and from contract law. As long as activities remain private and do not violate public policy, PMAs maintain broad discretion over internal rules, governance, and dispute resolution. This is the same legal foundation that empowers churches, fraternal organizations, HOAs, and private clubs." "By keeping public-benefit activities in the 501(c)(3), and commercial activities within for-profit entities, NeoState follows a compliance model that agencies, courts, and philanthropic institutions recognize. This separation protects the community, preserves funding eligibility, and ensures long-term operational stability.".

[Audio] "The digital identity layer is the gateway to NeoState's governance ecosystem. Every member receives a cryptographically verifiable identity that connects them to rights, responsibilities, and governance entitlements defined in the PMA. This identity is not designed to replace government ID — it supplements it by providing a secure, internal civic identity for community-level operations." "Digital identity enables controlled access to services: voting on proposals, participating in internal tribunals, accessing educational programs, contributing to research, and even engaging in economic transactions within the NeoState ecosystem. This gives members a structured way to interact with the community in a fully digital-first environment." "From a systems-engineering standpoint, the zero-trust architecture ensures that every interaction is authenticated, authorized, and auditable. This creates a transparent internal governance system where no action is assumed safe by default. The combination of privacy preservation and strong authentication builds institutional trust and long-term resilience.".

[Audio] "The Web3 treasury is an accountability engine. Rather than relying on opaque bookkeeping or informal decision-making, NeoState uses blockchain-based accounting to ensure every budget allocation, grant distribution, and internal payment is transparent and traceable. This enables a higher standard of governance than most nonprofits or municipalities operate under today." "The DAO layer doesn't replace leadership — it enhances legitimacy. Members participate in structured governance processes where major financial decisions, constitutional amendments, and long-term planning are put through a digital voting mechanism. This strengthens member engagement while ensuring the PMA's internal constitution remains the anchor for all operations." "From a technical perspective, smart contracts allow NeoState to enforce financial rules automatically. This reduces administrative overhead, prevents misuse of funds, and ensures compliance with both internal standards and external legal requirements. Over time, this system becomes a form of institutional memory — codifying financial governance into automated protocols.".

[Audio] "The member registry serves as the institutional backbone of the NeoState governance system. It functions as the community's census, rights registry, and eligibility ledger. This registry is what allows the PMA to administer internal laws, resolve conflicts, and define participation thresholds for voting or committee service." "Because the registry is cryptographically secured, it prevents unauthorized access and ensures that every internal court ruling or governance decision is applied only to verified members who have agreed to the PMA's terms. This is a critical legal requirement — internal governance is only valid for consenting members." "From a systems-engineering standpoint, the registry ensures traceability, consistency, and reliability in decision-making. It unifies demographic, legal, and governance data into a single authoritative source. This strengthens both institutional integrity and long-term scalability.".

[Audio] "NeoState treats data not as an asset to exploit but as a governance responsibility. Our data policy is rooted in the zero-trust model, meaning every request for access must be authenticated, authorized, and logged. This ensures internal safety and maintains trust between members and administrators." "We establish strict retention policies, minimizing unnecessary data storage to reduce risk. Access privileges are tied to member roles, and sensitive information remains compartmentalized. The system is designed to align with U.S. data protection frameworks, including privacy laws, cybersecurity best practices, and nonprofit compliance obligations." "As a governance institution, NeoState must model responsible digital citizenship. Data transparency and ethical stewardship become core components of legitimacy. The systems-engineering perspective ensures that policy, technology, and member behavior align into a coherent data governance ecosystem.".

[Audio] "By making NeoState open-source, we are creating an institutional blueprint that any community can adopt, modify, or extend. This democratizes access to high-quality governance tools and invites collaboration from researchers, policymakers, engineers, and social innovators." "Open-source governance increases intellectual legitimacy. It allows external experts to audit the structure, validate assumptions, and propose improvements. This ensures that NeoState evolves through community-driven innovation rather than isolated decision-making." "In the long term, the open-source model transforms NeoState into a research platform. Universities, think tanks, urban planners, and economists can all use the system as a foundation for studying governance, urbanization, and digital society. This positions NeoState not just as a community — but as a contributor to civic innovation on a national and global scale.".

[Audio] "A micro-city requires an economic engine that can survive leadership changes, demographic shifts, and external shocks. NeoState's multi-decade economic model allows us to forecast financial stability over 5-, 10-, 30-, and even 50-year cycles. This level of long-term planning is rare in communities but essential for institutional longevity." "Our approach includes revenue diversification through utilities, housing, digital services, research funding, and commercial activities. The goal is to create a self-sustaining ecosystem where the community's prosperity does not depend on a single external source." "From a systems-engineering standpoint, these models incorporate demographic data, infrastructure costs, service economies, and internal labor flows. By stress-testing various economic scenarios, NeoState ensures resilience across multiple future pathways — making it a community built not just for the present, but for generations.".

[Audio] "In a micro-city framework, sustainability is not an concept—it is a measurable engineering requirement. NeoState treats the economy as an integrated subsystem composed of multiple revenue engines, each modeled for reliability, predictability, and low volatility. This means the community's financial stability does not hinge on a single industry or trend. Our approach mirrors municipal finance, where cities rely on diversified revenue: utilities, housing, transportation, services, and commercial activity. However, NeoState improves upon this by aligning economic engines directly with member needs. Housing revenues fund housing upgrades, utility revenues fund infrastructure resilience, and service-related revenues support workforce and community programs. This design ensures that NeoState can sustain itself through each population phase—digital community, first physical hub, and micro-city scale. The system is engineered to withstand market cycles, demographic fluctuations, and technological change. The goal is a financial architecture that remains stable at 5 years, robust at 10 years, and predictable at 30 and 50 years. This is how communities survive—and thrive—over generations.".

[Audio] "Micro-city budgeting is fundamentally different from traditional nonprofit or corporate budgeting. We borrow heavily from municipal finance, where every dollar must be allocated with long-term public impact in mind. The NeoState model introduces structured budget categories: infrastructure development, community services, economic reserves, emergency funds, and reinvestment pools. Transparency is a core principle. Every revenue engine is tied to a specific budget responsibility—meaning transportation revenues are reinvested into mobility systems, housing income supports housing maintenance and expansion, and education funding flows back into human capital development. This mirrors strong urban governance systems such as Seoul's district budgeting or Singapore's long-range infrastructural planning. Most importantly, the budget is designed to scale with population growth. Whether NeoState serves 200 members or 20,000, the budgeting framework remains stable. This kind of engineered predictability is what gives micro-cities longevity and credibility.".

[Audio] "One of NeoState's core innovations is how it balances private ownership with community-owned infrastructure. Members retain full rights to personal property—homes, retail shops, intellectual property, and entrepreneurial ventures. This ensures that NeoState aligns with U.S. constitutional values and supports wealth-building for families. At the same time, community-owned assets—such as utilities, common spaces, administrative facilities, and core service infrastructure—remain under NeoState management. This hybrid model is similar to how Singapore manages public housing and how Korean districts operate shared services. It creates a stable foundation while preventing predatory land speculation or fragmentation of essential city functions. This combination of private ownership and community stewardship produces a resilient governance environment. It allows individuals to prosper while maintaining long-term clarity in how the micro-city evolves, expands, and sustains itself.".

[Audio] "A micro-city must cultivate an economic environment where members can thrive. NeoState accomplishes this by designing its internal market using principles from economics, behavioral policy, and systems engineering. The system rewards entrepreneurship, innovation, education, and essential service provision. Rules are designed for transparency and fairness. Market distortions—such as monopolies or extractive pricing—are prevented through clear governance structures enforced by NeoState's legal architecture. Economic incentives are modeled using data from successful urban ecosystems like Seoul, which rewards small business density, and Singapore, which links economic incentives to long-term community development. The goal is mobility—economic mobility, social mobility, and mobility of opportunity. Members should feel that the longer they remain part of NeoState, the more their skills, investments, and contributions translate into meaningful returns. This is what makes a community not only functional, but aspirational.".

[Audio] "South Korea's urban planning is among the most efficient in the world. Land is used intelligently, walkability is high, transit networks are integrated, and mixed-use zoning produces vibrant communities. These principles translate exceptionally well to micro-city design inside the United States. NeoState adapts Korean high-density planning—narrow footprint, vertical development, mixed-use districts, and community-centered design—to produce physically compact yet highly livable communities. This model increases social interaction, reduces infrastructure costs, supports local commerce, and enhances safety. It is also far more sustainable than suburban sprawl. The key insight is that density is not the enemy—poor planning is. When density is applied with systems engineering precision, it becomes the backbone of economic efficiency and social cohesion. NeoState's physical model embraces these lessons directly.".

[Audio] "In NeoState, housing is designed as part of a larger ecosystem rather than as a standalone product. Vertical development reduces land requirements, improves cost efficiency, and creates natural human clustering—similar to Korean apartment districts or Japanese mixed-use zones. Commercial and civic spaces are placed strategically to support walkability, social life, and economic opportunity. This design also supports operational efficiency. Emergency services, transportation, utilities, and commercial services all function better when the community is compact and layered. Mixed-use zones—where residents live, shop, work, and gather—create the sense of community that suburban planning often lacks. NeoState treats housing as a systems engineering artifact: flexible, modular, scalable, and optimized for both quality of life and cost stability. This creates a built environment that matures with the community rather than degrading over time.".

[Audio] "A micro-city must prioritize safety—not as a reactive function but as a systems design requirement. NeoState's model includes police, fire, emergency response, and public safety infrastructure designed according to municipal best practices but operated under the micro-city's governance framework. We look to models like Seoul, which integrates CCTV networks, digital monitoring systems, community patrols, and emergency response infrastructure into a seamless whole. However, NeoState adds an additional layer: balancing security with privacy. Our system is designed to give members transparency and agency in how safety data is used. Emergency services are engineered around speed, clarity, and interoperability. In a micro-city environment, the proximity of housing, commercial space, and community services means response times can be significantly reduced—strengthening resilience and quality of life.".

[Audio] "Transportation and utilities are the arteries of a functioning city. NeoState designs these systems as interoperable networks engineered for maximum reliability. Micro-mobility, walkability, and internal shuttle systems form the transport backbone. This reduces the need for heavy vehicle infrastructure and lowers operational costs. On the utilities side—water, power, waste, communications—each becomes a subsidiary responsible for maintenance, upgrades, and service pricing. This municipalization-through-enterprise model is inspired by how small European cities and some Korean districts operate their public services with high efficiency. The result is a city where every subsystem supports the others. Transportation strengthens commerce. Utilities strengthen housing. Housing strengthens community life. And community life strengthens governance. This is systems engineering applied to urban functionality.".

[Audio] "Phase 0 is where every modern micro-city truly begins: not with land, not with buildings, but with a digital community capable of governing itself. In systems engineering, this is the equivalent of building the baseline architecture independent of physical deployment. At this stage, the focus is on cultural formation, establishing shared values, defining the mission, and creating a governance framework people can actually function in. We also treat this as the low-cost prototyping environment. Digital governance, identity systems, and decision-making processes can be tested and refined at almost zero marginal cost. This prevents expensive errors later. The digital-first approach is exactly how Estonia built the foundation for one of the most advanced digital governments in the world. NeoState follows the same principle: build digitally, validate socially, then scale physically. During Phase 0, membership roles, early leadership structures, working groups, and the first version of the constitution emerge. Digital tools—DAO platforms, digital ID, communication channels—all serve as the sandbox for institutional behavior. If a community cannot govern itself online, it is not ready to govern land.".

[Audio] "Phase 1 formalizes the legal skeleton of NeoState. Here, the PMA becomes the core jurisdictional space where internal governance, member agreements, dispute resolution, and community protections take place. Legally, this is the engine that gives NeoState the ability to self-govern without violating U.S. sovereignty or constitutional norms. The 501(c)(3) is then layered as the public interface—grant eligibility, education, open-source governance research, community programs. Beneath it sits the holding company, which becomes the legally compliant vehicle for revenue generation, commercial activity, and municipal-like services. This tri-layer architecture mirrors established U.S. models used by unions, religious organizations, academic institutions, and some non-profit smart-city testbeds. Phase 1 is where NeoState becomes a recognized entity with boundaries, processes, documentation, and standards. It is the point where governance moves from community norms to structured systems grounded in U.S. law and systems engineering principles.".

[Audio] "Phase 2 represents the transition from digital governance to physical co-location. This does not require hundreds of acres or a full micro-city. In fact, the first physical hub can be small—an office suite, a multi-use building, a cluster of co-living units, or a hybrid headquarters. The purpose of this phase is not scale; it is proof of concept. This phase allows us to test the municipal subsidiary model in practice: housing operations, safety protocols, shared utilities, community programs, and early commercial activities. Many successful governance experiments—from private campus developments to charter community pilots—began with modest physical footprints, often under 5 acres. Phase 2 is also crucial for culture formation. Systems behave differently when physical space, shared routines, and daily interactions are introduced. This phase produces the real-world data needed to refine the future 100-acre and 1,000-acre models.".

[Audio] "Phase 3 is where NeoState transitions into a fully functioning micro-city ecosystem. At this stage, governance, economy, and urban systems must operate as a cohesive whole—what systems engineering calls a 'fully integrated system-of-systems deployment.' The digital identity layer aligns with the physical residency system. Municipal subsidiaries mature into full operational departments—housing, power, safety, transportation, education, and commerce. This phase is where the Seoul-style density principles come to life: walkable blocks, mixed-use zoning, shared infrastructure, and vertically integrated land use. Unlike traditional U.S. suburban sprawl, NeoState uses a compact, efficient footprint that lowers cost, increases community cohesion, and improves sustainability. The micro-city model becomes economically viable here because density creates efficiency. Shared services, high occupancy rates, and coordinated governance produce a stable, long-term revenue base—essential for decades-long planning cycles.".

[Audio] "Phase 4 is where NeoState becomes larger than any single location. The goal is not merely to build one micro-city, but to make the entire framework open-source so other groups—cultural communities, religious groups, professional networks, or diaspora communities—can adopt and adapt the model. This creates a network of interconnected micro-cities, each operating independently but sharing standards, digital tools, legal architecture, and economic frameworks. It's a federated model similar to how credit unions, co-ops, or religious institutions operate across multiple states while maintaining autonomy. Replication is not expansion for its own sake—it is strategic diffusion. By making NeoState a public good, the governance framework becomes a durable, evolving institution shaped by multiple communities rather than dependent on any single founder.".

[Audio] "What makes NeoState viable is that every component is grounded in real precedents—legally, economically, technologically, and urbanistically. None of this is theoretical speculation. The U.S. already recognizes private jurisdictions, nonprofits, corporate municipalization, and identity systems. Cities like Singapore and districts in Seoul have demonstrated the efficiency of high-density micro-urbanism. Digital governance models, from Estonia's ID system to Web3 DAOs, have proven the legitimacy of digital-first institutions. NeoState simply integrates these pieces into one coherent system. From a systems-engineering perspective, it is the natural next step in civic evolution: a modular, adaptive, multi-layered operating system for communities.".

[Audio] "My invitation to both TLS members and external communities is simple: participate. Whether you're skilled in policy, engineering, software development, law, construction, economics, or urban planning—there is a place for you in shaping this framework. NeoState is not a closed project; it is a public mission. The more minds we bring in, the stronger and more resilient the system becomes. By contributing your expertise, your critical thinking, and your lived experience, you help build a governance model that can support real people, real families, and real futures.".

[Audio] "Thank you for taking the time to explore the NeoState micro-city framework. The next steps are collaborative: reviewing the documents, participating in workshops, helping build the digital governance tools, and supporting the open-source release. This project is larger than any individual. It represents a multi-decade effort to rethink how communities function, how governance is designed, and how people build meaningful, stable, prosperous environments. I appreciate your time, your attention, and your willingness to imagine something different.".