I founded Ktopia in January 2024 as a freelancer. In November 2023, during International Novel Writing Month, I wrote and published a climate fiction short story. It painted an alternative vision for my place of residence, the documenta City of Kassel, Germany.
Ktopia, the Smart Eco City version of Kassel, embraced both technology and practical ecology—especially through its abundant, close loop circular food system and its passion for creative urban gardens and gastronomy. My story was inspired by the novel Ecotopia, published by Ernest Callenbach a year after I was born.
“I have great faith in optimism as a guiding principle, if only because it offers us the opportunity of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
—Sir Arthur C. Clarke
Inspired by the stories of Ecotopia, Ktopia, and Sir Arthur’s optimism as a guiding principle, I have also found great beauty in Pragmatic Utopias—
betting on the same outcome: a possible, self-fulfilling prophecy.
Two months into Ktopia, I became immersed in its first project quest within the Wastelands, assigned by the city administration’s Smart City department. Over the course of 2024, this led to the creation of the Smart Waste Agency Game (The SWAG), an edutaining, open-source tabletop and card game about waste, recycling, and the circular economy. But something else emerged as well—a circular cooperative model, as described above on this page.
A year after its foundation, in January/February 2025, I am revisiting Ktopia.eu itself and reflecting on its practical philosophy. Technically, Ktopia remains a social brand under my freelance status within the EU Small Enterprise / Business Owner scheme, dedicated solely to the common good.
But I let it flowgrow organically. It might grow into a non-profit org legal entity, that becomes a fellowship in diverse project coops for shared seasons…. …
