Over the past decade, it has become evident that American (and Western) society has lost critical infrastructure—both socially and economically. What we witnessed during the COVID-era now seems dreamlike in its absurdity—the paranoid religious adherence to civilization-breaking dogmas that ran contrary to any sort of rational thought, revealing the bones of what our world had become: a broken, atomized dystopia where people were cut off from one another, left isolated in within their own four walls, defending their hordes of toilet paper and other stockpiled goods, thinking this is how you survive an apocalypse.

Only, nothing could be farther from the truth. And deep down, we all know this. While the COVID years may seem like an acid trip now, what they revealed about our way of life in 21^st century America is still very real—we are atomized. We don’t know our neighbors, let alone have the kinds of relationships that can withstand another earth-shattering event. We still rely on Amazon and Big Box Stores for 97.3% of all the goods we buy, with supply chains a sneeze away from collapse at any given moment. Life has, by and large, returned to normal. But what if what we call “normal” isn’t really normal at all?

There is something different in the post-COVID world. For the first time in living memory, people are beginning to question the norms we all grew up with. What if there was a different way? A better way. An older way. Little by little, people are working to claw back some of the ways of life that have been eroded, not just over the past decade, but the past century. People are leaving cities, buying land, and working together as families to piecemeal communities as best they are able. We’re trying to relearn some of the old ways because we all know that, if we want to survive another apocalypse, we have to do things differently. But really, it’s much more than that; even if another apocalypse never comes, the last one showed us that something integral to our heritage is missing, and we want it back.

The Lamppost Exchange was born as a solution to the problems of geographic and social atomization that prevent the formation and growth of like-minded, robust communities with resilient economies sustained by local supply chains. We utilize technology to bridge gaps created by expanded geography and isolation, while maintaining roots in old-world principles that hold under pressure—principles of high trust, duty, craftsmanship, and legacy. Our goal is to build alliances of productive households across America and the West—to reclaim our heritage of self-governance and local trade—by providing the critical infrastructure necessary to sustain these systems for generations amid a changing modern world.

What does this look like? It starts with a single productive household. This family or individual is likely somewhat well-known and already trusted by neighbors. He will probably have a degree of commercial success, but most of all, he possesses a sense of duty and love toward his neighbors. The Lamppost Exchange app allows him to stand up his own server with which to serve his community. He is the owner and manager of all its data and has the ability to invite other households or businesses. The server can exist on the cloud or even be managed from his own home network.

The administrator then begins locating and networking other productive households in his area. He might pass out fliers at a local farmer’s market or talk to trusted friends inside his church. Eventually, he has a few productive families ready to form an alliance, and a base of individuals interested in participating as consumers in the local economy. And this is where the magic happens: People begin adding themselves to the private server map, along with a list of the productive operations they engage in. They may list items for sale—or trade—on the market where consumers may browse for free. Soon community members are beginning to meet one another as they engage in local commerce.

At this point, perhaps a newlywed couple joins the local alliance and carefully reviews the supply and demand report generated by their community. They brainstorm ways to make money by filling gaps in the community supply chain and end up manufacturing compost and raising seedlings from their modest suburban yard. It’s not a full income yet, but it’s a great alternative revenue stream that allows them to become more personally resilient while also contributing to a critical economic need for their neighbors.

In another corner of this community, the pastor’s son just bought his first pickup truck. Perhaps he begins using the app for free as a consumer. Before long, he’s become accustomed to making weekly trips to the local dairy to pick up milk for his family. Then, the app sends him a logistics insight: If he goes two miles out of his way, he can load his truck bed with fresh compost from the new couple and deliver it to the farmer who he already visits every week. He calls the farmer (who happens to attend his father’s church) to make the necessary arrangements. The farmer may agree to pay a small fee for the delivery service or perhaps trade him the milk free of charge.

Meanwhile, the administrator is reviewing the server data. He can see all the ways that the community has developed closed cycles of commerce, becoming increasingly resilient and connected with one another as they participate in daily life and business together. He will also notice areas where the community may be heavily dependent on outside resources. With this information, he is able to gather everyone together and discuss possible solutions to these vulnerabilities, while also enhancing the social life of the alliance.

Years down the road, the entire community has developed increasing economic independence. The economic value generated by the honest labor of good people stays within the alliance sphere instead of being siphoned away by some nameless bureaucracy or prodigious trashworld corporation. Several families are now fully employed by their neighbors, and—perhaps even more essential—people have developed a mutual stake in each other’s well-being. When a member of the community suffers, people are more aware of and in touch with various needs and are already primed to rally around their neighbors.

The Lamppost Exchange app merely points people in the right direction by creating the basic infrastructure necessary to support a resilient and engaged local alliance. All transactions are handled by you: You get to build trust. You get to make friends. You get to love your neighbor. You get to rebuild the bedrock of American life and legacy.