Pop-up cities can be great, but have big issues:
- Expensive to organize
- Unaffordable to a lot of people
- HEAVY burden for organizers
When Vitalik started Ethereum, he was staying at anarchist squats.
How do we attract new young Vitaliks?
NOT by organizing popups at high end resorts which they cant afford.
So how do we stop popup cities from being an elitist movement that eventually fizzles out because its unsustainable?
We get more pragmatic. We ground them locally. Not by creating permanent nodes from scratch, but by finding highly aligned groups that already built foundations.
Minimum viable node is basically a hotel/hostel w/ common area & a conference hall. More advanced would be eco-villages, which often gladly host people for free, if they‘re willing to contribute.
Ideal model for permanent nodes because:
- Its super cheap to start doing it
- Crypto people gain real-life skills
- It creates a positive impact locally
- Grounds us locally & helps spread the message
@syntonikka was really onto something with Agartha (curating such places), we really need a sort of "L2Beat but for pop-up locations". Looking at you
@chancecollabs 👀
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In May 2026, i will attempt to organize a pop-up without any sponsors whatsoever, fully funded by attendees - and still cheaper than most popups so far.
At the same time, it will be the only pop-up where organizers actually get to enjoy instead of burning out.
More info soonish, DM if interested