VDAO Ep.4 : Pop-Up Cities, Membership Models & Network Societies with Chance McAllister
Release Date: 12/01/2025
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In this episode of the VDAO ร Greenpill Antifragile Network States mini-series, host Kris Miller talks with Chance McAllister, one of the early builders shaping the pop-up village movement and researching how global communities form identity, belonging, and support systems.
Chance McAllister shares how a simple Discord link created a high-talent online community, how pop-up cities exploded from one experiment to dozens worldwide, and why digital nomads are searching for deeper social infrastructure.
They explore informal safety nets, civil society history, global โdark talent,โ and what we can learn from groups like the Mennonites as we design the next generation of network societies.
A thoughtful, human-centered conversation for anyone exploring community, belonging, and new models of membership across borders.
๐ฑ greenpill.network
๐ vdao.org
https://x.com/JoinVDAO
https://x.com/chancecollabs?s=20
https://x.com/0xkrisv
https://x.com/greenpillnet
๐ Timestamps
00:00 โ Cold open
00:24 โ What โnetwork stateโ means to Chance
01:14 โ Chanceโs personal โwhyโ
02:40 โ Network societies as an umbrella concept
04:22 โ The diversity inside the movement
05:49 โ How Chance entered the space
07:27 โ Accidentally creating a high-talent Discord
09:27 โ Formal vs informal safety nets
12:11 โ Unlocking global talent
14:19 โ Origins of pop-up villages
16:22 โ Zuzalu & the first big experiment
18:19 โ Why Chance started researching pop-up cities
20:22 โ Civil society & mutual aid history
22:42 โ โSummer camps for nomads?โ critique
24:52 โ Permanent hubs vs pop-ups
28:59 โ Demand for new communities
30:59 โ The Mennonite example
35:08 โ Why jurisdictions welcomed them
37:33 โ Lessons for network builders
41:54 โ Building identity & membership
48:39 โ The future of membership models
55:35 โ Designing new societal structures
58:51 โ Closing thoughts