Don’t freak out if you see a 40-foot bus resembling a coffin sometime soon. It’s the “Immortality Bus” — a “pro-science symbol of resistance against aging and death” to be driven across the U.S. by futurist and 2016 Transhumanist Party presidential candidate Zoltan Istvan, along with scientists and supporters.

“We’re trying to spread a culture that looks positively at indefinite human lifespans,” Istvan told KurzweilAI. “In addition to rallies and events, we hope to visit a number of universities, where futurist and transhumanist student groups have been popping up. We hope to have these groups on board the bus and offer advice on pursing careers in technology, artificial intelligence, and medicine. Our hope is to get youth to pursue science and engineering, instead of, let’s say, advertising or accounting.

“We also plan to visit homes with disabled war veterans, discuss new technologies that might help them live better, like exoskeleton suits, and hold events for LGBT communities that are increasingly considering virtual reality and other new tech as part of their social lives. We hope these collective efforts will help broaden the horizon of the futurist, transhumanist, and longevity communities that are all using technology to move society forward.”

Indiegogo funding campaign

To raise the $25,000 needed to fund the bus acquisition and four-month tour, Istvan has launched an Indiegogo campaign, which will also help fund a “life-sized, interactive robot on board, drones following us, a biohacking lab for experimenting on ourselves, lots of public event materials, and, of course, fuel.”

The team plans a full national tour on the Immortality Bus, putting on rallies, events, and educational conferences, starting in San Francisco. The goal: “Usher in the next great civil rights debate: Should we use science and technology to overcome death and become a stronger species?” says Istvan, who is author of the visionary book The Transhumanist Wager.

The Transhumanist Party was founded by futurist and philosopher Zoltan Istvan on October 7, 2014 as a nonprofit organization. It is dedicated to “putting science, health, and technology at the forefront of United States politics. … Many of the party’s core ideas and goals can be found in the Transhumanist Declaration and in the founding party article in the Huffington Post.”

Formerly a National Geographic Channel reporter, Istvan frequently appears on television and currently writes for Vice, Gizmodo, Huffington Post, Slate, and others. He’s also the inventor of “volcano boarding.”