Michel Vandenberghe is one of the two founders of LENR-Cities (Global project, Swiss project), a project started in march 2012. Since one year, few information of that project were broadcast on Internet. However in LENR community the project is causing people to speak of it. I interviewed Michel Vandenberghe to know more (this February 22nd 2014). Here is a translation of the French interview.





Hello Michel,





Hello Alain





We had few information on your project since may 2013.





Much work. It is still too early to talk about it, however we will do it during next may, if we keep our timetable.





Where are you now?



We work hard to network scientific, industrial and financial capacities to accelerate LENR development. We have to convince the actors who own one of the keys of LENR market, to join that ecosystem. After one year of work we have a good definition of the problem, and have established required relationships. Remains to initiate catalysis.





Are you ready ?





I will not talk about how we operationalized our project, many things in process.





Why an ecosystem?





By nature, LENR will have a global impact. It is therefore clear that any project do intersects with multiple interests and issues, whether it is driven by a start-up or a corporation. Each player follows its own objectives, often without realizing that negative externalities(*), actual or potential, of its action creates the conditions for its failure. This is a key point.





Given the transformational impact of LENR and the need of all industries to integrate into future LENR industry, the exercise requires a unique approach.





We work to build an organization where each project independently, with its own objectives, contributes to the achievement of the overall project, (ie: that each project has positive externalities) reinforcing everyone's interest to support the overall project. This is what we call an ecosystem.





Our project is just one of the projects of this ecosystem. By nature, it is not in competition with any other. We reuse here partly some experience acquired during a previous project.





So, your project is to develop an ecosystem?





No. LENR-Cities aim to fulfill the own need of the ecosystem along it's development. To develop the ecosystem is a condition to develop its own business.





Your project seems centered around Neuchâtel in Switzerland. Are the actors whom you speak essentially Swiss?





No. Switzerland has the best conditions from our point of view to develop an LENR engineering pole, our ultimate goal. Regarding the canton of Neuchâtel, local actors have a wide spectrum of scientific and industrial required skills. Following this same logic of ecosystem, we believe that the canton and its neighbors could develop and industrialize key components of future production tool of LENR industry.





The description of your project looks very different from conventional industrial approaches. What is your concept of an ecosystem?





In an ecosystem, the value of a transaction reflects the decreased risk for each actor.





This is somehow a kind of multi-part compensation where we include potential externalities of a transaction to set its value. We now have an artisanal approach, but it is part of the project aims to mobilize skills to have a systematic approach.





In practice, and at current phase, we designed the overall structure of the project in order to reduce the risk of each actor. The aim is initially to take into account market risk.





Practically, does this means that even owning his own "inventions", one must think of the interest of all to measure my final interest?





Belonging to an ecosystem does not change the rules and constraints of the market. What offers the ecosystem allows you to estimate your interest.





How is the "compensation"?





There is not, strictly speaking, 'compensation system' initially, just a few simple rules that anyone can incorporate into its decision making process.





For the medium term, we are working with a team that plans to develop such a system.





What is your approach?





We are working on next steps following the completion of a prototype and with the teams that will build this prototype, a need to develop a business plan, all with the ability to unfold everything into a project with a beginning and an end 





Specifically what would be a prototype? It would be an organization, not a reactor?





Both.





About organization, LENR-Cities and Kresenn are the first two companies of the ecosystem. Kresenn is in charge of the "Reference Lab” within the ecosystem.





You develop your partnerships. Early 2013 Kresenn joined your initiative, as LENR-Invest. What is the current situation with them, and are there other partners to date?





We are in discussion with various stakeholders. We must establish the minimum network that may in turn trigger a network effect on the market. We must gather several key players, industry, scientists and investors.





Concerning LENR-Invest is one of the allies with whom we have learned by prototyping an ecosystem.





The news has been rather numerous on LENR during recent months. One feels excitement on the side of various stakeholders, especially American side. How do you see the coming months, including the European side?





Any progress in the LENR field generates excitement ...





LENR will address critical challenges such as energy and water. This is not idealism but lucid.





European actors must mobilize. And I hope they will do in the coming months. We are part of.





How do you see the LENR transition? How do you think companies will adapt to this energy?





That companies can adapt is a central issue and in my opinion, one of the first obstacles to the development of LENR. The transition must be massive and every industry, every actor have to conduct its own transition. We need to find an answer on this point; An innovation as important as LENR itself. The development of the Internet shows that this can be done.





Do you have a message for entrepreneurs, industrialists, and even politicians …





LENR is an interdisciplinary field, including nuclear. Most of the pieces to break the LENR code exist. One must gather them, it's just obvious.





To skeptics ?





Nanotechnology show that organizing the material on this scale, new properties different from those of the base material is obtained. This is also true in the field of energy.





LENR is not without dangers, but they are nothing compared to those we face.





Thank you, and rendez-vous in May.





Thank you

See you soon.





Note : Externality : an external effect on others, providing without monetary counterpart, benefit or harm.