Anti-Fragile Playbook
Pilot FAQ
A few good questions about what we're building, who can participate, and why our approach to community economic development is a little different.
The Tannehill app has launched, and we're actively recruiting participants. Some answers describe our original intentions; others explain how the pilot is evolving as we put those intentions into practice.
Who is this for?
What if I'm not a maker or a doer?
No problem! The original recruitment effort focused on people with goods and services to offer their neighbors, followed by recruiting buyers.
But take another minute to consider whether you might actually be a maker or a doer. Is there something you enjoy making, baking, repairing, growing, or doing for fun? Could your hobby become something that another person would happily pay for?
A local economy needs buyers as well as sellers, and the pilot is interested in people who want to participate constructively in either capacity.
Do I have to live here?
Not necessarily. The original pilot welcomed people who wanted to support the Tannehill community and watershed, even if they lived outside its geographic boundaries.
The emphasis, however, is decidedly local. The original expectation was that goods offered through the marketplace would be located in or directly around the watershed.
Because the app serves a defined community, participation and seller eligibility remain subject to its current onboarding arrangements.
How do I join the Tannehill app?
Start with our Our App page, which introduces the community, explains its emphasis on identity and accountability, and provides a link to the actual app.
From there, follow the available registration or sign-in process. Additional verification or onboarding may be required depending on your participation.
Why do you emphasize verified identities?
Because we're trying to build a community where real people can develop real relationships and conduct real business.
Anonymous accounts and fictitious identities make accountability more difficult. Verification helps establish that participants are authentic, although it doesn't guarantee good behavior or eliminate the need for judgment.
The goal isn't to recreate an unrestricted public social network. It's to provide a trustworthy environment for a particular community.
Why Tannehill Creek?
What is a watershed, and why organize around one?
A watershed is an area of land where rainfall and runoff drain toward a common waterway. In our case, that waterway is Tannehill Creek.
Communities have organized around water sources for thousands of years. A watershed provides a tangible connection between the health of our local economy, the land we inhabit, and the water we share.
It also allows us to think beyond conventional neighborhood boundaries. Highways and administrative lines divide populations in ways that the natural landscape does not.
In Austin, those divisions have a history that includes segregation and discriminatory planning. The original AFP organizers wanted to explore a different way of understanding community.
What does a marketplace have to do with the environment?
The original Tannehill proposition connected local economic capacity with environmental stewardship.
If a community can create and retain more of its own wealth, it may be better positioned to invest in projects that improve the places where its members live.
The longer-term vision included caring for soil, vegetation, and water quality within the watershed. Those outcomes are aspirations, not results we're claiming the pilot has already achieved.
How does this support the community?
How can my small business empower my community?
By participating in a marketplace designed around local relationships, your business can help strengthen the productive capacity of the people around you.
The original AFP proposal envisioned marketplace transaction fees contributing to a community fund, rather than flowing exclusively to outside platform operators.
That fund was intended to help support administration, hosting, and eventually projects chosen for the community's benefit.
The original FAQ specified a 5% transaction fee. Current marketplace fees and their allocation should be confirmed through the active pilot.
How do sellers receive payments?
The marketplace uses connected payment infrastructure to support transactions between buyers and sellers. Eligible sellers may need to complete payment-provider onboarding, including any required verification.
Payout timing depends on the payment provider, account status, and transaction circumstances. Sellers should review the current payment terms during onboarding.
Who decides which community projects get funded?
In the original proposal, the administrator team identified initial priorities based on the pilot's mission.
As participation grew, the intention was to create opportunities for members to propose and vote on community-funded projects.
The current pilot is still developing its administration and governance practices, so those arrangements should not be mistaken for an already established funding program.
What kinds of community projects were envisioned?
The original ideas included a lending library of useful things, caregiver relief, education for aspiring small-business owners, food sharing, and health-related services.
The common theme was to use locally generated economic capacity to support practical needs identified by the community.
These remain examples of the original vision, not a list of services currently guaranteed or available.
Who makes the decisions?
Who is on the administrator team, and can I help?
The original Tannehill team brought together people with experience in community organizing, cooperatives, healthcare, food production, and other practical disciplines.
With the community app now launched, administrator onboarding and training are part of the pilot's next stage.
If you have relevant skills, local relationships, or an interest in community stewardship, we'd welcome a conversation. Get in touch.
Are there rules for joining the community?
Yes. A community needs shared expectations and a practical means of addressing conduct that undermines its purpose.
The original AFP organizers also recognized that rules have historically been used to exclude and disadvantage people. The intention was to avoid reproducing those patterns while still maintaining meaningful accountability.
Current participation rules and eligibility requirements should be reviewed during the app's onboarding process.
If I donate, how will my contribution be used?
Historically, donations supported the work of the organizing team, outreach materials, and customization of the community activation app.
If you are considering contributing financially today, please contact the pilot team to confirm current funding needs, the receiving organization, and how your contribution would be administered.
We're learning by doing.
The Anti-Fragile Playbook was never intended to be a finished set of instructions handed down to a community. It was conceived as a playbook developed through actual experience.
That means some answers will evolve. The Tannehill app has launched, administrators are being trained, and participants are being recruited. The work of developing a durable local economy is underway.
Good. The questions people bring to the table are part of how this experiment becomes useful.