James Ehrlich
James Ehrlich is Director of Compassionate Sustainability at the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) at Stanford University School of Medicine and Affiliate with the Stanford Woods Institute Human and Planetary Health.
James is also Founder of ReGen Villages Holding B.V., with over 25 years of experience as a serial entrepreneur in technology, media, and sustainable development. Additionally, James is appointed Faculty at Singularity University, Senior Fellow at NASA Ames Research Center, and a White House / OSTP Appointee to a joint taskforce on Regenerative Infrastructure.
ReGen Villages Holding, B.V. is a Stanford University spin-off formed in the EU as a Dutch impact-for-profit company, using machine learning software to address the U.N. 17 Sustainable Development Goals, specifically to provide solutions for affordable housing, climate change adaptability, and regenerative resiliency.
James developed an innovative series of workshop programs with his colleague Alexandra Albinus for Design Empathy in Compassionate Sustainability from Stanford University for K-12, Undergrad/Masters, and Executive Education. This CCARE-led courses on experiential Design Empathy is the first step in achieving proven successful teams: by deeply listening, being mindful, and accepting all input as constructive toward shared objectives.
James founded ReGen Villages in 2016, with its patent-pending VillageOS™ operating system software to design and operate bio-regenerative and resilient (self-reliant) neighborhood infrastructure and retrofits, integrating clean water, renewable energy micro-grids, high-yield organic food, and circular nutritional flows at the neighborhood scale, to promote healthy long-term outcomes for residents and flourishing communities.
The project was featured at the Danish architectural pavilion at the Venice Biennale in May 2016, with the first pilot community planned for development in Almere, Netherlands, encompassing 100 homes. At the 2016 Singularity University Global Summit, founder of ReGen Villages, James, presented the ReGen Villages project, which was the winner of the Global Grand Challenge Award 2016 in the Shelter category.ReGen Villages continues to receive global press and media coverage since 2016, with over 150-million web impressions and hundreds of thousands of families registered to live in ReGen Villages enabled communities around the world.
Between September 2016 and December 2017, James served as an appointee to the White House and State Department Joint Task Force on the Nexus of Food, Water, Energy & Waste, advising the Office of Science and Technology Policy on regenerative platform development and implementation at the neighborhood scale. During this period, he contributed to shaping federal policy on sustainable infrastructure and community resilience, bringing his expertise in regenerative systems to national-level planning initiatives.
A serial entrepreneur in Silicon Valley for over 25 years, James successfully founded and managed technology and media companies with successful exits.For nearly a decade, James executive produced an award-winning national public broadcasting series based on his case study research of organic and bio-dynamic family farms, that at its apex reached over 35 million homes each week and is also the coauthor of a best-selling companion book Organic Living THG (Hachette, 2007).
Between 1992 and 2001, James founded and led ICFX, Inc. as CEO and Lead Game Designer, creating entertainment technology products and services. From 1989 to 1991, he served as Director of the Multimedia Division at Digidesign, where he managed project teams for AudioMedia and MacProteus, pioneering early digital audio workstation technology.
James earned his Bachelor of Science from New York University in 1988 focusing on computer science and media. He did his Master studies in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University from September 2013 to August 2016, while simultaneously conducting research at the Center for Design Research.
He is the Coauthor of two U.N. Sustainable Development Goal Platform Briefs (2015/2018) with Prof. Larry Leifer and Chris Ford (AIA) from the Center for Design Research at Stanford University.Between July 2016 and August 2017, James worked with the Center for Design Research - DesignX Resiliency Team at Stanford University, conducting regenerative and resilient design research for off-grid residential development at the neighborhood scale.
From February 2014 to July 2015, he served as Organic Food System Coach for the Stanford University Solar Decathlon 2015 cohort, advising students on organic and bio-dynamic, high-yield food production systems at the neighborhood scale.
As an Entrepreneur in Residence at Stanford's CCARE Institute since August 2017, James focuses on empathy in design thinking for resiliency in the built environment, developing compassionate regenerative neighborhood developments globally. Concurrently, he serves as Senior Technologist at Stanford, bridging the gap between academic research and practical implementation of sustainable technologies.
His appointment as Faculty at Singularity University positions him at the forefront of exponential technology education, where he teaches about the convergence of AI, machine learning, and sustainable development. As a Senior Fellow at the Opus Novum consortium at NASA Ames Research Center, he contributes to advanced research on regenerative systems and space-applicable technologies.
James has established strategic partnerships with global organizations, including a collaboration with Thrive Dynamic from December 2022 to January 2023, providing consultation for machine learning software for regenerative and resilient urban planning. James and ReGen Villages have also been featured in South China Morning Post, Forbes Magazine, The Next Web, and The New York Times.
CCARE also established a working collaboration with the Carnegie Mellon University spin-off ReadyAi in framing opportunities with AI, Machine Learning, and robotics to inspire students to imagine innovative and autonomous solutions for improving quality of life. This collaboration extends James's impact in education, merging compassionate design principles with cutting-edge technology to prepare the next generation for regenerative development challenges.
Listen to James Ehrlich: The Neighborhood of the Future is Here. Read ReGen Village with James Ehrlich. Watch Designing Regenerative Villages.
Born and raised in New York City, James moved to Silicon Valley in 1989 to pursue his entrepreneurial vision. He currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he continues his work at Stanford University and maintains his role leading ReGen Villages' global expansion. His unique combination of technology expertise, sustainable design knowledge, and compassionate leadership has positioned him as a pioneer in creating regenerative communities that address climate change, food security, and housing challenges worldwide.
Visit his LinkedIn profile and CCARE profile. Follow him on Facebook, X, One Giant Leap, and Rehumanize Institute.