Plain English Guides

Understanding IRSA Research

Why do good institutions fail? How can we design capital that matches mission timescales?

These guides explain our research in plain English—no jargon, no equations, just the core ideas that matter.

60-second summaries
Written for everyone
Links to full papers

Canonical Reading Order

The research builds systematically. Start with Regenerative Capital Theory for the foundational ontology (what is the fourth capital class?), then Perpetual Social Capital for the mathematical engine (R, SVM, IRR). Architectures of Ease explains why people participate. Regenerative Cycle Architecture provides the meta-theory, followed by Alignment Capital for the formal operators. The remaining guides apply these ideas to specific domains, with RAT as the synthesis and REA providing the economic foundation.

1. RCT Ontology
2. PSC Math
3. AoE Behaviour
4. RCA Architecture
5. AC Operators
6. PE Power
7. Climate Application
8. Markets Application
9. RC-WD Development
10. RAT Synthesis
11. REA Economics
7 min

Regenerative Capital Theory

1. The Fourth Capital Class

For 400 years we've had debt, equity, and grants. Regenerative Capital is the fourth—money that strengthens systems instead of extracting from them. Start here for the foundational ontology.

Key question:

"Why do all existing capital types either extract value or terminate?"

Read guide
8 min

Perpetual Social Capital

2. The Mathematical Engine

Gifts that help more than once. The mathematical framework behind R (recycling rate), SVM (System Value Multiplier), IRR, and TSV. This is where the numbers come from.

Key question:

"What if your donation could help five families instead of one?"

Read guide
9 min

Architectures of Ease

3. Behavioural Foundation

A behavioural-systems theory showing how to achieve near-total compliance without enforcement—through friction differentials, identity coupling, and future-cycle access. Why do people participate?

Key question:

"What if systems could achieve 95% compliance without any enforcement at all?"

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9 min

Regenerative Cycle Architecture

4. The Meta-Theory

The unifying framework explaining how capital must be structured to persist forever. Introduces cycle decoupling (Δ) and alignment (Λ), fragility cycles, and mission cycles.

Key question:

"Why do institutions built to last forever fail within decades?"

Read guide
7 min

Alignment Capital

5. Formal Operators

The formal theory of Δ (Decoupling Operator) and Λ (Alignment Operator). How to mathematically insulate capital from fragility and synchronise it with mission cycles.

Key question:

"Why do long-term projects keep getting cancelled?"

Read guide
6 min

Political Economy

6. Power & Incentives

Money is power. How you give money determines who holds power. PSC redistributes power from gatekeepers to mission-holders and reshapes institutional incentives.

Key question:

"Why do charities spend 40% of their time fundraising instead of doing their mission?"

Read guide
6 min

Climate Economics

7. Application: Political Fragility

Climate adaptation fails not from lack of money, but from political fragility. PSC-G provides capital that persists across elections and crises. Application of RCA to climate governance.

Key question:

"Why does climate infrastructure get defunded every time governments change?"

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7 min

Capital Markets

8. Application: Financial Cycles

Quarterly earnings crush long-term thinking. Regenerative Capital Markets redesign market structures to enable decade-scale value creation. Application of RCA to financial markets.

Key question:

"Why do CEOs cut R&D to hit quarterly numbers?"

Read guide
8 min

Development Finance

9. Application: State Capability

Development projects fail not from bad work, but because funding disappears. RDF provides capital that survives political transitions and builds lasting state capability. Application of Δ-Λ operators to development.

Key question:

"Why do health programs get cancelled every time governments change?"

Read guide
10 min

Regenerative Architecture Thinking

10. Synthesis & Cognition

The synthesis paper bringing it all together. How regenerative principles apply to cognition, learning, and the Re:School educational framework. The capstone of the research program.

Key question:

"How do we teach people to think regeneratively?"

Read guide
8 min

Regenerative Economic Architecture

11. Economic Foundation

The structural economics underlying regenerative capital. How recycling rates (R), capability returns (γ), and the Δ/Λ operators create self-sustaining systems rather than extractive ones.

Key question:

"What structural invariants make capital regenerative rather than extractive?"

Read guide

Want the full academic treatment? All papers are available on SSRN.

View Working Papers