§ Frequently asked
Questions, plainly answered.
Five categories, thirty-five questions. Short direct answers, with a link to the page that carries the depth.
Why are you here
Category 1 · 8 questions
For Lab members.
For those who work in a Lab, practice SYFERS, sit in Council.
No. What the federation publishes is anonymised. Names of members and participants are, at document generation, automatically translated to their role (facilitator, member, with a number when there are several). The work becomes visible; who does the work remains protected.
SYFERS holds two repositories: a private repo where the Lab works with the names used internally, and a public repo where only the anonymised version appears. Lab members see both. Researchers and the public see only the second.
For most Lab members: between 5 and 15 minutes per day, depending on what happened that day. Recording a Council decision takes longer than a daily plant register.
SYFERS is built so that daily practice registers as a byproduct, not as an extra task. When you already note what you have planted, what you have harvested, what was decided in Council, SYFERS adds structure to what you already do. Lab members who structurally spend more time often find that their internal practice is not yet clear enough, not that SYFERS is too demanding.
You can leave. The Charter contains a 30-day clause that guarantees data portability: you can take your share of the records, and the Lab can arrange your removal from the federation within 30 days.
Your departure carries no financial penalty. You do not have to negotiate. What you have built within the Lab (relationships, experience, documents you contributed to) remains your own experience; what the Lab has built remains with the Lab. How the federation handles data of departing members in the longer term is a question still being weighed by Council.
Concrete personal data (your decisions, your contributions with attribution) stays within the Lab as internal record. The anonymised version remains in the public repo (because your role designation member 03 has already decoupled your work from your name).
For longer-term data treatment of departing members the federation has no final policy yet. When this becomes relevant for you, it can be addressed in Council. The 30-day clause is clear; what happens afterwards with data is weighed case by case.
Lab members see all data within the Lab, with names. Researchers and the public see only the anonymised version in the public repo, with roles instead of names. Nobody outside the Lab sees your name linked to a specific decision or a specific contribution.
Between Labs: other member Labs see your Lab's anonymised data in the same form as researchers see it. Federation Council sees aggregates and patterns, not personal detail. Anonymisation is reciprocal and structural, not a promise of the federation but a mechanism of SYFERS.
You can object via Council. Charter principle V Consent applies at federation level: a Lab member can block publication of specific material with reasoned objection. The federation does not publish across Labs when a Lab objects.
Objection is not I do not like it. It is a grounded reason why publication harms the Lab or you personally. Council weighs the objection alongside federation interest. When both cannot coexist, objection wins. Federation trust is stronger than publication completeness.
As peers. Each Lab is sovereign over its own land, members, governance, and finances. What binds Labs is a shared Charter, a shared Practice, and shared infrastructure that no Lab would build alone.
The federation is not a centre above the Labs; it is the overlap between Labs. Council works by consent with representation from each Lab. What one Lab learns becomes visible to other Labs through SYFERS, not through directives from above.
At federation level: not always you personally. Each Lab arranges representation in federation Council; who that is the Lab decides. Estimated time: 2 to 4 hours per month for those attending federation Council, varies by activity.
At Lab level: depends on how your Lab has organised governance. The Charter requires consent governance at federation level, not at Lab level. Sulitânia works with a combination of sociocracy and land-based governance; other Labs may differ.
Category 2 · 10 questions
For prospective Labs.
Cooperatives, communities, intentional projects considering joining.
That is an open question. Sulitânia has grown on one piece of land, one shared daily practice. That is where we have built our Lab experience. Cooperatives formed differently, members who live close to each other but not together on one piece of land, communities anchored in a building or a neighbourhood, can also consider federation. Whether that can truly be a Lab, and how, we do not know from experience.
What we do want is to investigate together. When your initiative works in a form different from ours, get in touch. We bring what we know about the federation's discipline, you bring what you know about your form. What emerges, emerges in that conversation, not before.
About twelve weeks from first contact to Charter signing. Three phases: a first real conversation (4 weeks), reading and internally discussing Charter and Practice (4 weeks), signing and attending the first Council (4 weeks).
For some cooperatives it takes longer because internal governance adjustment is needed. For others it can be faster, though the federation does not push for speed. The time it takes to truly decide is usually the time needed to truly be ready.
An annual federation contribution whose scale and structure is set in Council. The first Labs are working this out together, so we cannot name a fixed amount. Federation is built on shared value, not on profit margin.
Beyond the financial contribution, onboarding takes about 6 to 12 weeks of work: setting up your Lab page, integrating with SYFERS registration, presenting at Council. Plus 2 to 4 hours per month for Council participation, varies by activity. No one-time setup fees, no hidden charges.
Stays yours: your land, your members, your finances, your governance at Lab level, your name and identity, your relationships with third parties (funders, partners, neighbours, contracts), your right to leave without penalty.
Changes: you sign the Charter (five principles), you practice open registration via SYFERS, you invest time in federation Council, you commit to consent in federation matters (you can object; you cannot ignore), you pay the annual federation contribution. For the rest the Lab remains the Lab it is.
Yes. The Charter contains a 30-day clause: a Lab can leave within 30 days, no penalty, no negotiation. Your land, members, governance, and all data remain yours.
The federation is structurally different from a franchise or a network that uses lock-in. We would rather see you stay because it works, not because leaving is too expensive. When the federation no longer fits, leaving is the honest choice, and federation discipline protects that.
No. You remain the Lab you are. The federation provides a framework, not a brand replacement. On federation pages your Lab appears under your own name.
A second designation does emerge for specific contexts: member Lab of Syntrociety. When you speak with funders or authorities, that can be a useful addition. When you speak in your own circle, you remain simply yourselves.
Nothing, unless you yourselves change something. Existing relationships remain existing relationships. The federation does not come between you and your partners.
What can happen is that federation positioning opens new relationships that were harder without federation. EU programmes that recognise federation can become more relevant. Researchers using SYFERS data can reach out. This is gain, not loss of existing relationships.
The federation has no fixed minimum size. Sulitânia is relatively small (a handful of core members), and that has not stood in the way of Lab work. What the federation asks is long-term presence and daily practice, not a number of people.
Cooperatives of 4 to 40 members fit within what the federation can currently imagine. Significantly larger than that we have not yet tested. When your group is significantly larger and considering federation, get in touch to investigate whether and how federation fits.
The federation requires no specific legal form. Sulitânia is a Cooperativa Integral, CRL under Portuguese law, but that is how Sulitânia has been formed, not what the federation demands.
What the federation does require is that you are an entity that can sign with legal validity (Charter signing requires legal capacity). Cooperative, association, foundation, or another legal form: all are possible when they fit what you do. The federation adapts; you do not have to change your legal form.
With an email. Write to the federation, describe what you have built and why federation comes to mind. We answer within a week.
What follows is not a sales conversation. We want to understand your work before we offer anything, and you want to understand the federation before you sign anything. We come to you, or you come to Sulitânia, or we begin online when that fits. Twelve weeks later you know whether this fits, or not.
Category 3 · 6 questions
For researchers.
Universities, policy researchers, evaluators, journalists.
Each SYFERS record has a citable URL with persistent identifier. Citation format: Lab name, Document title, SYFERS Repository, [URL], accessed [date].
For longitudinal or cross-Lab studies we also provide aggregated dataset citations. When your research reaches publication level and federation is a source, let us know so we can mutually reference.
CC BY-SA 4.0. That means: use freely, with attribution, and share derivative works under the same terms. No paywall, no login.
For commercial reuse the same licence applies, but we appreciate contact so we understand how federation data travels further. For academic use, citation is sufficient.
Yes, via the federation. We facilitate contact between researchers and Lab members so that requests fit what a Lab can carry. No unannounced visits, no unfiltered interview requests.
Lab members retain the right to decline contact. SYFERS data is public; the people who generate the data are not automatically. A conversation with federation coordination first ensures that research truly happens in dialogue.
Yes. SYFERS preserves all published records with timestamp. Sulitânia now has three years of data: from May 2023 to the present, with daily and weekly registrations.
For longitudinal studies we can deliver data structured for your analysis frame. Ask the federation which datasets are relevant for your research; we can help with setup.
SYFERS methodology is built against specifications of EU research frameworks: ORRI (Open and Responsible Research and Innovation), Horizon Europe Cluster 6 (Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment).
For Living Lab work specifically we follow ENoLL guidelines where relevant, plus our own disciplines for land work and governance tracking. Full methodology documentation is publicly accessible at syfers.eu.
The federation is no ENoLL replacement. ENoLL is the European Living Lab network and does broader coordination. The federation is more specific: a group of Syntropic Living Labs that share a Charter and conduct open research via SYFERS.
A Lab can be a member of both the federation and ENoLL. Federation discipline is stricter (Charter signing, SYFERS registration); ENoLL is broader. For research that touches both networks we are interested in dialogue.
Category 4 · 6 questions
For funders and authorities.
Funders, regulators, visiting officials, EU programme managers.
The federation is in formation as a legal entity. At present it works through Cooperativa Integral Sulitânia, CRL (NIF 518771571) as the signing party. The federation legal form is being prepared in parallel.
What this means for you: contracts and formal relationships are signed via Sulitânia, with explicit mention that transfer or extension to the federation entity follows once that entity is registered. For specific questions about legal coverage, write to the federation.
Directly relevant: EU Mission Soil, Horizon Europe Cluster 6, New European Bauhaus, Portugal 2030, ENEI 2030, Algarve 2030, CLLD/LEADER, EAFRD, EIT Food. SYFERS methodology is built against ORRI specifications so that research can use federation data directly in Horizon applications.
For specific programmes and how the federation fits, we can think along case-specifically. We help Labs and partner organisations with applications where federation data or methodology is relevant.
Not via the usual ESG or impact-investing frames. Federation impact becomes visible via SYFERS: longitudinal data on soil health, biodiversity, governance decisions, member wellbeing, financial flows, energy autonomy.
What sits in an alternative corner (regenerative living, consent-based governance) becomes legible through SYFERS for frames that funders and authorities know, without losing its character. This is the federation's mainstream strategy: hybrid work that is legible in two paradigms at once.
Quadruple helix, four roles around shared territorial work: academia (researchers studying the federation), industry (member Labs doing the work), civil society (Friends and broader community), public authority (open position). Three roles are actively held by the federation; the fourth is open to public-authority participation.
Council works by consent. Each Lab has representation. Decisions affecting all Labs require consent of all Labs. Decisions that are Lab-specific remain Lab-sovereign.
Sulitânia is a Cooperativa Integral, CRL under Portuguese law. Other Portuguese Labs can have the same or a different legal form. The federation adapts to legal context, not the other way around.
For terms such as proteção da confiança, vácuo jurídico, pessoa coletiva, território de baixa densidade, the federation uses Portuguese legal language in its formal documents. For specific legal questions, write to the federation; we work with legal advisors in Algarve and Lisbon.
With legal care and open registration. When a conflict arises, the federation records the facts as they happen in the SYFERS trail. This protects both the federation and the authority; both can verify what actually happened.
The federation does not seek conflict, but does not withdraw either when legal principles (proteção da confiança, boa-fé, property rights) are at stake. Sulitânia has experience with legal context work in the Algarve. When your situation calls for something similar, we can think along.
Category 5 · 5 questions
For visitors and general public.
For those who encounter the federation without a specific position.
A Living Lab is a place or community where people work lifelong on questions that cannot be answered in a laboratory setting: how do you live regeneratively, how do you govern together, how do you regenerate land in collaboration with seasons.
A Syntropic Living Lab is the more specific federation form: Living Lab work anchored in syntropic thinking (wholeness, connection, living systems). Sulitânia is the first Syntropic Living Lab; more Labs are welcome in the federation as they sign Charter and Practice.
Three things distinguish the federation: open research (SYFERS makes each Lab academically legible), shared Charter (five principles bind Labs without determining their form), and mainstream strategy (federation positions regenerative work in EU frameworks without giving up its character).
Other ecovillages can have one or more of these; the federation has all three as structural discipline. This does not distinguish who is better, but who can be a federation.
Becoming mainstream without losing the regenerative substance. The work that Sulitânia and other Labs do, regenerative living, consent-based governance, integral cooperative practice, sits in what institutions call an alternative corner. Through SYFERS and federation discipline this work becomes legible to EU frameworks, researchers and authorities without having to change its character.
Not as compromise. As hybrid strategy. The federation is built to make this possible: instruments that work in two paradigms at the same time (boundary objects in research language), so that regenerative work does not have to choose between staying authentic and becoming institutionally legible.
Sulitânia receives visitors via the Friends programme and organised moments. No unannounced visits; do welcome moments where visitors truly come into contact with land, life, governance.
A Sulitânia page is in preparation where visit possibilities are described specifically. Until then, write to Sulitânia or become a Friend of the federation.
Become a Friend. The Friends programme supports the federation financially and with attention. A portion of each contribution goes to Labs that host Friends, per overnight visit or per other agreed form.
Being a Friend is not membership but a connection. Friends receive federation updates, get priority for Sulitânia visits, and support work that would otherwise be more dependent on EU funding. For those who take the federation seriously without being able to be a Lab themselves, this is the place.
What if your question is not here?
Write to the federation. We answer within a week. Good questions are, when relevant for others, eventually added to this page.
→ Write to the federationQuestion missing? Write to us, briefly, and we'll add it here if it's the kind of question that comes up more than once.