Stimpunks is a design system for building environments where diverse minds can thrive.

If you’re new to the project, this page will help you understand how everything fits together in a few minutes.

The basic idea is simple:

Many neurodivergent struggles are not individual failures.
They are signals that environments were not designed for cognitive diversity.

Stimpunks explores how those environments can change.

The Core Idea

The Stimpunks framework transforms lived experience into design knowledge.

experience
↓
friction
↓
pattern
↓
recipe
↓
environment
↓
civilization

Each layer builds on the one before it.

See:

• The Stimpunks Design System
• The Neurodivergent Design Field Guide

Step 1: Understand Neurodivergent Experience

The system begins with lived experience.

These pages describe how different environments feel to neurodivergent people.

Examples include:

• Deep Attention
• Attention Capture
• Parallel Presence
• Sensory Overload
• Social Exhaustion

These experiences reveal where environments create friction.

Step 2: Learn the Core Patterns

Patterns describe recurring structures behind neurodivergent experiences.

They explain why certain problems appear repeatedly in many environments.

Start here:

• Core Patterns of Neurodivergent Life
• Pattern Library

Examples of patterns include:

• Monotropism
• Sensory Load
• Processing Time
• Burnout Threshold
• Context Switching Cost

Patterns form the knowledge base of the system.

Step 3: Explore Design Recipes

Recipes translate patterns into practical changes.

They describe how environments can be redesigned.

Examples include:

• Designing Attention Sanctuaries
• Designing Sensory-Safe Spaces
• Designing Flexible Participation
• Designing Monotropic Workflows
• Designing Recovery Cycles

See:

• Pattern Recipes

Step 4: See the Environments

Recipes combine to form environments.

Examples include:

• Neurodivergent Homes
• Neurodivergent Workplaces
• Neurodivergent Libraries
• Neurodivergent Learning Ecosystems
• Neurodivergent Cities

One experimental environment combining many of these ideas is:

• Cavendish Space

Step 5: Explore the Big Picture

When these design ideas scale across institutions, they begin to reshape society.

Stimpunks explores what a neurodivergent-friendly civilization might look like.

See:

• Designing a Neurodivergent Civilization
• The Architecture of Neurodivergent Civilization
• The Neurodivergent Civilization Atlas
• The Future of Neurodivergent Civilization

🧭 The Stimpunks Design Method: ARLES

A field guide for understanding and changing neurodivergent environments.

---

The Five Questions

Attention
How does this mind work?
→ Where does attention flow or break?

Relational
How do people connect and regulate?
→ Is there safety, consent, and co-regulation?

Lived Experience
What is actually happening?
→ What does this feel like in real conditions?

Environment
What conditions are shaping this?
→ What can be changed right now?

Systems
What structures must change?
→ What would prevent this from happening again?

Better questions change what we design—and what becomes possible.

---

The Flow

Attention → Relational (incl. Regulation) → Lived Experience → Environment → Systems → Repeat

---

The Practice Loop

1. Notice friction
2. Name the pattern
3. Apply a design move
4. Adjust the environment
5. Change the system

The Practice Loop is Design Questioning in action.

---

Use This When

• Someone is overwhelmed
• A system isn’t working
• A space feels unsafe
• Participation breaks down
• Burnout is happening

---

Core Principle

If it’s not working, it’s not the person.
It’s the environment, the relationships, or the system.

---

Start Here

• Patterns → /patterns/library/
• Recipes → /patterns/recipes/
• Environments → /environments/
• Design → /design/

---

Stimpunks.org
Designing a world where different minds are expected.

⚡ Use This Method

When something isn’t working, move through these questions.

1. Attention
   How does this mind work?
   → Where does attention flow or break?
2. Relational
   How do people connect and regulate?
   → Is there co-regulation, or pressure to perform?
3. Lived Experience
   What is actually happening?
   → What does it feel like in real conditions?
4. Environment
   What conditions are shaping this?
   → What can be changed right now?
5. Systems
   What structures must change?
   → What would prevent this from happening again?

Then:

• Identify friction
• Select patterns
• Apply design recipes
• Adapt the environment
• Scale through systems

Friction → Patterns → Design → Environment → Systems → Iterate

Where to Go Next

If you’re new to neurodiversity

Start with:

• Start Here
• Everyday Neurodivergent Realities

If you want to understand the design framework

Read:

• The Stimpunks Design Method
• The Neurodivergent Design System
• The Neurodivergent Design Methodology

If you want practical tools

Explore:

• Pattern Recipes
• Designing Neurodivergent Environments

If you’re exploring the bigger vision

See:

• The Neurodivergent Civilization Project
• The Neurodivergent Commons
• The Neurodivergent Renaissance

One More Thing

The Stimpunks project is not finished.

It is an evolving knowledge ecosystem built through collaboration and experimentation.

New patterns, recipes, environments, and ideas continue to emerge as people explore what it means to design for diverse minds.

You can help shape that future.