Thank you for this! The concept works because so many people truly love helping others. It was wonderful to read that a network of businesses and people exist who, together, make repair cafes work.
So totally cool! I just checked out www.FoodHackathon.com. I'd love to find out more how the this past weekend's event turned out. Thank you for the post.
Thank you, Mira. Love your ideas and the photographs. When I was a kid my dad hiked through the Sierras to raise money for a cause, my husband and I camped in the Grand Canyon for our honeymoon, and this Spring break my family had a staycation. We biked, hiked, cooked, and spent time with neighbors. Happy travels.
Best, Heather Villa
I'm happy to see an article about Ann Arbor on Shareable. The cooperative movement has strong roots here, and I'm glad people have a chance to learn about them! However, I'd like to echo Carolyn's comments and dispute the alleged lack of radicals in the Inter-Cooperative Council. Perhaps my opinions are skewed by the houses I've lived in (Black Elk and Debs) and my involvement on the Board of Directors, but I have encountered many co-opers who are passionate about social justice issues and who put in hours of work to keep the oppressive forces of capitalism out of our houses.
Additionally, part of our mission is to educate students about the cooperative movement, and I think it's to our benefit that the majority of our new members are uninitiated. It gives us an excellent opportunity to inspire students to become more involved in the cooperative movement. To that end, we revamped our educational programming this year to place more emphasis on cooperative principles during new member orientations, and our officer trainings now include social justice workshops.
At some point we even tried doing live stream and share recordings of our preparation conference calls. At this moment with only 4 weeks left it becomes more hard to do similar but I hope in a future we can give it another try and have all the process even more transparent and open for everyone to get involved :) http://youtu.be/eelq-D_0W5U - OuiShare Fest Program #1 (Feb 25th, 17:00UTC)
Cooperative are the next big thing for workers. They don't have to worry about lay-offs. I've been a member of a cooperative in our place and our concern is about encouraging people to read mystery books and novels.
Certainly the author can understand how troubling it is when someone enters our community and declares it un-radical based on her perception of what a cooperative should be. God forbid that in an economically depressed region, "serious students" study hard in order to pay off loans and enter careers that will support them (surely you recognize that absurd loan debt is not a problem unique to U-M).
As a member of the ICC, I appreciate that my housemates are grounded and hardworking. The radicalness of the ICC comes from its ability to provide reasonably-priced living in Ann Arbor's increasingly exclusive housing market, while giving residents comradery and agency. I am also involved in the Free Skool (I teach that Spanish class you refer to), but it does not provide essential services and thus in my view does not affect the quality of life of people in the area as much as the ICC.
Insensitivity to class issues pervades your article. Of course the Ann Arbor townies, who tend to be wealthy, have great social capital, and have little preoccupation with loans, are able to start initiatives such as Selma Cafe. Those of us who can't afford to be so radical, though, are going to keep doing our homework, looking for jobs, and contributing in our own ways to the southeastern Michigan community.
I'm surprised to hear the writer didn't find more of the sharing mentality in the ICC. My time at Debs Co-op exposed me to this style of thoughtful and "shareable" community living and community decision-making that shaped my mindset for many years to come. Maybe this was a result of the wonderful people I happened to live with, but I hope that mentality is still thriving in Ann Arbor's cooperative housing system.
Google Reader’s Death Is Proof That RSS Always Suffered From Lack Of Consumer Appeal
The idea of RSS was one that never quite gripped with normal Internet users.
Google Reader was just a glorified email inbox. Sure, you could skim news quickly from your favorite blogs, but it lacked any other wow factor for people that actually matter. Additionally, it was nearly impossible to monetize, as the same argument about ads in RSS feeds would get the same three geeks angry each time.
Sure, for us geeks at social seo land absolutely love consuming as much information as possible, RSS is a wonderland
The push to regulate credit unions is not helping the consumer because they'll still need the access to credit to pay the bills, whether it's through the payday lender, the bank, or the credit union. Instead, banning or capping payday lenders facilitates a windfall for these very banks and credit unions to move in and pick up where the http://northenloans.ca/ left off. This is just one of the many many examples of how big business weaponizes our democracy against its competition.
Coops give workers control over their work environment and decisions impacting them, likely reducing their stress levels and improving health and longevity. Here is a movie about how social and work hierarchies induce stress and health problems http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/stress-portrait-of-a-killer/.
That is a good question. Carl had a P.O. Box while he was living out of his vehicle.. and in fact, still has the same PO box even though he now has a permanent street address. So at the time, it worked for him. I was not aware of the (possible) new USPS policy. I wonder why they would do that? One solution would be to get a PO box at a mailroom rather than the USPS.. they are a bit more expensive than your PO box, unfortunately, but at least you could still get your mail. Or.. use a friend's address... ?
thanks for your feature of the Dispatchwork project! www.Dispatchwork.info - the virtual place to record, share, and enjoy Dispatchwork.
Also, please note the website: whenandwhere.org is the web based resource for learning about, preparing, and executing your own Dispatchwork mission!
Concerning your article and the posted links, dear Kelly, I find it a bit misleading. I hope you understand, we have created the Dispatchwork project in countles hours in a collaborative effort of many people worldwide! The Project is free for anyone to join and recreate, yet we have not created the definition you are quoting from a website we have never heard of, which claims to be what Dispatchwork.info and whenandwhere.org already provides.
Excellent article! I just went through an amazing example of this.
One thing that we often overlook in collaborative processes is the value of the interpersonal bonds that form in trust-based activities. These can eventually far outweigh the value of a great outcome from a specific decision-making process. In fact, going through the experience together of almost failing or failing outright can be among the most rewarding experiences we ever have, and the relationships forged in those fires go deeper than most. The secret is to come out the other end with trust intact.
Thank you! I'm going to spend some time digging in here if the material is of this quality.
Re the claim that technological change drives social change:
This only happens when the tech change aligns with preexisting unmet need for interpersonal connection that social change will facilitate. Otherwise, either social change doesn't happen or the technology gains no traction. Tech facilitates social change driven by the need to connect.
Ironically, regarding tech as a social change driver is a symptom of precisely the tech-over-humanity reversal that Rushkoff give examples of earlier in the interview, i.e., Chronos vs. Kairos and informationism as in "looking at the information but missing the humanity."
To say that tech "drives" social change is putting the cart before the horse AND putting horse and cart before both production and demand. Need to connect drives beneficial social change, tech-enabled or not. Need to disconnect and fragment drives destructive social change, tech-enabled or not. The drives that produce social change revolve originate from the human need for or fear of connection. When new tech capabilities meet latent need for connection that social change would facilitate, social change occurs driven by the need to connect taking advantage of the tech opportunity.
Apologies for the "internal server error" message that Sven is referring to. We're aiming to have a redesigned Shareable launched by the end of June. We've got details about our plan at this link: http://www.shareable.net/blog/a-plan-for-shareable-20-what-do-you-think (it includes links to the focus groups that we conducted with our readers to prioritize which changes you most wanted us to make). So, yes, we should be able to resolve that problem within about two months.
Thank you for this! The concept works because so many people truly love helping others. It was wonderful to read that a network of businesses and people exist who, together, make repair cafes work.
So totally cool! I just checked out www.FoodHackathon.com. I'd love to find out more how the this past weekend's event turned out. Thank you for the post.
Another banner with some related memes
http://nomadbase.org/
http://www.shareable.net/blog/every-guest-a-host-inside-a-nomad-base
Thank you, Mira. Love your ideas and the photographs. When I was a kid my dad hiked through the Sierras to raise money for a cause, my husband and I camped in the Grand Canyon for our honeymoon, and this Spring break my family had a staycation. We biked, hiked, cooked, and spent time with neighbors. Happy travels.
Best, Heather Villa
Really when someone doesn't know then its up to other users that they will help, so here it takes place.
Thank you for this very informative and useful post....
I'm happy to see an article about Ann Arbor on Shareable. The cooperative movement has strong roots here, and I'm glad people have a chance to learn about them! However, I'd like to echo Carolyn's comments and dispute the alleged lack of radicals in the Inter-Cooperative Council. Perhaps my opinions are skewed by the houses I've lived in (Black Elk and Debs) and my involvement on the Board of Directors, but I have encountered many co-opers who are passionate about social justice issues and who put in hours of work to keep the oppressive forces of capitalism out of our houses.
Additionally, part of our mission is to educate students about the cooperative movement, and I think it's to our benefit that the majority of our new members are uninitiated. It gives us an excellent opportunity to inspire students to become more involved in the cooperative movement. To that end, we revamped our educational programming this year to place more emphasis on cooperative principles during new member orientations, and our officer trainings now include social justice workshops.
- A Serious Student & Radical
At some point we even tried doing live stream and share recordings of our preparation conference calls. At this moment with only 4 weeks left it becomes more hard to do similar but I hope in a future we can give it another try and have all the process even more transparent and open for everyone to get involved :)
http://youtu.be/eelq-D_0W5U - OuiShare Fest Program #1 (Feb 25th, 17:00UTC)
Cooperative are the next big thing for workers. They don't have to worry about lay-offs. I've been a member of a cooperative in our place and our concern is about encouraging people to read mystery books and novels.
Certainly the author can understand how troubling it is when someone enters our community and declares it un-radical based on her perception of what a cooperative should be. God forbid that in an economically depressed region, "serious students" study hard in order to pay off loans and enter careers that will support them (surely you recognize that absurd loan debt is not a problem unique to U-M).
As a member of the ICC, I appreciate that my housemates are grounded and hardworking. The radicalness of the ICC comes from its ability to provide reasonably-priced living in Ann Arbor's increasingly exclusive housing market, while giving residents comradery and agency. I am also involved in the Free Skool (I teach that Spanish class you refer to), but it does not provide essential services and thus in my view does not affect the quality of life of people in the area as much as the ICC.
Insensitivity to class issues pervades your article. Of course the Ann Arbor townies, who tend to be wealthy, have great social capital, and have little preoccupation with loans, are able to start initiatives such as Selma Cafe. Those of us who can't afford to be so radical, though, are going to keep doing our homework, looking for jobs, and contributing in our own ways to the southeastern Michigan community.
I'm surprised to hear the writer didn't find more of the sharing mentality in the ICC. My time at Debs Co-op exposed me to this style of thoughtful and "shareable" community living and community decision-making that shaped my mindset for many years to come. Maybe this was a result of the wonderful people I happened to live with, but I hope that mentality is still thriving in Ann Arbor's cooperative housing system.
Santa Cruz is full of vehicle dwellers, and Route 1 is lined with them during the warmer months, especially.
Finding San Diego, Miami, and Austin in the top 10 is refreshing albeit a wee bit stunning
http://searchengineland.blog.com
Google Reader’s Death Is Proof That RSS Always Suffered From Lack Of Consumer Appeal
The idea of RSS was one that never quite gripped with normal Internet users.
Google Reader was just a glorified email inbox. Sure, you could skim news quickly from your favorite blogs, but it lacked any other wow factor for people that actually matter. Additionally, it was nearly impossible to monetize, as the same argument about ads in RSS feeds would get the same three geeks angry each time.
Sure, for us geeks at social seo land absolutely love consuming as much information as possible, RSS is a wonderland
http://searchengineland.blog.com/
The push to regulate credit unions is not helping the consumer because they'll still need the access to credit to pay the bills, whether it's through the payday lender, the bank, or the credit union. Instead, banning or capping payday lenders facilitates a windfall for these very banks and credit unions to move in and pick up where the http://northenloans.ca/ left off. This is just one of the many many examples of how big business weaponizes our democracy against its competition.
Coops give workers control over their work environment and decisions impacting them, likely reducing their stress levels and improving health and longevity. Here is a movie about how social and work hierarchies induce stress and health problems http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/stress-portrait-of-a-killer/.
Hardware open source is really interesting. It's good to see organizations like HFD and OSHWA organizing events.
Never heard of taskrabbits before. That's really interesting! Definitely takes craigslist to another level.
Hi Kevin, Thanks for reading!
That is a good question. Carl had a P.O. Box while he was living out of his vehicle.. and in fact, still has the same PO box even though he now has a permanent street address. So at the time, it worked for him. I was not aware of the (possible) new USPS policy. I wonder why they would do that? One solution would be to get a PO box at a mailroom rather than the USPS.. they are a bit more expensive than your PO box, unfortunately, but at least you could still get your mail. Or.. use a friend's address... ?
Great article! And something seriously comforting to keep in the back of my mind in case I need it.
One question: what about mail delivery? The USPS is trying to make it impossible to get a PO Box without proof of a permanent street address.
Hi there,
thanks for your feature of the Dispatchwork project! www.Dispatchwork.info - the virtual place to record, share, and enjoy Dispatchwork.
Also, please note the website: whenandwhere.org is the web based resource for learning about, preparing, and executing your own Dispatchwork mission!
Concerning your article and the posted links, dear Kelly, I find it a bit misleading. I hope you understand, we have created the Dispatchwork project in countles hours in a collaborative effort of many people worldwide! The Project is free for anyone to join and recreate, yet we have not created the definition you are quoting from a website we have never heard of, which claims to be what Dispatchwork.info and whenandwhere.org already provides.
Maybe you should fix that, and in return quote from here: http://www.dispatchwork.info/manifesto/
Cheers,
Jan Vormann
Excellent article! I just went through an amazing example of this.
One thing that we often overlook in collaborative processes is the value of the interpersonal bonds that form in trust-based activities. These can eventually far outweigh the value of a great outcome from a specific decision-making process. In fact, going through the experience together of almost failing or failing outright can be among the most rewarding experiences we ever have, and the relationships forged in those fires go deeper than most. The secret is to come out the other end with trust intact.
Thank you! I'm going to spend some time digging in here if the material is of this quality.
Re the claim that technological change drives social change:
This only happens when the tech change aligns with preexisting unmet need for interpersonal connection that social change will facilitate. Otherwise, either social change doesn't happen or the technology gains no traction. Tech facilitates social change driven by the need to connect.
Ironically, regarding tech as a social change driver is a symptom of precisely the tech-over-humanity reversal that Rushkoff give examples of earlier in the interview, i.e., Chronos vs. Kairos and informationism as in "looking at the information but missing the humanity."
To say that tech "drives" social change is putting the cart before the horse AND putting horse and cart before both production and demand. Need to connect drives beneficial social change, tech-enabled or not. Need to disconnect and fragment drives destructive social change, tech-enabled or not. The drives that produce social change revolve originate from the human need for or fear of connection. When new tech capabilities meet latent need for connection that social change would facilitate, social change occurs driven by the need to connect taking advantage of the tech opportunity.
Apologies for the "internal server error" message that Sven is referring to. We're aiming to have a redesigned Shareable launched by the end of June. We've got details about our plan at this link: http://www.shareable.net/blog/a-plan-for-shareable-20-what-do-you-think (it includes links to the focus groups that we conducted with our readers to prioritize which changes you most wanted us to make). So, yes, we should be able to resolve that problem within about two months.