Services 2020

"For most of my life I owned very little. Until I was 30 I was a vagabond. I wandered remote parts of Asia in cheap sneakers and worn jeans. The cities I knew best brimmed in medieval richness; the lands were green in agricultural outlook. When I reached for something in those days it was almost surely made of wood, fiber or stone. I ate with my hands, trekked on foot through mountain valleys, and slept wherever. I carried very little money and even less stuff. My personal possessions totaled up to a sleeping bag and some cameras."

Local Sydney futures guy. 

"Marianne Maeckelbergh: "In this brief article I would like to summarise some alternative approaches to 'knowing' that I have encountered through activism and anthropological fieldwork within the alterglobalization movement. Specifically I will address four assumptions about knowledge found within the alterglobalization movement that diverge considerably from 'standard' assumptions. First, the idea that knowledge is collectively constructed. Second, that knowledge is context specific, partial and provisional. Third, that a distinction must be made between knowing something and knowing better. Finally, I describe the idea that ignorance is useful. First, however, it is necessary to briefly describe the context within which these alternatives are emerging and the type of knowledge that they resist."

"Approval of Bolivia's revolutionary 'Mother Earth' law is an historic step by social movements in a long struggle for real ecological transformation of their economy and society."

"During the one-day session on April 19 at the AutoDesk Gallery, experts, researchers, and guests explored the many different frontiers where 3D printing and open manufacturing are changing the way that things are made. Among the topics that were explored were:"

"The digital peasants are getting restless. The first signs of unrest are evident in the stirrings of the bloggers filing a suit against the Huffington Post and its parent AOL, which acquired the publication in February for $315 million. The same writers who were happy to contribute for free before the sale are now accusing the publication of turning them into "modern-day slaves on Arianna Huffington's plantation." The suit claims that about 9,000 people wrote for the Huffington Post on an unpaid basis, and it argues that their writings helped contribute about a third of the sale value of the site. These bloggers weren't paid a single penny in the sale-the money went mostly to Huffington and a few investors. "

"Rebellious Media Conference logoA corporate media group has trademarked the phrase "Radical Media" and has issued a cease and desist letter to activists using it in the title of their conference, which takes place in London later this year."

" LDCs: Least Developed, Most to Gain. Least Developed Countries (LDCs) rank among the world's poorest, exhibiting low health and education indicators and high economic vulnerability. LDCs also make up more than half of the world's countries - the majority of which are in Africa, followed by Asia - comprising over 800 million people. The United Nations describes the Least Developed Countries as "the poorest and the most vulnerable segment of humanity at the very epicentre of the developmental emergency", but with only a few countries "graduated" from LDC status in the last decade, the plight of the Least Developed Countries is as pressing as ever."

This is the .org sister publication of the "Theconversation.edu,au" website.

Cascio does a bit of analysis on the Knight-Ridder tablet newspaper project and talks about why futures get ignored.

everybody saw this video, but it's still relevant.

"This illustrates the lesson that access to information doesn't necessarily encourage proactive action."

"With little fanfare, the State Department has abandoned America.gov - an ambitious digital project launched three years ago to promote Democracy abroad - and shifted its resources to social media projects."

Mosman council in Sydney offers open datasets to the public.