Stumbled upon World Changing, a project founded by Alex Steffen and Jamais Cascio (with Lief Utne as editor), and thought it was cool. Here is their manifesto:WorldChanging.com works from a simple premise: that the tools, models and ideas for building a better future lie all around us. That plenty of people are working on tools for change, but the fields in which they work remain unconnected. That the motive, means and opportunity for profound positive change are already present. That another world is not just possible, it's here. We only need to put the pieces together.Certainly, this is a project rooted in the sensitive self of the "cultural creatives," but they are focused on attainable goals for people who feel that they can have an impact on the world. This is to be admired and supported from my point of view.
Informed by that premise, we do our best to bring you links to (and analysis of) those tools, models and ideas in a timely and concise manner. We don't do negative reviews – why waste your time with what doesn't work? We don't offer critiques or exposes, except to the extent that such information may be necessary for the general reader to apprehend the usefulness of a particular tool or resource. We don't generally offer links to resources which are about problems and not solutions, unless the resource is so insightful that its very existence is a step towards a solution. We pay special attention to tools, ideas and models that may have been overlooked in the mass media. We make a point of showing ways in which seemingly unconnected resources link together to form a toolkit for changing the world.
Every link we post is informed by technology, but the new possibilities we cover aren't just high-tech. Sure, we all need to understand the uses (and dangers) of advances like biotechnology, the Internet, ubiquitous computing, artificial intelligences, "open source" software and nano-materials. But we also need to know how best to collaborate, how to build coalitions and movements, how to grow communities, how to make our businesses live up to their highest potential and how to make the promise of democracy into a reality. We need to understand techniques as well as technologies, ideas as well as innovations. How we work together is as important as the tools we use.
This is a conversation, not a sermon. We encourage not just feedback, but active participation, and, yes, challenge. Got a great idea for a resource we've missed? Let us know – better yet, write your own recommendation and send it to us. Think we're off-base with a recommendation we've made? Let us know that, too, and what resource you think we should have covered instead. Changing the world is a team sport.
We need more people with their hearts in the right place who are willing to get involved with change, rather than just talking about it. Maybe their project will fail, but maybe they will succeed magnificently.
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