community action

Conserving Natural Wealth

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Problem: 

 At the heart of preservation of the natural world is the conservation of our earth’s diminishing biodiversity, which could also be described as ‘natural wealth’. It is this biodiversity that has provided us with the sustenance and material support that has allowed us to shape our world, from the most basic processes such as oxygen supply to the formation of minerals essential for the production of complex modern equipment. The power that this natural wealth afforded us has become its greatest threat. In addition to the essential provision of food, fuel, building materials, clean water and air, a specific region’s biodiversity is often the cornerstone of its cultural identity. While it is problematic to quantify the rate of biodiversity loss, it has become increasingly evident in the broader context of widespread habitat loss, the true toll of which we cannot even begin to fathom. There are of course complex threats to biodiversity, such as the harvesting of wild plants and animals for research in order to find commercially valuable genetic and biochemical material, also known as ‘bioprospecting’. Such industries should be allowed to operate only within defined frameworks that are designed in conjunction with conservation objectives. The capital and expertise for such an industry most often originates from more developed countries, while their target areas will be in considerably underdeveloped regions of developing nations. This reality highlights the need for strong community organisations and heightened civic intelligence, particularly in these biodiversity ‘hotspots’, which are at risk not only from external exploitation of natural resources but also the wrong kinds of development.

Context: 

 

 

Discussion: 

The key areas of focus would be to strengthen communities in several ways, most importantly their understanding of their natural wealth, including its vulnerabilities, their ability to make decisions collectively and their capacity to communicate with other parties that can assist them in the preservation of this natural wealth. Civic intelligence is an important foundation in such circumstances, especially given the wide range of opportunities for more prominent community members to accrue disproportional financial benefits from what are, at best, collectively owned resources.

Pattern Sets: 
Preserving the Natural World

Addressing Socio-economic Disparities

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Problem: 

In my experience, most of the problems that arise in community decision making, particularly when natural resources are concerned, stem from basic disparities within the community. Often one part of the community feels like it has historically had less of a ‘share’ in something and thus pushes a more extreme agenda, sometimes only to antagonise those that they consider to have benefitted disproportionately. When considering a specific region, it becomes necessary to take into account these disparities and enact measures that create, or at least create the illusion of, a level playing field. In less-developed areas with important natural wealth, it is crucial to define collective ownership and responsibility at the earliest possible time. It is within an organisation that these disparities can be addressed gradually and systems put in place to ensure balance, particularly where the allocation of funds is concerned. One system that has worked in my experience is defining clearly the development objectives of various areas and prioritising them numerically relative to objectively considered needs so that when funds are available to the organisation there is little room for argument, given that the priorities have been previously agreed upon in the the absence of funds, the arrival of which are often a source of great tension. 

 

There is an old saying in the Samburu language which translates as ‘a decision made by few is more effective than one made by many’. While this may seem to directly contradict the idea of collective decision making, it stresses the need for unity amongst the community and the careful choice of leadership. Once a certain leadership system is established they should be allowed greater freedom to make and implement their decisions. This brings us back to civic intelligence and the importance of defining clear overlying objectives that are permanent guidelines even though leaders may change.

 

We must define the principles on which we intend to develop, against which we may analyse a particular case. Principles could include environmental preservation, cultural preservation and equitable distribution of wealth but would be specific to a particular area and its features. 

Inteligencia Cívica

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Spanish translations of Liberating Voices card verbiage
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Verbiage for pattern card: 

Inteligencia cívica describe que tan bien grupos de personas persiguen fines cívicos a través de medios cívicos.  Inteligencia Cívica hace la pregunta crítica: Es la sociedad suficientemente inteligente para afrontar los desafíos que se le presentan?  La inteligencia cívica requiere aprendizaje y enseñanza. También requiere meta-cognición – el pensar y realmente mejorar como pensamos y trabajamos juntos.

Discerning Opportunities

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Prateek Trivedi
Version: 
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Problem: 

Modern development can take many forms including technological advancement, economic development or improved technical expertise. The most visible form of development, however is the construction of buildings and shops. In Samburu County in Kenya, for example, many view construction as the first step to financial prosperity and many have secured plots of land in order to hastily begin building, particularly along the recently-tarmacced main road towards Ethiopia. As existing towns expand, these ghostly clusters of half-finished concrete buildings mark the beginnings of what could quite soon be a devastating urban sprawl. 

The Isiolo-Moyale road has been under construction for a few years, with the Samburu section from Isiolo to Merille completed in 2010. The region has experienced a surge of development and and while there may not be a great deal of land suitable for farming, the northern part of Kenya is of growing interest to industrial entities, particularly those in the mining and energy sectors.

In addition to construction, there is the distinct possibility of mining operations being expanded into areas that have so far remained in a natural state, particularly with the increasing prevalence of rare earth metals in consumer products. As China comes to terms with the severe environmental damage that has resulted from its provision of as much as 97% of the world's rare earth metal demand, other nations have been realizing plans to end their dependence on Chinese supply, which has considerable implications for the environment.

 

 

Context: 

It is a common opinion that the northern rangelands are barren and therefore ripe for exploitation, however they hold a great deal of natural wealth and can support far more than they appear to. The individualistic trend of the modern society has had a detrimental effect on the land and I would argue that for any positive development to occur on a significant scale, communities must operate with a heightened civic intelligence, discerning between opportunities that will bring net benefit in the longer term. 

Discussion: 

In the case of communally-owned lands, there should be strong organization and established processes to discern between the development opportunities that are brought to their respective area and rather than being distracted by the promise of immediate financial gain, an opportunity should be set against defined principles and assessed objectively. 

 

Development opportunities are most often defined monetarily and are only marginally influenced by the communities that they will affect. In order to discern between positive and negative opportunities, we must define the principles on which we intend to develop, against which we may analyze a particular case. Principles could include environmental preservation, cultural preservation and equitable distribution of wealth but would be specific to a particular area and its features. 

Street Music

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Douglas Schuler
The Public Sphere Project
Celebration of Public Music
Version: 
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Problem: 

(note that the Problem Statement is still in work.....)

Music, including singing as well as the playing of instruments, has been a key element of the human condition for millennia. Unfortunately -- at least in the United States -- music has become more of a commodity, to be enjoyed passively and non-interactively. 

The rise of mass media is probably at least one of the culprits. 

Context: 

(note that the Context Statement is still in work.....)

Discussion: 

(note that the Discussion is still in work.....)

Street Music blurs the distinction between producer and consumer of music as well as the distinction between formal and informal venues for music production and consumption. 

Although street bands, including many of those found at Honk Fests, can be found at protests (including the Infernal Noise Machine (image below) that supported the demonstrations against the World Trade Organization in Seattle in 1999), their actions are often political to a large degree by virtue of their publicness in an era of electronic or other formalized or mediated forms of music consumption. 

See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-MLvzLlou4 for Environmental Encroachment's performance of Hashia.

 

Thanks to a member of the Bucharest Drinking Team and to Bob of Environmental Encroachment for their thoughts on the current breed of "new street bands" including their history and motivation. 

Solution: 

 

Solution in work:

something about establishing and supporting street music. More and more and more of it....

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orientation
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engagement
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social
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products
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Social Critique
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Community Action
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Social Movement
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Media Critique
Information about introductory graphic: 
Photo of Church, a marching band from Santa Rosa, California. Shot by Douglas Schuler, June 1, 2012. Georgetown (Seattle, WA)
Information about summary graphic: 

Infernal Noise Machine, Seattle Washington

Street Newspapers

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Douglas Schuler
Version: 
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Discussion: 

The homeless newspaper movement is active in many cities around the world. Although it takes different forms in different cities, the basic model is the same: The newspaper concentrates on issues of homelessness and poverty, two subjects that are not likely to be covered sensitively or in much depth by mainstream media. Beyond that the newspaper is often actively engaged in the struggle for the rights of poor people and engages poor people and their communities in every aspect of the newspaper production and distribution. The Real Change weekly newspaper in Seattle is sold by people who are homeless or otherwise in underprivileged positions for $2.00 and receive $1.40 plus tips for each paper sold.

Categories: 
orientation
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organization
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engagement
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social
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products
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Research for Action
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Education
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Economics
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Policy
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Social Critique
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Community Action
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Social Movement
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Case Studies
Verbiage for pattern card: 

The homeless newspaper movement is active in many cities around the world. Although it takes different forms in different cities, the basic model is the same: The newspaper concentrates on issues of homelessness and poverty, two subjects that are likely to be covered sensitively or in much depth by mainstream media. Beyond that the newspaper is often actively engaged in the struggle for the rights of poor people and engages poor people and their communities in every aspect of the newspaper production and distribution. The Real Change weekly newspaper in Seattle is sold by people who are homeless or otherwise in underprivileged positions for $2.00 and receive $1.40 plus tips for each paper sold.

Information about introductory graphic: 
From Real Change Newspaper web site, <a href="http://www.realchangenews.org/">right here</a>

True Pro Family Policies

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Group Name: 
PTPH Group 4
Hannah Moats
Jerome Wilen
Version: 
2
Discussion: 

Women supposedly have a choice to keep or terminate pregnancies. But do we really? Our society is structured in ways which promote male-oriented policies. These structures do now allow pregnancies to be anything other than career inhibiting, economically arresting, and eliminating of a women’s ability to continue or complete her education. It is time to implement approaches which encourage women to pursue pregnancy, should they desire it. These programs should include:

  • paid maternity leave,
  • reduced costs for pregnancy, natal, and toddler medical care,
  • reduced costs for childcare,
  • safer and more varied childcare options programs which realistically allow for women to pursue their education while the parent of a young child or infant,
  • encouraging adoption as an option for pregnant individuals and for individuals wishing to become parents,
  • encouraging the placement and support of foster children, and
  • when possible, encouraging the involvement of fathers and extended family in early childcare.
Information about introductory graphic: 
http://www.schsa.org/PublicHealth/mainpages/healthCareProviders/index.html

Local Knowledge

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Pattern ID: 
728
Pattern number within this pattern set: 
728
Douglas Schuler
Public Sphere Project (CPSR)
Version: 
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Problem: 

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Context: 

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Discussion: 

This pattern is still in an exploratory stage. It will contain ideas  from Street Science by Jason Corburn, Local Knowledge in the Age of Globalization by Anne Fischel and Lin Nelson, and "Improving Civic Intelligence for Habitat Protection & Rehabilitation" by Prateek Trivedi.

This is from Prateek's report: 

When considering the application of any ‘modern’ or scientific environmental management, one must take into account the indigenous knowledge of the resident communities. As Alison Field-Juma wrote, “Re-examination of indigenous natural resource management systems has shown that far from being static they have embodied the responsiveness, resilience and complexity of the ecology upon which they are based.”

Solution: 

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Pattern status: 
Released

Sousveillance

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Pattern ID: 
386
Pattern number within this pattern set: 
386
Bryan
Douglas Schuler
Public Sphere Project
Version: 
1
Problem: 

"One of the fundamental contrasts between free democratic societies and totalitarian systems is that the totalitarian government [or other totalitarian organization] relies on secrecy for the regime but high surveillance and disclosure for all other groups, whereas in the civic culture of liberal democracy, the position is approximately the reverse." -- Professor Geoffrey de Q Walker, now dean of law at Queensland University in Australia.

Over the past two decades, surveillance has permeated society in ways that only Orwell could have imagined. The increasingly low costs of electronics and data storage coupled with scare tactics like terrorism have given governments worldwide the green light to put public and private spaces under their eye. During 2008 alone, Sprint gave location data of their users over to law enforcement a total of eight million times.  The surveillance infrastructure is owned and controlled primarily by those with political and class privilege. This creates a situation where people can be watched but cannot "watch the watchers". As a result, the accountability of police, politicians, and other authority figures decreases.

Context: 

In any political / social context, from a liberal democracy to an authoritarian government. Sousveillance in a democratiic (or quasi-democratic) country is particularly important in times of overzealous governmental secrecy, propensity towards surveillance, and increasing political repression.

Discussion: 

"Steve Mann presents the notion of sousveillance as a method for the public to monitor the establishment and provide a new level of transparency. This has been the role of the press, but with its strong orientation toward positive feedback, the media has tended to focus on less relevant issues, which get an inordinate amount of attention. One such example was the media's fascination with Gennifer Flowers and her claim that she had had an affair with President Clinton." -- From Joichi Ito's discussion of Emergent Democracy. One of the first thing that George W. Bush did when he became president of the US was to place his father's writings (which by law were supposed to be made public) into secrecy.

We live in an age where ever-increasing portions of the population have turned to social networking where they divulge the most personal and private details of their life to their friends, their co-workers, and most anybody who cares to look. Facebook, Google, and other advertising giants track every website a person goes to with an ad or a 'like' button on it. People scan their loyalty cards at grocery stories and give their entire purchase history, name, number, and address to the highest bidder in exchange for a few dollars off their bill. Those who run their surveillance infrastructure have not been blind to this and have begun investing significant resources into monitoring social networking sites and rich sources of user-generated information.

No matter where one turns, they can find information on their fellow citizen that they would rather not have revealed. Security cameras, credit cards, and RFID-enabled identification cards track our every movement. Normal activities which one might not want the world to know about like visits to the pharmacy, an alleyway make-out session, and a visit to Planned Parenthood all become a spectacle for those on the other end of the camera to enjoy.

While some of the information garnered by dragnet surveillance is available to the public or those of small financial stature, most of it is locked in databases and storage systems run by the rich and powerful. In 2005, it was revealed that for the past five years the National Security Agency had been collecting wholesale internet traffic, call records, and other private information from millions of Americans without warrants, subpoenas, or any judicial oversight. In a 2001 report, the European Union validated a theory that the United States, in conjunction with allies such as the UK, operated a global surveillance network called ECHELON which could intercept most worldwide communications. It is said that through publicly and privately operated surveillance cameras, the average Londoner is photographed 300 times per day. The majority of people are watched with intense scrutiny throughout the entirety of their lives while the minority of people who commit the biggest crimes sit behind closed doors where they can execute their plans for financial and social dominance in privacy and without interruption. People no longer seem to be surprised to hear that the dash-cam of a police car was mysteriously off when the officer flew off the handle or that the video from a jail beating is missing.

How can we change this dynamic? How can surveillance systems actually be used for widespread social accountability instead of preserving the interests of those who own them?

Study after study shows that surveillance does not actually reduce crime or make the average person safer and a steady stream of news stories show that surveillance abilities are used improperly by those who have them. A study conducted by Hull University showed that one in ten women were targeted for 'voyeuristic' reasons by male camera operators. Norris, C. and Armstrong, G. "The unforgiving Eye: CCTV surveillance in public space" Centre for Criminology and Criminal Justice, Hull University, 1997. Seeing this, the simple solution seems to be to outlaw surveillance equipment entirely or create rules to hold its owners accountable. To some extent, this has already been done. The government is barred from using surveillance and search powers without obtaining necessary legal justification and corporations have similar but less stringent limitations. Nonetheless and unsuprisingly, these rules have not stopped widespread abuse as those who own surveillance systems are often the same ones who fare better in courts and the media due to societal privilege.

Solution: 

People must have the means to watch the watchers. Steve Mann's term "sousveillance" captures this idea. As the age of surveillance is here to stay (at least until we live in a world where people's privacy is put above the sanctity of property), there must be a way to change the dynamic of surveillance. Sousveillance requires tools which are easy for laypeople to use, a network for communicating among those who use them, and a method for spreading information that comes from sousveillance. There are many some tools such as Freedom of Information Laws, cell-phone cameras, and independent media networks which help facilitate sousveillance but there are not nearly enough and they are not as widely adopted as necessary. People must make these tools easier to use, put them into the hands of more people, and make their use ubiquitous enough to truly scare those who they are meant to keep an eye on.

Pattern status: 
Released
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