I like Alberto’s response. I don’t know Ouishare well but know the other two. I don’t see any advantage to Edgeryders joining a group based in New Zealand (Enspiral). Sure, there are plenty of overlaps in culture, but Enspiral is quite homogenous (IT people working for themselves) and I don’t know how Edgeryders would fit in - it has broader aims and methods. Also, for Edgeryders to merge with Enspiral, it would probably need to accept the primacy of the Enspiral Foundation - why would it do that?. Maybe in years to come when there are, say, 50 or more open, networked, purposeful communities like this and they are operating on a larger scale, we will see increasing mergers as best practice from each is drawn out and spread and it gets easier for the cultures to blend. But for now I think there is still huge value in different players pursuing different strategies and tactics to make the world a better place. There is more than enough room for several “players” in the market for now.
Thanks for the answers. I wasn’t trying to imply that there was something wrong with doing your own thing at edgeryders, more just wondering what the difference was.
Mine was not a rhetorical question. Maybe there are some advantages to merging I do not see – and in that case I would very much like to learn about them!
My theory of collaboration is this: collaboration always needs to have an immediate, achievable goal. You do not come together just to present a common front: you come together because there is something you want to build, and you think you can do it faster and better together. So, whenever we propose a collaboration to someone, it s always oriented: let’s build X.
I’m reviving this because I’ve just been (October 2018) to the Human Networks Convergence meeting in Barcelona where I was myself talking over the issue of inter-network collaboration. And @patrick_andrews was there too (great to meet you! ). Has anyone here seen any significant / substantial / material progress in the last 20 months?
To address @alberto’s last point, (hi! ) the potential I see is in co-ordination, not in merging of organisations. I’m keen to reopen this discussion on two levels: first, from the point of view of role differentiation, specialisation, efficiency (yes) and overall effectiveness; and second, specifically from the point of view of information systems. My personal intuition is that there is a very great deal that we could give to each other in terms of overall synergy, if we were more carefully to explore this, which is no more really than Principle 6 of the ICA co-operative principles — co-operation among co-operatives.
And to answer @alberto’s direct question, yes, I agree (and so do my co-op partners) that collaboration is best focused around projects. My question is, how do we take the first step, and find the projects that we will collaborate on? My tentative answer, for the moment, is that we have dialogue across organisations, across networks, between those people who “get” the point of collaboration. This has a research aspect (Edgeryders) a governance aspect (Enspiral) and an entrepreneurial aspect (Ouishare), so it should be stimulating, if we can find the right participants.
One idea is that we could aim to bring together systems thinkers and developers in a systems stream at future events in the Human Networks Festival calendar.
To me it is best to talk, as that would be the best way of ensuring that I am answering your actual question, @alberto. Are you free for, say 15 minutes some time this week?
Good! I have a meeting 10 to 11 my time (11 to 12 Brussels time) but any other time would be fine. Through what channel would you like to talk? We have each other on Skype, if there is nothing better…
Just chiming in to say that Richard Bartlett from Enspiral was a guest during a dinner at the Reef in Brussels a couple months ago, and he might be someone to invite along, if this goes anywhere.
Next time you go to a networks convergence/ anything community and collaboration related, please give me a heads up, would love to come along
xx
In the end @asimong and I did not get it together, mostly because I became overwhelmed with my PhD. @noemi, would you be willing to pick this up and re-organize a meeting with Simon?
Sure. I’m not clear what the call is for: are we discussing participation at the next Human Networks festival?
Am I getting it right @asimong?
Depending on the agenda of the call I will look for other Edgeryders to join who are potentially interested in organising a presence and conversation there. Let’s make this concrete… even if it is the beginning of a conversation. Let me know?
I’m available towards the end of next week - Thu/ Fri.
xx
Sorry, @noemi I accidentally dropped this thread Happy to pick it up when you’re free, and also maybe work in a little discussion of Richard Bartlett’s “Courage before Hope”?
I’ve also recently been to the CoTech gathering in London where I was convening some work on skills mapping.
It’s Timothée Bres from Ouishare who is probably in January going to start planning some event in Brussels, but it’s all a bit vague until he restarts his work on this. Meanwhile it would be good to discuss what kind of collaboration may be possible.
Haha perfect timing as I’ve just read Richard’s long piece at @hugi’s recommendation - we have a fresh discussion about it here btw!
Definitely in for something in Brussels.
What I dont understand still is where this is going in terms of people collaborating? Richard’s mission is quite clear, and he will go on doing it. But the rest…, after Barcelona? Is there a scope to organise Human Networks events for more sharing? or does it go beyond it - i.e. building new projects, in ways in which we could be actively involved?
Since you know both Edgeryders and the others, maybe you see ways @asimong?
Hi Noemi, I was part of the second Network Convergence in Barcelona and we are organising one for 2019 summer in Barcelona or in the south of France. Do you want to co-create with us?
Hi @MarcelaA, and welcome to Edgeryders! Yes, I would like to see where this is going, joining you and perhaps peeking at what the practical goals are for the movement. This is something that wasn’t clear to me as I was reading about the first edition in Barcelona.
Let me know how/where i could plug in, maybe calls or working groups etc? xx
Feel free to direct message me if it is private information, thanks!
Hi Noemi, Thank you for your answer and sorry for the late reply. We are currently working on clarifying the practical goals and on the invitation for the next gathering. We have a working group that was created during the October convergence and we are doing weekly calls. We will be happy to meet you in the next one if you want to join us.
So having just participated in organising https://re-build.co/ where 100 different projects came together to share and collaborate I feel I have the answer - and it is to do such collaboration festivals where different organisations, networks, groups and individuals can come to share, cross-polinate and collaborate.
Hi Victor @vvorski I’ve found this thread of great interest right since it started … 4 years ago! Would you be able, or interested, to elaborate, first, what you have the answer to, and second, how that answer achieves the result you envisage? I’m very much up for helping and collaborating on this if that is of interest.
I believe that the solution for catalysing healthy cross-pollination, learning and collaboration between such organisations which are very different yet aligned in many ways is to have regular collaboration festivals/summits where many different organisations come together, present their projects, host workshops, search for collaborators.
Festivals & markets have been a part of human history in all cultures - because they work. They create a safe space between groups which are friendly but far from being a unity, allowing exchange.
Many of us in designing events are working to move to this idea of event/festival as cross-polination, collaboration fest, going away from “information download, one person talks, rest listens” conference formats.
We had a moderate success with achieving this at re:build event (around regenerative village building) this year, lots of connections were made. It was our first event, we did better than usual on connection but now have a huge number of ideas how to do much better in catalysing collaboration at future events.
). Has anyone here seen any significant / substantial / material progress in the last 20 months?
Happy to pick it up when you’re free, and also maybe work in a little discussion of Richard Bartlett’s “Courage before Hope”?