E-Liberate system available soon. We at CPSRs Public Sphere
Project are beginning to work with groups who are interested in trying
the e-Liberate
online deliberation system to support actual meetings. Please indicate
your interest on our form. Our hope is that non-profit groups will
use e-Liberate to save time and money on travel and use the resources
they save on other activities that promote their core objectives. We
are enthusiastic about the system but we are well aware that the system
as it stands is likely to have problems that we will need to fix. It is
for that reason that we plan to host a small number of meetings over
the next few months and gather feedback from attendees. After that we
plan to make e-Liberate freely available for online meetings and to
release the software under a free software license.
Also see Smart
Enough Soon Enough? Understanding and Enhancing Society's Civic
Intelligence presentation for Center for Citizen Communication and
Engagement, University of Washington. I have also proposed two models
-- a descriptive
model and a functional
model -- which may be useful to help characterize projects and
ideas that demonstrate "civic intelligence."
"Another
(Better) World is Possible". Thoughts on the World Social Forum in
Mumbai (Bombay), India in January, 2004.
If your favorite book, article or web site isn't in our shared
bibliography, please add it! We're looking for good sources of
information on community networks, media critique, grassroots media,
progressive technology, civic intelligence, community and social
informatics, etc. etc. Thanks!
Seattle Statement.Participants at CPSR's "Shaping the Network
Society" symposium drafted the "Seattle Statement" calling for new
public spheres to help address societal concerns. The statement is now
available in seven languages and has over 300 signatures. We invite
your signature and your assistance in developing the next version of
the statement. Please
Sign!
Seattle IMC The Independent Media Center
(1415 Third Avenue in Seattle) and its website were launched in the
fall of 1999 to provide immediate, authentic, grassroots coverage of
events surrounding the World Trade Organization Ministerial. Now, just
two years later, the website serves as the backbone to a powerful
independent communications network which continues to expand at an
exhilarating rate - over 80 IMC's currently span six continents.
Reporters Without Borders is publishing the first worldwide press freedom
index. The first worldwide index of press freedom has some
surprises for Western democracies. The United States ranks below Costa
Rica and Italy scores lower than Benin. The five countries with least
press freedom are North Korea, China, Burma, Turkmenistan and
Bhutan.
Why no action?!?!? Two years ago the Seattle City Council
asked the Department of Administrative Services to look into the feasibility
of establishing a public municipal information infrastructure. Here
is a letter
to Jim Compton, Seattle City Council member asking him about the
fate of this resolution.
Member login
Not a member yet?