This from Steve Portigal‘s notes of IDSA2002 conference [found via bradlauster.com]

“Some cultural models that were presented by Josephine Green of Philips:
 
In agricultural times:
god
religious authority
political authority
men
women and children
 
In industrial times, science became the new god:
Science
Experts
Political authority
Men
Women and children
 
The emerging model from their research was a little harder to understand – it as a knowledge-based flattened “pie” where the anchors were truth/energy/quantum soup/”the void”
 
I can’t begin to do it justice, I’m afraid.
 
She suggested the emerging values included:
Empowerment (moving from consumers to citizens)
Belonging (sharing values)
Responsibility (considering others)
Care/preserving nature
Holism”

So tantalising – I want to know more about ‘the pie’ and ‘the soup’ dammit!!! I’m imagining that Josephine’s two course meal might have more than a little overlap with what’s on David Bollier’s menu. Reading his piece “Reclaiming the commons” was galvanising.

MattW posted:

“You ever get a feeling that humanity is on the verge of an enormous, defining change?”

Kinda. I’m more of the feeling that there are tiny, shimmering eschatons all the time. One of them happened a while back, when we started making technology that demanded new thinking in terms of commerce and governance. The ripples get bigger through time, and the whole ‘war in heaven’ geeks vs. hollywood thing is the result. Lessig, Bollier et al are maybe put in the chicken-little camp by some, but they can see the counter-tidal-wave that will engulf us all if we sleepwalk away from the notion of a commonwealth.

“It is time to revive this tradition of innovation in the stewardship of public resources and to recognize its appropriate role in the economy and civil society of the twenty-first century. The silent theft of our shared assets and civic inheritance need not continue. But first we must recognize the commons as such, name it, and understand the rich possibilities for reclaiming our common wealth”

Bollier’s point is a very good one for graphic designers/IAs/experience designers/communications-professionals/Whatevers. We who make the invisible visible could play a great part in supporting the efforts of those are defending our common wealth.

As Hillman Curtis says:

“Think of it this way: a concept is an idea. Our job as designers is to visually explain that idea.”

What we do is make ideas graspable, the intangible almost tangible – we pride ourselves on this!

Here is a problem of pure design if ever there was one. Make tangible this thing, this concept of the commons. Solve the problem of conceiving of its enormous value caused by its value’s incalcuable nature. Pure communication. Absolute clarity of explanation, infused with passion.

We should be relishing it! This is the part of the fight we can win!!

Already, the EFF have thrown down the gauntlet to us with their tinsel-town club parody flash movie.

Imagine xplane, or 37signals communicating beautifully the implications of changes in technology or legislation; or prototypes and scenarios that create business advantage from the commons whilst defending and protecting it.

RSW‘s cabal of contributors making ‘Understanding the Human Commonwealth’ the sequel to ‘Understanding USA’. Scott McCloud updating the Joni Mitchell problem – i.e. “you don’t know what you got till it’s gone’ for the digital age.

Ya dig?

There is a necessary and unique contribution that designers can make, to be sure. Unlike our geekfriends though, are we a bit too fond of the status-quo’s protection to care?