News Flash!

Life member and Former CPSR board member Joici Ito has been selected to head MIT Media Lab. See New York Times article for more information. Congratulations to Joi!

Organizations for Democratic Technology

The Public Sphere Project is developing an online resource for civic organizations that focus on information and communication. We need information on organizations that aren't yet listed! Please sign in for a new account on the Public Sphere Project site to contribute.

Liberating Voices Book Now Available!

Liberating Voices: A Pattern Language for Communication Revolution, the book on the information and communication pattern language project that was launched at CPSR's 2002 Shaping the Network Society conference (DIAC-2002), is finally available (From Powells Books, and other online and offline sources). Liberating Voices brings together ideas and suggestions from a variety of perspectives including activism and social change, education, community informatics, governance, media, development, information science, economics, journalism, arts and culture. It can be used by researchers, by practitioners in a variety of fields including teachers in the classroom, by activists, and by citizens and community members throughout the world.

This book is particularly relevant at this moment in history. It's a call for social change based on a peaceful revolution in grassroots information and communication. Inspired by the vision and framework outlined in Christopher Alexander's classic 1977 book, A Pattern Language, the Liberating Voices manifesto takes the form of a pattern language containing 136 patterns designed to meet these challenges. Each pattern is a template for research as well as for social critique and action. And each pattern is linked to other patterns to form a single coherent whole — a pattern language. Douglas Schuler and the book's 85 co-authors have tried to show that the struggle for liberatory information and communication systems is absolutely critical to a just and sustainable future.

While different patterns will be interesting to different people, the following patterns should be particularly compelling for CPSR members and their friends:

• Social Responsibility (Pattern number 8)
• Participatory Design (36)
• Techno-Criticism (39)
• Citizen Access to Simulations (48)
• Online Deliberation (52)
• Community Networks (61)
• Online Community Service Engine (62)
• Privacy (65)
• E-Consultation as Mediation (70)
• Accessibility of Online Information (75)
• Open Access Scholarly Publishing (76)
• Mobile ICT Learning Facilities (77)
• Citizen Journalism (91)
• Appropriating Technology (108)
• Homemade Media (110)
• Universal Voice Mail (113)
• Telecenters (117)
• Emergency Communication Systems (121)
• Environmental Impact Remediation (124)
• Open Source Search Technology (125)
• Socially Responsible Video Games (126)
• Open Source Everything (127)

The pattern language was developed collaboratively with nearly 100 co-authors using an online pattern language management system. The patterns from the book are all online as are approximately 300 other patterns in work. We are treating the publishing of the book as an important milestone rather than the culmination of the project. While we are very enthusiastic about what we've produced we realize that people and organizations who use the patterns will need to adapt the pattern language to their specific needs which may even include developing new patterns. For this reason and others we are revamping our web site to encourage collaborative pattern language construction and allow people to share ideas and experiences with others more easily.

The authors worked to create an intriguing and informative catalog of intellectual, social, and technological innovations, a practical manual for citizen activism, and a compelling manifesto for creating a more intelligent, sustainable, and equitable world. Now is the time to unleash the collective creativity — social as well as technological — of the world's citizens and develop the communication systems that promote community and civic innovation and engagement to address serious challenges like climate change and environmental degradation.

Endorsements

"If we keep following the well-trodden paths that have brought us to where we are, we'll never get to where we want to go. Schuler and his colleagues believe that we can get out of these ruts, and better yet, they tell us how. This work goes beyond elections and demonstrations, beyond cynicism and business as usual. It asks the much deeper questions: what kind of a world do we want and what must we do to get there? Schuler and his colleagues show us that another world is possible and invite everybody to the project. I say, 'Let's get going.'"
— Jerry Greenfield, co-founder, Ben & Jerry's

"In this wide-ranging analysis of the role of information in society, Doug Schuler proposes a grand theory that weaves together disparate information and communication activities into an organized, synergistic fabric. He taps into the collective wisdom of citizens — both theorists and advocates — to develop a pattern language that can be used as a framework for rethinking how we build community and create a more humane, equitable future."
— Nancy Kranich, Former President, American Library Association, author of Libraries & Democracy

"It's a wonder no one has attempted this monumental project before! Doug Schuler and his collaborators have produced a visionary manual rich in insights and directly useful in any attempt to connect people and information technologies in the quest for real democracy. This is a crucial book for our time."
— Langdon Winner, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute