deciphering government data

:: openData=good & openUnderstanding=magnificent > http://bit.ly/cZJtp5 > @craigslist_fndn #iwrtw #gov20

In the wake of the Craigslist Foundation Boot Camp in August, a small group came together around an actionplatform to “create a wikipedia like resource for interpreting government data”.  Six microactions.  And they were off to the races.

We are just now catching up - Mat Dryhurst of CLF recently blogged about what has been set in motion. 

<bows in their general direction>

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Photo by Steve Rhodes

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cupcakes :: food of superheroes

:: this #omnomnom moment brought to you by @GiovannaSC :: http://bit.ly/b1l9z0 #microact #iwrtw

Giovanna Mingarelli & her band of merry mischief-making world-changing smoking-hot fembots are amongst the most awe-inspiringly active on IfWeRanTheWorld.

They’re doing great stuff.

A recent favorite - and reminder that microactions come in all shapes - reminding all of us to eat cupcakes with lots of frosting.

A microact I have (a) gladly accepted, (b) happily reciprocated and (c) have shared far & wide.

<wipes crumbs from front>

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IWRTW Kiwi Tim Gregory’s Down Under Dispatch :: Viva Waitakere Festival Oct 31st

http://bit.ly/bHh2tq  :: http://on.fb.me/celQlW

We Westies are a fierce lot - fiercely passionate about Waitakere and with an unwavering faith in our collective ability to make anything happen.

Which is no small part of the reason why IfWeRanTheWorld is flourishing here.

Ours is a renowned model of council and community working together for maximum social and environmental benefit, and has spawned many internationally recognized projects with collaboration at their core.

Which is no small part of the reason why the top-down model of the greater Auckland ‘Super City’ (into which Waitakere will, on Nov 1, be subsumed) has not sat well with many Westies. 

That said, what is capital ‘T’ true for for all of us living in the west is that - local council or no - we continue to self-organise, self-manage and self-sustain.  Fiercely, passionately and without obstacle.

In August 2010, Waitakere’s visionary Mayor, Bob Harvey brought IWRTW to New Zealand, welcoming the platform as an essential plug-in to existing initiative, and a spark for new ones.  From this came the many IfWeRanTheWorld Waitakere projects.

Chloe Waretini & Viva Waitakere

Chloe is all things great about the West rolled into one – creative, resourceful, courageous and cool.  On Oct 31st, she has organized the Viva Waitakere Festival to give Waitakere City the final bash it deserves.  Without local Council support (but with their blessing) and with a budget of zilch, she has used IfWeRanTheWorld and the support of local local community groups and businesses to line up great West Auckland talent and everything else needed for a great party.

The Viva Waitakere Festival will take place on Oct 31st, the last day of the city as a celebration of the West, affirming that while after that day Waitakere City will no longer exist in name, the Westie spirit will live on.  Spread the word here and here.

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Authentic From the Start-Up

4 Tips from @cindygallop1 and @IfWeRanTheWorld ::http://bit.ly/cP4mWS

A piece by CV Harquail on AuthenticOrganizations.com.

Being authentic as an organization starts with deliberate choices — some big, some small, and some micro. From the very start-up, designing your organization to demonstrate the power of your product, and to demonstrate the power of your business purpose, builds a foundation for ongoing authenticity with clients, with each other, and together.

(and here we thought we were just having fun)

kisses  ::  ø

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Elections & IWRTW

Ladies & lads, may i introduce you to Oni Joseph, aka THE FUTURE, who is using IWRTW to get elected to public office in Canada. http://bit.ly/cL9uWc

I tell you, this woman could not be hotter.

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We Are All Workers

Join forces with Levi’s to reinvigorate The Braddock Carnegie Library  |  http://bit.ly/d3Qfcb.  

When Levi’s looked to find today’s frontier and the ‘new’ pioneers who populate it, they found struggling communities like Braddock, PA and the bold, generous, creative people who are working to bring them back.  The ‘We Are All Workers’ campaign tells their stories, but the same stories could have been told of the folks in Detroit, San Diego, and Waitakere who have decided to make s&#t happen on their own terms, bringing mad innovation into their own back yards (sometimes quite literally).

Case in point:  the good people at The Braddock Carnegie Library.

When the original man of steel, Andrew Carnegie, built this library in 1889, he did so in order to provide the employees of his first major American steel mill, The Edgar Thomas Works, with access to books, theater, music, swimming pools, and exercise facilities. 

Today it still stands, though somewhat worse for wear.  Vicki Vargo (The Executive Director) and her team of unruly nerds won’t take no for an answer and are determined to make the library the bloody, beating heart of the town once again.  Find out how best you can help her make this happen - she’s got six microactions that need doing.

Just six.

You heard me.

Have at ‘em, people.

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Get your beer, bike & bamboozle on

The SDMBA needs volunteers for their 2nd annual Tour De Fat ‘Bike Awareness Festival’ on 10/2 |  http://bit.ly/bAHfbM

The San Diego Mountain Bike Association is gearing up for their second ever Tour De Fat ‘Bike Awareness Festival’ at San Diego’s Balboa Park on October 2.  Costumes, beers, and a great attitude are all that’s needed to enjoy the festivities of this cycling circus.  Additionally, any donations will go to non-profit organizations, such as the SDMBA, whose goal is to reduce our carbon footprint while keeping local hiking, biking, and equestrian trails open to the public.  So throw on some quirky, and possibly controversial, garb and peddle your ass over to Balboa Park on October 2 for a day of pro-bike fun and bamboozlery.   

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Boot Camp > we have liftoff

Craigslist Foundation Boot Camp’s actionplatforms are all up & ready for you to rock. 

How, you ask? 

Here’s how:

Go here, take on a microaction (and do it) or suggest a microaction (and invite someone, do it. 

Easy McPeasy.

Why, you ask?

Here’s why (as described by Mat Dryhurst, Community Manager at the Craigslist Foundation and the deliciously, devious superhero who is leading the charge):

…We had been internally debating about how to translate the Boot Camp experience into a year long exchange of ideas and support between attendees, speakers and our staff, and [IfWeRanTheWorld] allows for us to both track and cheerlead ideas sparked by our event and create new working relationships between our staff and greater community.

There is a lot of work yet to be done, however ultimately we aim to kickstart a positive feedback loop of action, inviting the projects inspired by this year’s event to report their progress next year, and hopefully inspire another wave of bright ideas and community growth.

Mat, being devious (and delicious) is, of course, speaking in code.  If you were to don your standard-superhero issue decoder eyewear, you’d see the following:

ARE YOU WITH ME?!?

boomchakalak  |  ø

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let’s get emotional

Jon Pincus asks ‘What does emotional software look like?’ in a recent post on his Liminal states blog.  Jon is a ‘writer/strategist/activist’, previously of Ad Astra and Microsoft’s Online Services Group (where he was General Manger for Strategy Development).

This is a conversation we absolutely want to have - not only what does emotional software look like but - more importantly - what does it feel like.  It is (practically) a truism that devotion is sparked by far more than looks (helloooo Google).  It is also (practically) a truism that looks+smarts=pantpantYESYESYES (helloooo Apple).   We are aiming our little IWRTW boat past these shoals and out into the messy, choppy design seas of looks+smarts+emotion=WhatIf.

In the meantime - we know that we are OURSELVES emotional software, so we are emblazing ourselves accordingly.

feel us?

fistbump | ø

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