Emerging decentralized peer-to-peer, and offline-first alternatives to existing digital communications infrastructure create the potential to redistribute power within online communities and radically rethink how our networks are built and maintained. As such, these alternatives provide a site to think about the social transformations of off/online spaces that lead to the world we want.
In a hands-on workshop, participants will imagine decentralized forms of social transformation through creating short speculative stories and collectively map those to existing tactics of social change, providing an opportunity to reflect on how to get from current decentralization practices to desired futures.
My goal is to provide a space for those interested in decentralization to reflect on what it means to them as a value vis-a-vis thinking specifically about the future they want to achieve and whether or how existing decentralizing approaches can get there.
We're hoping that many efforts and discussions will continue after Mozfest. Share any ideas you already have for how to continue the work from your session.:This work builds on an ongoing research project and I would be excited to work with people after the session to extend these ideas--whether through public writing, hosting more sessions, or other activities. I'm exploring the use of some liberating structures including TRIZ or Min Specs as a way to define outcomes collectively that could involve all session participants (http://www.liberatingstructures.com/). At a minimum, I commit to sharing publicly a summarized outcome from the session (seeking consent of participants to include any specific materials they create).
How will you deal with varying numbers of participants in your session?:The activity I have planned will work with 4 (me + 3 participants) as the core, and can be expanded by using group breakouts to accommodate up to 30 participants. With a combination of a think-pair(small group)-share structure I would have a mix of individual, small group and then a collective discussion.
Dawn Walker is a researcher and PhD candidate at the University of Toronto. Her work focuses on values in the design of alternative infrastructures, including the decentralized web.