NCN: Update

From: Flemming Funch (ffunch@netcom.com)
Date: Sun Apr 09 1995 - 00:40:11 PDT


Some exciting work is in progress to provide an infrastructure for message
exchange that will facilitate networking and teamwork so that one can be
involved in what one wants to be involved in, in a productive way, but
without being drowned in information one isn't interested in. More on that
later.

The TeamWork Team is working on clarifying models for how teamwork can work
well here.

One discovery that has appeared in several contexts here is that we make
important progress towards a new civilization simply by finding out how to
relate with each other here in a meaningful, productive and harmonious way.

There is a PersonCo group that discusses how to develop the personal
qualities best suited to being a member of a new civilization.

There is an Energy Team, currently discussing the possibility of
manufacturing solar cells easily.

An Alternative Money Systems Team will start up shortly.

There have been mentions of possible teams for Creativity
<k.hudson@bbcnc.org.uk>, Gender Issues <carr0023@gold.tc.umn.edu>, and
Love.

To join any group, contact whoever represents the group, or me if you don't
know what to do.

There will be more coming up, in part based on what any of you do or suggest.

I personally am a bit in a holding pattern in terms of suggesting teams
until we have some mailing lists to work with, to avoid making this whole
thing too confusing. So, don't worry too much if you haven't yet figured
out how to fit into the new civilization network.

I received some impressive books from Nicholas Albery <rhino@bbcnc.org.uk>
of the Institute for Social Inventions in London, filled with many hundreds
of bright new ideas for improving the world that people have sent in. I
will work on putting all of it on the Web.

I was yesterday talking with Greg Wright of Macrocosm USA, who isn't on
e-mail yet, and who is working along similar lines, of creating a "Global
Suggestion Box" where people can send in suggestions for improving things
in any area of life on the planet, which can then be published. It will be
coordinated with an upcoming cable TV program.

Writing here I realize the difficulty in collecting and providing a clear
picture of what people are doing and what is going out, without either
leaving a lot out or confusing matters with too much data.

This reminds me of a potential project discussed earlier on the Whole
Systems mailing list. That of producing a WorldMirror, a computerized tool
for visualizing the current state of affairs on the planet. This involves
collecting vital statistics and then presenting them in a simple visual
form that will allow any individual to perceive and understand for
themselves what is going on. Imagine a slowly spinning globe on your screen
on which you can easily select any type of data, or combination of data, to
be projected, as an animation showing you trends and relationships between
different factors. Imagine that you don't always need experts to interpret
all the things you don't understand, but you can see for yourself, and play
around with different alternative scenarios.

- Flemming

    o o
   / \------------------ Flemming A. Funch ------------------/ \
  / * \ World Transformation/New Civilization/Whole Systems / * \
 / * * \ ffunch@netcom.com / * * \
o-------o ------http://www.protree.com/worldtrans/--------o-------o



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