[hackerspaces] Story of Stuff & Media Ecologies Workshop 09

[Nathan Cravens]

Hello Annie and Friends,

Phoebe Moore, Michel Bauwens, and I with Salford University are hosting a
workshop on Media Ecology in Manchester, November 3rd.

First of all, thank you so much for the work you are doing, and in getting
the word out about how destructive our manufacturing techniques are. I look
forward to working with you and my affiliated communities to solve the
issues you raise. Thank you for your years of study and activism.

You and your team will be very interested in the second half of our
workshop, which involves the emerging field of open manufacturing, a general
manufacturing discipline that encompasses the whole of ecosystems involved
in materials and processes, from people's needs to how this affects the
globe as a whole.

Like you, we work and advocate transparency beyond the 'golden arrow' of
consumption, by ensuring all knowledge is adequately represented, so that we
can better care for ourselves, individuals and communities. I believe a
great way to begin having community involvement is to understand how our
stuff is made and to have satisfaction in making it ourselves. Fab labs and
Hackerspaces are beginning to express just how easy it is to make things,
and if we can share just how empowering that is, we will begin to want to
learn where our stuff comes from, where the materials come from--and while
sharing how we make--finding what materials are good or harmful, how to make
the processes cyclical or nurturing, where to find materials and the tools
to form them, and how we can further enrich our local communities face to
face and globally by sharing this information on the web.

I hope you and your team consider adding related workshops and conferences
to your resource section of the website, beginning with our workshop on
Media Ecology in Manchester, so our active audiences better know where to
meet face to face and share the ideas to solving the problems expressed at
Story of Stuff.

Here is the link to our flyer graphic:
http://media-ecology-workshop-09.googlegroups.com/web/mediaecologies09univ.jpg?gda=mL6LLksAAACdoIFWnGa7vLJJTxdPkui---ULbv1gNNXmqwGdJMtSb2PGTQZIC1uC2NJM8-XH42SXZhHqfPoK2Vj-uORX3ugtBkXa90K8pT5MNmkW1w_4BQ

<http://media-ecology-workshop-09.googlegroups.com/web/mediaecologies09univ.jpg?gda=mL6LLksAAACdoIFWnGa7vLJJTxdPkui---ULbv1gNNXmqwGdJMtSb2PGTQZIC1uC2NJM8-XH42SXZhHqfPoK2Vj-uORX3ugtBkXa90K8pT5MNmkW1w_4BQ>Our
speaker line-up is full from what I understand, but we will have a
developmental talk after the presentations, so you are very welcome to
contribute to this discussion in person or virtually in this way. We will
have more details on how to participate virtually at our official website
hosted by Salford University.

Official Workshop Portal
http://www.espach.salford.ac.uk/sssi/p2p/programme.html

Wiki Workshop Document
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0ATsf-IaJ1pQxZGcyanpkZnRfMjc1aGN2YzdnZ2Q&hl=en

This will give you and your team an ability to network with those very
sympathetic to the problems addressed at the Story of Stuff. I hope we might
get involved in some way in showing people what they can do to solve these
materials and process issues and what groups are solving them in a second
documentary that describes the solutions to the problems addressed.

We are discussing these issues at the open manufacturing discussion list. So
you may want to add a discussion list section as well with related lists so
people can get involved in that way.

Open Manufacturing Discussion
http://groups.google.com/group/openmanufacturing

Thanks again for the work you do. I hope we might collaborate in some way
soon.


Yours,
Nathan Cravens
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