by Federica Maranesi | May 26, 2015 | The Urban Media Lab
It is not a news that cities are facing new and daily challenges to become smart cities. The term ‘smart’ has been described widely as a reality that involves the coordination of investments in human and social capital, sustainable economic development and a high quality of life, with a wise management of resources through participatory action and engagement. From these statements of experts and international organizations emerges this number of factors that can works only in a coordinate process. Indeed, The EU, Governments and associations such as Code for America consider the connection and collaboration among these elements, as new interdisciplinary opportunities to improve services and encourage development. However, what happens when this new wave of smartness, meets internet and technologies advances? Such new players in the path toward smart cities definitely enlarge geographical economic and social boundaries. Real time and worldwide are the parameters of measuring, and this contribute to create communities around collaborative the sharing economy where base of commons in code is larger than ever before. Users generated contents, even modern communication infrastructures foster the emergence of Bottom-up-Broadband networks, giving answers to the challenges that cities are dealing with, and most of the time cannot manage with traditional methods. A larger and deeper involvement of the community around commons goods seems to reduce the gap between the need of becoming smarter cities and offer to this demand, which is provided by citizens themselves. Thus, the combination among businesses, services, housing, leisure and lifestyle and ITCs, social involvement of citizens in public services, high technology used as a means to coordinate and facilitate urban growth, is the key to develop a network of people dedicated to making government services and cities simple, effective, and easy to use.
The Commons4EU project, indeed, is about a new way toward the opening innovation concept. It has the purpose to foster this new wave of innovation in cities and create new cutting-edge digital services. This project is building two main areas of technological services, which would provide citizens participation toward the path of smartness and sustainability. An initial core team of seven cities will be the pioneers of this project: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Helsinki, Manchester, Rome and UK-NESTA (UK cities involved in the project through NESTA). These cities will work together in two main areas, for the implementation of this ambitious vision:
This is about the development of collaborative web projects following the methodology of Code for America based on principles such as the empowerment of residents to take an active role in their community, the collaboration between government staff and foster forward-thinking approaches to solving city problems. These collaborative web projects will work by opening existing code in the participating cities and leveraging the European EPSI platform, following a certain model. In particular, web/mobile applications should enable cities to connect with their constituencies in ways that reduce administrative cost and engage citizens more effectively. This kind of support would help to move in the direction transparency and collaboration, and would be replicable for other cities.
- Bottom-up-Broadband Commons
Exploring with users in real-life environments, new technologies, such as: Community networks, Sensor integration into Wi-Fi networks and fiber deployment as commons.
The entire experience of the project will be capitalized by giving birth to two pan European organizations: Code for Europe and BuB for Europe that will carry further implementations of the project. This would mean making significant steps toward the idea that cities smartness is not only a common good itself, but also a European common good, and that each citizens could make the difference.
by Leonardo Rossi | May 15, 2015 | EducationLabs
What happens when a region is scourged by a natural disaster, like an earthquake? There is the time grief, of course, and the time of reconstruction, involving an extremely delicate phase: the healing of the victims’ souls.
That was the motivation that pushed the Ministry of the Tourism and Cultural Activities to fund an initiative, the “Beni Comuni Project”, that gathered the ETR Foundation, ATER and eleven Provinces (Campogalliano, Carpi, Cavezzo, Cento, Concordia sulla Secchia, Finale Emilia, Mirandola, Novi di Modena, San Felice sul Panaro, San Possidonio, Soliera). Their goal was to recover and reunite the spirits of the communities threatened by the 2012 earthquake by an active participation in the organization of public events with the main goal to foster the sharing sense.
This idea is much needed in a time where society tends to be more and more egoistic, full of technological barriers that allows people to communicate easily with one another, but at the same time tends to label those who cannot afford such connections as “social pariah”. Stimulate the spark of active cooperation and sharing may ignite again an essential characteristic of the human soul that is slowly dying as the society evolves.
The Project reunites 24 partners: from schools to theatres and music schools: through the organization of public events, shows, concerts and readings, this group wishes to foster the reconstruction of the populations that survived the earthquake, thanks to arts and artistic expression. In the words of a member of the Project: “a way to allow the community to restore the spaces destroyed by the earthquake and start again with a stronger sharing
spirit”.
This approach is really valuable, also because allows the people’s mind to wander off such grief and crisis and their souls to understand that nothing is over and everything can be solved, as long as there is a common goal and a common support. Act as one, survive as a whole.
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Cosa accade a una comunità quando essa viene distrutta da un cataclisma naturale, come un terremoto? Ovviamente c’è il tempo del dolore, e dopo la ricostruzione inizia una fase delicatissima: la rigenerazione degli spiriti dei cittadini.
A tale proposito è stato finanziato dal Ministero dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali e del Turismo e promosso dal Comune di Carpi in collaborazione con ERT Fondazione e ATER il “Progetto Beni Comuni”.
Esso coinvolge undici Comuni (Campogalliano, Carpi, Cavezzo, Cento, Concordia sulla Secchia, Finale Emilia, Mirandola, Novi di Modena, San Felice sul Panaro, San Possidonio, Soliera) del cratere sismico con l’obiettivo di rinsaldare e ricostruire le identità delle comunità minacciate dal terremoto del 2012 attraverso la partecipazione attiva alla costruzione di eventi artistici che abbiano come orizzonte primario il senso della condivisione e dello stare in comune.
L’idea alla base del Progetto è encomiabile, e potrebbe essere spiegata in vari modi, ma il modo migliore è utilizzare le parole di un esponente del Progetto: “Il progetto Beni Comuni ha un valore intrinseco e speciale. Non è solo un programma destinato alla fruizione, ma un laboratorio di produzione culturale che coinvolge professionisti dello spettacolo ma anche e soprattutto i cittadini. Uno spazio artistico composto da tanti luoghi […]. Un modo concreto per le comunità di rimpadronirsi degli spazi violentati dal sisma e ripartire, con uno spirito di socialità condivisa”.
Questa idea è necessaria anche per un altro motivo: essa consente di far vagare la mente delle vittime del sisma lontano dal dolore e dalla sofferenza, e far capire che nulla è perduto e tutto è superabile, se si collabora e ci si aiuta nella comunità: Agisci come uno, sopravvivi come gruppo.
by Leonardo Rossi | Mar 25, 2015 | The Urban Media Lab
On November 18-20 2014 there was the 4th edition of the “Smart City Expo World Congress” (SCEWC), and it took place in Barcelona.
The topics covered during this event were: Smart Society, Technology, Governance, Energy, Mobility and Sustainable City.
It was an event full of discussions, projects and a lot of great ideas were discussed around such topics; the “Smart Society” theme was focused on the fostering of creativity, innovation, economic development and collaboration inside the boundaries of the cities, bringing the population to the center of decision-making in order to make urban and social development more democratic. Cities must be reinvented and transformed so that they become more sustainable, and improve quality of life and economic performance. This should be a shared vision and the way forward for citizens, public and private organizations and multi-stakeholders.
This topic is growing in importance in modern society, and recently there was also an European call, “Horizon 2020”, that was focused on the attempt to bring the population closer to the European mechanisms, in order to foster the collaboration between citizens and governments, and create a network of Smart Cities all around Europe.
All the topics that formed the “core” of this were deeply covered, and all seemed to express a common will to shift the modern view and use of energy, technologies and governance towards a collaborative approach, were the citizens cooperate with the governments in order to produce and support a lifestyle focused on the sustainability of energy, lifestyle, governance and technologies.
As a matter of fact, consumers are in a demanding shift, asking for a new energy model, environmentally and economically sustainable, making better use of local scale and renewable resources, while having a global focus and a strong partnership between governments and companies. The marketplace for wind or solar energy is shifting and reaching the mainstream. Every industry is regulatory and subsidy dependent. Clean energy in short will be able to deliver to local stable energy and subsidies will decline over time, as many of the renewables are able to be paid by themselves. This technological revolution is an opportunity of real change in how cities are operated and therefore a possible way forward for economic and social development.
This congress was a great example of how the modern societies’ demands managed to influence the economic and political spheres, and the fact that more and more multinational companies like IBM, Philips, Nissan, BNP Paribas, Microsoft, Oracle and Cisco became more concerned about such topics and aware of the possible available solutions is indeed a beacon of light into the grim darkness of the “non-collaborative future”.
The 5th edition of the SCEWC will take place on the 17-19 of November 2015, and given the growing success and importance of such event, it is possible to hope for some real projects to be proposed regarding the topics of sustainability.
Smart City Expo World Congress: Le Multinazionali accendono il faro della speranza.
Nella quarta edizione della SCEWC si sono discusse tematiche fondamentali quali energia, tecnologie, Smart Cities, governance e sostenibilità.
Dalle conferenze e dai workshop è emerso che la società sta cambiando e che desidera sempre più spostarsi verso una società più attenta e proiettata alla sostenibilità e alla governance comune.
Il ciclo di conferenze ha dimostrato come la società moderna riesce ad influenzare la sfera politica ed economica; il fatto che numerose multinazionali del calibro di IBM, Philips, Nissan, BNP Paribas, Microsoft, Oracle e Cisco abbiano preso parte a questo evento dimostrandosi sensibili alle tematiche sopracitate ci rende più fiduciosi riguardo al futuro.
La prossima edizione del SCEWC si terrà dal 17 al 19 Novembre del 2015 e si potrebbe azzardare la speranza di vedere una serie di progetti concreti prendere forma.
by Edoardo De Stefani | Mar 19, 2015 | The Urban Media Lab
The neoliberal world-system has entered a multiple crisis, while the stalemate of the growth function is hampering the socio-economic progress. Energy provision, climate stability, food production and distribution, public service provision, land access and political stability are consequentially threatened by a system that is no more sustainable and self-reliant.
Moreover, the congestion and the rivalry upon the use and exploitation of resources leave no room for development, at least if the current structural paradigm is not questioned.
Seemingly, the current society is at the margin of disruption and far obviously, existing institutional structures are not functioning properly.
To put it differently, a wave of disruption is sweeping in from various marginal corners, in particular from the contours of cities that are slowly becoming the cemetery of social cohesiveness.
Though, the problem is much easier to identify than expected: a non-participatory attitude of citizens in the public life dislocates the foundations of civil society.
Nonetheless the problem is different: why citizens are not feeling included in the decision-making processes or in the public life?
Once again the answer is simple, if we accept that normal bureaucratic procedures and institutional ecosystems are not citizen-friendly.
The focal question then, is about redesigning existing structures in a functional way and in a sense that they could become appealing and welcoming.
Arguably the claim is not complex: if the functioning of the society were based on cooperation, solidarity, democracy, equality and responsibility, there would be enough reason to claim ownership over public spaces. And if people eventually get the chance to enjoy the public space, simply because they feel attached to it, energies and input would naturally flow into the social machinery.
Thus, the emergence of the idea of the Commons is instrumental to the paradigm shift. It is not merely about a smooth transition, but widely, it is the product of an exploding social enrichment.
The transition to a world of the commons corresponds to the establishment of a new social contract, which can defend and promote the opportunity for people to participate at the making of public life.
In a sense, opening the system to a path of systemic collaboration can stimulate a pioneering form of social co-working between the principal political, economic and social agents.
However, it is clear enough that a common-based economy cannot flourish without appropriate institutions, especially those that should play a sustaining role in the direct creation of value by civil society (see the concept elaborated by Michel Bauwens of the Partner State ).
It is for this reason that shareable cities have always represented an ideal chimera, till today.
Quoting an article by Jonathan Dawson appeared recently on The Guardian, it is from the marginal corners of our society that a new wave of disruptive innovation is coming.
Shifting from a passive form of electoral democracy to a generative democracy of radical engagement is what is currently happening in Italy, and it is real.
The city of Bologna and the “Regulation on public collaboration” (see also the article on Bologna Regulation on Public collaboration) carry a new vision of the sharing city, or commons-oriented one. Professor Christian Iaione, LabGov Coordinator, is one of the pioneers of such institutional innovation.
As he argues, what we need is a nudging class, in order to drive and convince society and institutions that sharing is the new frontier of social innovation.
The five actors of collaborative governance, as subscribed in the Quintuple Helix approach (expressed in LabGov logo), represent the emergence of an innovative platform of open cities.
Professor Iaione took seriously the idea that citizens have energy, imagination and responsibility, but mainly, that people can become themselves innovators, service designers, co-workers and experts.
And for those who think that Commons are just a naïve and ingenuous pretence, they may be interested in the dozen of other Italian cities that are emulating the Bologna initiative.
As LabGov, we are making governance at grassroots level because people need a new vision, new energies and powerful social relations to come out from a bottom-up perspective.
The economy of the commons cannot simply be understood as a ready to go policy, but I feel that wherever there would be enough imagination and confidence, we can really work on the role of collaboration.
Our commitment is just the first step for bringing a new social narrative, but there is only one way to challenge the typical narrow thinking, and that is about being agents of collaboration.
Therefore also LabGov owes a debt of gratitude to all those experts, professionals, citizens, students, and courageous pioneers that are collaborating for making this change real. See more at:
http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/the-city-as-commons-michel-bauwens-interviews-professor-christian-iaione/2015/02/24
http://commonstransition.org/the-city-as-commons-with-professor-christian-iaione/
http://www.shareable.net/blog/interviewed-professor-christian-iaione-on-the-city-as-commons
http://bollier.org/blog/labgov-pioneers-paradigm-city-commons
http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/mar/12/disruption-challenge-neoliberalism-commons-political-system
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Il fallimento dell’attuale configurazione istituzionale, nonché il susseguirsi di crisi economiche, politiche e socio-culturali, hanno lentamente spostato l’asse della società verso una fase di stallo apparentemente irreversibile.
Inoltre, l’incapacità delle amministrazioni pubbliche di fornire servizi adeguati e il contemporaneo disinteresse del cittadino alla vita pubblica, hanno ulteriormente peggiorato la situazione di crisi odierna.
Tuttavia, la soluzione alla crisi appare più semplice se inquadrata nell’ottica di un drastico cambiamento di paradigma istituzionale.
La città come bene comune diviene allora la nuova narrativa che può vincere il dominio dell’egemonia neoliberale.
E le shareable cities, finora ritenute un illusorio esercizio di stile, cominciano a smuovere le fondamenta degli assetti istituzionali tradizionali.
La città di Bologna rappresenta in questo senso un’innovazione, grazie anche al contributo delle idee e delle energie di visionari pionieri della democrazia intesa come inclusione radicale del cittadino, tra cui il Professor Christian Iaione Coordinatore di LabGov.
Il Professor Iaione ha realmente saputo catalizzare le idee e le energie per costruire un sistema istituzionale di governance collaborativa.
Grazie anche a LabGov, nuovi agenti della collaborazione stanno gettando le basi per costruire e coltivare l’innovazione sociale e nuove forme di governance collaborativa.
Una nuova visione della società civile, basata su un virtuoso scambio collaborativo tra stato, cittadino, imprese e università è già in proiezione.
Per questo motivo, LabGov onora il suo debito di gratitudine verso tutti quegli esperti, professionisti, studenti, università, cittadini ed incoscienti pionieri che stanno contribuendo a rendere reale questo cambiamento.
Appare evidente come il movimento dei Commons non possa più essere considerato un fattore di nicchia; rendiamolo globale.
http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/the-city-as-commons-michel-bauwens-interviews-professor-christian-iaione/2015/02/24
http://commonstransition.org/the-city-as-commons-with-professor-christian-iaione/
http://www.shareable.net/blog/interviewed-professor-christian-iaione-on-the-city-as-commons
http://bollier.org/blog/labgov-pioneers-paradigm-city-commons
http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/mar/12/disruption-challenge-neoliberalism-commons-political-system
by Stefano Speranza | Mar 2, 2015 | The Urban Media Lab
LabGov goes global. After the interview to one of LabGov strategist, Christian Iaione, by Michel Bauwens, founder of the Foundation for Peer to Peer Alternatives, on the City as a Commons project, that has been published few weeks ago on the Shareable website (and available here), another great expert of Commons, David Bollier dedicated an article to LabGov and its projects on his famous blog about the commons.
We have already talked about Bollier, his works and his efforts as an activists on our blog. In particular, we have written on the crowdfunding campaing launched less than an year ago for the likely attempt of translating in Italian his “Think like a Commoner”, and on his publication more in depth, here.
Bollier defined pioneering the work done in Italy on the paradigm of the City as Commons. In his article Bollier highlighted the important role of LabGov in the reconceptualization of the catalytic role that universities can play and the idea behind LabGov projects that we are in front of a epochal transition in which is emerging a new social class – active citizens, social innovators, makers, creatives, sharing and collaborative economy practitioners, service designers, co-working and co-production experts, and urban designers. This new social class needs commons-related policies as ways to tap into the talents and enthusiasm. In fact conventional governance structures cannot effectively elicit or organize the energies of these people.
Bollier devotes particular attention also to two important LabGov projects: CO-Mantova and the “Regulation on collaboration between citizens and the city for the care and regeneration of urban commons“.
Moreover, Bollier endorsed Iaione’s idea of public-commons partnerships to build a “sharing city” or a “commons-oriented city”. As perfectly synthesized by Bollier, LabGov approach consists in this: “Instead of relying on the familiar public/private partnerships that often siphon public resources into private pockets, a city can instead pursue “public/commons partnerships” that bring people together into close, convivial and flexible collaborations. The working default is “finding a solution” rather than beggar-thy-neighbor adversarialism or fierce political warfare”.
This is just an excerpt of the full article that is possible (and worth) reading at this link:
http://bollier.org/blog/labgov-pioneers-paradigm-city-commons
Dopo essere stato intervistato da Michel Bauwens, l’idea del prof. Iaione di “Governance dei beni comuni” viene ripresa da un altro grande attivista dei Commons, David Bollier.
In passato, su questo blog, si è già parlato di Bollier.
Con questo articolo rimandiamo a bollier.org, blog sul quale è stato pubblicato l’articolo che illustra i successi e le sfide future del Laboratorio per la Governance dei beni comuni.
The picture for this article has been taken here.
