[P2P-F] [commoning] The Co-operative University

Sun Dec 15 16:51:50 CET 2013

Thank you Dante for the quotation (from a talk by John
McKnight<http://web.archive.org/web/20050207124554/http://www.smallisbeautiful.org/lec-mck.html>in
Annual Schumacher lectures 1984) and as always your inspiring
dedication
to what is really *alive* in us.

I think Sam you are underestimating 'where people are at now'. It doesn't
take much for people to see through the professional accreditation system,
witness all the alternative knowledge systems that are burgeoning on the
web. Support people in discovering what they already know, and their
concept of themselves as failures as defined by mainstream culture, will
dissipate. Apathy is taught in our culture from the nursery when children
are discouraged from following their own interests, in favour of a
curriculum. Changing the curriculum, ie still needing to learn what someone
else thinks is important, does not get to the core of the distortion, if at
every level we are taught that what we want is inappropriate and
unavailable.

It is true that the urge, the thirst for knowledge, can get so suppressed
that it is difficult to see any vestige of it in the routines of the daily
lives of ourselves and those around us. Yet it is there, and it is up to us
to nurse that spark, to focus what energy we can on keeping it alive.

Anna

Sent from my iPad

On 14 Dec 2013, at 20:14, Dante-Gabryell Monson <dante.monson at gmail.com>
wrote:

Thanks Sam

Yes, I understand this.
No worries, you are not too much ahead of me ;)
( if such thing ever exists ? Ever noticed yourself remembering what you
understood when you where a child ... but forgot ? )

I remember past exchanges with you, always finding them very inspiring.
Likely nothing new - but re-contextualizing :

Independently from personal strategies ( including the potential influence
of disillusion , and social pressures ) for shared action in a debt based
tributary system,

I believe we can see potentials for synergies between narratives.

I do understand and see a "Cooperative" alternative to a "Corporate"
university system as certainly useful ( if but only to regain some control
and better re-distribute income ),
even if certain of such cooperative learning institutions may recycle and
build themselves on selling prospects for monetization of credentials
throughout career based narratives.

Yet do they apply for most of the populations of the world ?

Is it even realistic to want to spread it out as an example.   Perhaps
rather see it as a mere improvement on the infrastructures supporting a
current ( yet rapidly changing ) narrative and learning approach ?

I hoped such processes will happen in full awareness, while keeping in mind
other narratives with whom to overlap to support shared intentions.

You probably noticed this list - many of whom are still in a monetized
paradigm, yet with potential towards overlap with other narratives -
http://emergentbydesign.com/2012/01/08/93-superhero-schools-collaboratories-incubators-accelerators-hubs-for-social-tech-innovation/

I already see this as a shift in narratives and social design, which likely
can relate to the process this thread is about ? These seem to be reaching
sufficient support as to become credible in the eyes of mainstream,
converging in some cases californian tech start-up incubation narratives.

The narrative supported in my last message is one many of us on this list
may know about - the small is beautiful narrative -

combined with that of converging the itinerant of
an information rich NEET <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NEET> / Precariat /
Freeter <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeter> /
NINJA<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Income_No_Asset>Generation ,

and experimenting with neo-nomadic infrastructures, or relays. ( examples
may be https://embassynetwork.com/ , http://nomadbase.org/ )

The new Pope of the Catholic Church seems to have consciously chosen to
build on the narrative of Francis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_of_Assisi  ( which has counterparts in
other cultures ).

There, too, there may be some overlap to find ;)

So, looking forward to find overlaps between the narratives we may each
choose to focus on, in support of shared collective intelligence and the
commons.

Cordially,
Dante

On Sat, Dec 14, 2013 at 7:46 PM, Samuel Rose <samuel.rose at gmail.com> wrote:

> Interesting.
>
> I feel like years ago I started where you are coming from in this message.
> Then, over time I came to the conclusion that here in my environment very
> few are in a position to evolve in the way you describe.
>
> I don't think it is incumbent on me to fasten to any worldview. Rather it
> has been more effective for me to create the conditions for change. For me,
> this has meant starting from where people are at now.
>
>
> On Saturday, December 14, 2013, Dante-Gabryell Monson wrote:
>
>> interesting thread - thanks to all
>>
>> personal note - I hope your actions can evolve towards , or include
>> awareness and support for :
>>
>> *" uncommodified, unmanaged, and uncurricularized "*
>>
>> http://p2pfoundation.net/Against_the_Professional_Cooptation_of_Community
>>
>> hence using institutions for de-institutionalization :
>> non monetized, self organized ( and open sourced ), non credentialized.
>>
>> potentially some examples, in addition to informal learning we experience
>> in our daily lives
>>
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barefoot_College
>> Bunker Roy: Learning from a barefoot movement<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qqqVwM6bMM>
>>
>> and
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimally_invasive_education
>> such as ( when using ICT )
>> http://www.hole-in-the-wall.com/
>> "The hole in the wall: self organising systems in education" - Sugata
>> Mitra at ALT-C 2010 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps8MwyJH8Zo>
>> TED Talk - Hole in The Wall Experiment<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks8D3WE-PbM>
>>
>>
>> Personally, I am interested in converging tribes, into ( semi ? ) neo
>> nomadic tribes,
>> even if only for a specific time and specific space,
>> for socially and environmentally regenerative participatory action
>> research
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Participatory_action_research
>>
>> I spent years hitch hiking, money-less, or almost money-less,
>> and realize a home / base to return to is important.
>>
>> I hope the following space will become a reality, and a starting point
>> for leveraging such approaches
>>
>> http://sharewiki.org/en/Antwerp_Collective
>>
>> I wish to encourage such approaches, or find ways to find overlap, with
>> cooperative institutions,
>>
>> and enable scalability by supporting modular and open source parametric
>> nomadic solutions and infrastructures :
>> http://sharewiki.org/en/Spime_Housing
>>
>> and rapidly spread out such approach in most of the world, regardless of
>> land ownership, money, or credentials,
>>
>> and in support of emergent collective intelligence and the commons.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Sat, Dec 14, 2013 at 5:47 PM, Joss Winn <jwinn at lincoln.ac.uk> wrote:
>>
>> Joe, Sam, Michel, Wouter,
>>
>>
>> Thanks for your replies to my initial email about co-operative
>> universities.
>>
>> http://josswinn.org/2013/12/co-operative-principles-in-higher-education/
>>
>> At that link are my notes from the seminar held in London this week. For
>> further updates, you can subscribe to my blog (email/RSS) and I will try
>> to document notable developments in this area. See also:
>> http://coopuni.wordpress.com/
>>
>> We, at Lincoln, are in the process of organising a workshop early next
>> year and probably an edited book on alternative higher education, so those
>> are two ways that we might collaborate on this. In the meantime, a Skype
>> chat sometime early next year is always possible. I’d love to hear your
>> thoughts on this and about any related work you’re doing.
>>
>> Best,
>> Joss
>>
>>
>> On 12/12/2013 18:24, "Joe Corneli" <holtzermann17 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> >Hi Joss:
>> >
>> >there's likely to be interest in "Human Capabilities and Open
>> >Learning" branch of FLOK project (research leads of which copied in
>> >here).  I'm also interested, and meaning to talk with them and you
>> >about Peeragogy (peeragogy.org).  Sorry I couldn't make that time in
>> >London, but if there are further discussions I may be able to join.
>> >
>> >Joe
>> >
>> >PS.  The FLOK info:
>> >
>> >«This research stream will focus on institutional support for capacity
>> >building with a special focus on open learning and community driven
>> >collaboration. Within this research stream, learning is viewed as a
>> >pillar of development and growth in the context of a broad transition
>> >to a social economy that embodies reciprocity and commons-based value
>> >creation. This includes a particular stress on active public policies
>> >that respond to growing social challenges facing Ecuadorean society.
>> >Beyond conventional systems of learning and education that might
>> >depend upon closed proprietary structures, this research will utilize
>> >commons-based learning networks to harness open science and open
>> >educational resources (OER). Perhaps most importantly, this includes a
>> >broad interest in advancing the public good through partnering
>> >frameworks with civil society.» -
>> >
>> http://en.wiki.floksociety.org/w/Research_Plan_Provided_by_the_Research_Co
>> >ordinators
>> >
>> >
>> >On Thu, Dec 12, 2013 at 2:21 PM, Wouter Tebbens (FKI)
>> ><wouter at freeknowledge.eu> wrote:
>> >> Dear Joss and all,
>> >>
>> >> last July I was invited to a "Foresight workshop for Open Education in
>> >> Higher Education in Europe by 2030" organised by the EC's JRC/IPTS
>> >> centre to contribute to the development of scenarios for OE in HE &
>> >> Research.
>> >>
>> >> At least part of the participants was interested in some forms of
>> >> commons-governed models. Possibly you might be interested in my notes
>> >> which I put up on my blog at FKI:
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> http://freeknowledge.eu/blog/wouter/ec-foresight-workshop-developing-a-co
>> >>mmons-educational-vision-for-higher-education-2030
>> >>
>> >> I find it very interesting to read your work and interests in such
>> >> direction.
>> >>
>> >> best regards,
>> >>
>> >> Wouter
>> >> --
>> >> Free Knowledge Institute | http://freeknowledge.eu | Unlocking the
>> >> Knowledge Society
>> >> Free Technology Academy | http://ftacademy.org | Education about Free
>> >> Software
>> >>
>> >> On 12/09/2013 03:09 PM, Joss Winn wrote:
>> >>> Sorry, the 'tag to follow' link should be:
>> >>> <http://josswinn.org/tag/co-operative-university/>
>>
>>
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