This post is a little taster of the OKFN session on building a coalition around openness which will be co-hosted by, Elliot Bledsoe, John Cummings and Bekka Kahn on Wednesday, July 16 between 12:00 – 13:00.
What the Open Coalition is
A baking circle. But mostly, an affiliation of organisations who are working in the open space, and who have come together with the aims of helping organisations working in the open space to communicate better, share experiences, avoid duplication of effort and work together to deliver meaningful projects, while encouraging openness in working practice, as well as materials produced. Our ultimate goal is to help organisations come up with exciting projects, look for funding and execute these projects.
What We're Hoping to do at OKFestival
OKFest will be the first time that many of us have the opportunity to meet face-to-face. So as well as offering a chance to put email addresses to faces, we're hoping to use the time to help people build real connections and have some honest conversations about the real state of the open sector.
Understanding the words we use to communicate openness, and how they may (or may not) resonate with the people to talk to is going to be critical if the open movement is to grow into a sustainable and viable alternative to traditional ways of making and sharing content, and bridging the understanding of openness between those of us who are familiar with the movement and new audiences.
The values and ethics that underpin open movements resonate with lots of people. Open movements and projects—open source software, Creative Commons, OpenStreetMap, Wikipedia for example—all have communities of deeply engaged members. But why aren’t more people engaging with them? This session aims to start a conversation about how we as open organisations/advocate/
We're also hoping to work on a map of the Open space on the web, and in real life. Navigating these worlds can be tricky – all good adventurers need a map, and we’re asking you all to help us build it. We can guarantee that there will be post-its, butcher paper and maybe even some tape involved. Be prepared.
How you can be involved
Let us know what you need help with! The Coalition exists to help people like you, and your organisations, to ask for help and find solutions. Need advice on collaborative tools? Got data and no-one to wrangle it? Looking for communities to do research? We can put you in touch with people who care about the same things, and have the skills and experience to help. Ask us a question, or set us a mini-task on Twitter with the hashtag #OKFestOC