Hey NetBehaviourists, You might be interested in an introduction to the Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto which was recently discussed at the South American "Congress on CyberSociety" as part of their "e-waste management" discussion. In fact, what this introduction points out, the document goes into territory far beyond the issue of e-waste and reflects the emerging realisation that there is no such thing as an "externality" - everything relates to everything else.
Here (below) is the text. Hope it's of interest. Best, James ===== P.S. If you're unfamiliar with the manifesto itself (which I haven't attached) I think Marc put a link in the previous posting on this topic - or try the shamefully neglected http://zerodollarlaptop.org ===== Introduction to the Zero Dollar Laptop Manifesto for The Congress of Cybersociety 2009 ========================================================== Digital technology, as it currently manifests itself, is problematic. While it has huge potential for development (we have seen the huge economic advantages that have been made in the developed world) we must remember that digital processing and communications technologies serve as an amplifier; they amplify opportunity and potential, but they also amplify division and exclusion. Networked technology, in its present social, political and educational contexts, will make the powerful yet more powerful, and will help the excluded, the illiterate, the disconnected, only marginally. An implication of this document is the suggestion that e-waste (in fact, any waste) is not a characteristic of matter itself, it is a definition which we give to objects when we decide that we will no longer be creative with them. In the case of computers, when our desire for convenience and novelty (and sometimes a mistaken belief in promises of 'empowerment' touted by marketeers) outweighs our desire for persistence, learning, and ingenuity, then we declare our formerly useful tools 'obsolete' and acquire a new machine. A bad workman blames his tools. Looked at through this lens, we may begin to perceive that the problem of e-waste is located, not in objects, but within ourselves; our knowledge is inadequate, our desires for instant gratification are too intense, our creativity lies dormant. These are issues which span education, critical media awareness, holistic thinking, innovation, politics, economics, personal autonomy and creativity. I submit that e-waste is merely a symptom of a more profound malady which has been facilitated and amplified by networked technology. That malady is one of centralism in the service of efficiency. As you will see from this short manifesto, I'm not someone who believes that technology is an automatic "quick fix". However, at the same time I'm enthusiastic about the massive potential of spreading the culture and personal habits of ultra-localised technology renewal and re-use. My suggestion is that the same technology we already have can effect society in a profoundly different way if the networks that deliver it tend towards decentralism. Originally I addressed this document to the sort of audience likely to engage with an online manifesto written in English, and published by an artist and educator working in the field of digital culture: technologically engaged workers, educators, researchers, artists and activists, probably working in the more developed parts of the world. There are, of course, many more people who may read this - perhaps people in underdeveloped regions (or people in the developed world who are outside the charmed circle of education, employment and skills) who have yet to acquire their first computer. To them, the vast majority, I must issue an apology - far more than 99% of the laptops to which I refer in this manifesto are still sitting on the shelf, unused. This document has not precipitated action by thousands (or hundreds of thousands... or more!). It is, alone, utterly inadequate. However, if it helps us better to understand what the situation is, and to start to form some feasible, practical, localised approaches to developing our consciousness as well as our digital communications, then perhaps those small steps, however tiny, can start to make things better. ===== _______________________________________________ NetBehaviour mailing list [email protected] http://www.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour
