The role of COINS in the Civic Space: Building a pathway to shared prosperity

1. The role of COINS in the Civic Space: building a pathway to prosperity Betsey Merkel, Co-Founder, Director The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open)

2. The Institute for Open Economic Betsey Merkel presented this material to the Networks (I-Open), 4415 Euclid Ave Suite COINS 2009 conference at the Savannah 301, Cleveland, Ohio 44103 College of Art & Design (SCAD) October 10, 2009. This material is copyright under a I-Open is a 501(c)3 educational Creative Commons 3.0 attribution license. You economic development organization are free to modify, copy and use this material based in Cleveland, Ohio with a national for non-commercial and commercial purposes, reach. We develop and deploy new provided that you attribute it as follows: practices and tools for Open Source Economic Development and provide Source: Betsey Merkel and I-Open, Distributed coaching, mentoring, and training under a Creative Commons 3.0 attribution services. license. You can learn more about I-Open at: You can learn more about the Creative Commons license at: www.i-open.org http://i-open-2.near-time.net www.creativecommons.org

3. “Economic development is in everything today” - Tom McCarthy, teacher, lawyer, CEO http://economicdevelopment.ning.com/

4. This presentation explores a Pathway to Shared Prosperity an accelerated model of Civic Forums to connect innovation to place based assets to strengthen education, economic, and workforce development

5. Proﬁtable last century industry created legacy assets in colleges, universities, libraries The Civic Space was simpler then and more organized Today there’s an emergence of a new Civic Space Where no one can tell anyone else what to do Where levels of civility may be low But everyone has an idea

6. “We have seen over a 400% increase in demand for services from our One Stop serving ﬁve counties across two states in the last six months.” - One Stop Manager, Ohio and Pennsylvania We’re in a time of unprecedented change, disconnection, and opportunity Unemployment rate climbs to 9.8 Percent, Wage Growth Weakens The economy shed 263,000 jobs in September, led by losses in the government, retail, and educational services sectors. BLS preliminary benchmark revisions show that 824,000 more jobs were lost in March of 2009 than initially reported. - Dean Baker, Center for Economic and Policy Research, October 2, 2009

7. The speed of change has ruptured institution networks and they don’t work any more This is the disconnection of people and their ideas to hope and prosperity

8. Institutions with COINS do work They’re resilient, sustainable, rich in social capital, and collaborative They generate high levels of effective innovation at a low cost And serve many people for good

9. Today we need higher levels of organization, process, and tools The Civic Space is exploding and it offers unprecedented research opportunities

10. A Pathway to Collaboration is a collaborative strategy to connect people and their ideas to - knowledge assets in colleges, universities, and libraries - rewire institution, organization, and government infrastructure - re-invent education, economic, and workforce development

11. The Innovation Framework is a starting point for people to think about how to invest for sustainable communities and regions

12. COINS and the Innovation Framework focus our time and attention in the Civic Space

13. We’re building an insight and innovation network to share: 100 interviews 46 conversations 1000 voices 150 hours content

14. I-Open interviews inform the design of Civic Forums I-Open conversations improve on & generate new knowledge Result: we all get smarter

15. Interview questions spotlight 12D perspectives in problem solving Our approach is informed by Question Science, addressing both social and economic systems It’s an inexpensive, fast way to harvest knowledge creation for collective intelligence in innovation and design How can our research beneﬁt It takes many people to see the whole coffee cup the emerging Science of image: http://commons.wikimedia.org Collaboration?

16. So, what do Civic Forums do? Build open, neutral spaces for civic experiences Introduce mental models for cognitive shifts Model behaviors in collaborative leadership and civility Generate purposeful discussions focused on talent, emergent systems, and strategic thinking

17. We’re moving from closed hierarchical strategic planning... to people centered strategy for innovation design

18. This is the Civic Forum process, a designed approach to knowledge creation Process helps us to know what happens when and where, and for what in the Civic Space

19. A success story Tuesdays@REI - a free, weekly Civic Forum - anyone w/ initiative welcome - civic, business, gov, academic - 2003-2005: 17 mo period, 79 forums - attracted 3000 people - 80,000 media impressions - before Twitter & Facebook - cost of $.60 per person - 1 FT manager - on a campus w/ no parking - working groups, initiatives, publications, new businesses Peter B. Lewis Building, Case Western Reserve - admin closed the 25 year old University, Cleveland, Ohio center June 2005 as “redundant” image: http://commons.wikimedia.org - people picketed, “Where’s my REI?” - I-Open is the spin out

20. What we learned: - Place is important - Networks in the Civic Space are volatile and fragile - Activity always moves forward - Proximity is powerful Peter B. Lewis Building, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio image: http://commons.wikimedia.org

21. The science of experience is grounded in organization, process, and tools The art is in what people say and do

22. In May 2009 we asked, “What would you write on I-Open’s tombstone?” We wanted to understand our value to community This map visualizes the meaning of people’s experience Explore!

23. I-Open Civic Forums build - industry networks - new markets - branded communities - enterprise cultures Best of all: people build clusters of next generation projects quickly

24. ? What is the role of colleges, universities, and libraries in the Civic Space?

25. Conveners of Civic Forums, platforms for open innovation Some Stewards of powerful civic networks Co-creators of people centered Answers strategy for innovation design Servant leaders of meaningful experiences for good

26. Swarm creativity builds value in participation by enriching experience and meaning

27. CONDOR can help us understand how the Civic Space works today

28. The Art: “In the digital world, User Experience is the key deﬁner of value.” - Jeff Dachis, Dachis Group, 2009

29. The Science: This is a map of social participation process and knowledge creation People begin at the periphery, progress to the hub, and to the core People share knowledge based on the value they bring, where they see themselves on the Innovation Framework, and their level of comfort Trusted conveners, connectors, and access to quality resources is critical to sustain activity

30. More about what we’ve learned: Civic Forums generate collaborative communities

31. Examples of collaborative communities & branded cultures

32. Examples of community generated enterprise collaboration

33. Betsey Merkel <betseymerkel@gmail.com> I-Open Civic Forum Tues April 21, 2009 "Building Brainpower: Green Jobs Initiative" 1 message I-Open <info@i-open.org> Reply-To: info@i-open.org Thu, Apr 16, 2009 at 10:14 AM Communication design is To: info@i-open.org informed by meaningful content “I-Open is a sophisticated center of civic dialogue that furthers the community's "Building Brainpower: The Green Jobs Initiative" Join us for an important conversation about re-tooling America's skills training for understanding and efficiency in green trades to drive economic prosperity. engagement of issues.” Next steps in Chagrin Falls, Ohio... With Bill MacDermott, Owner, Cleveland Solar & Wind Date: Tues April 21, 2009 - Gary Murphy, Faculty Time: 4:00PM - 5:45PM Live Broadcast/Chat 4:00PM - 5:45PM (EST) Director, Undergraduate Location: Chagrin Falls Public Library 100 E Orange St Chagrin Falls, OH 44022 Map Economics Program, Phone: (440) 247-3556 Coffee and cookies provided by Friends of the Library Case Western Reserve Free parking. No charge. Everyone is welcome! University Broadcasts Backgrounder interview Most recent Live Show Broadcast on green jobs training Articles The American Solar Energy Society (ASES): ASES Green Collar Jobs Report

34. Strategic sharing integrates organization, process, and Web 2.0 tools I-Open communities broadcast interviews and conversations to amplify people and their ideas

35. So, what’s next? Build an accelerated model of Civic Forums that is - networked - adopts COINS - adopts Question Science - serves research in the emerging Science of Collaboration

36. We invite you to contribute http://i-open-2.near-time.net We’d like to know what you think! Send your ideas to: betseymerkel@gmail Thank you!

37. Thanks to all conference organizers! With grateful thanks to all of the people who generously contributed their ideas and time to teach us what we’ve learned here today Special thanks to, Susan Altshuler Dennis Coughlin Scott R Crawford Gloria & Tim Ferris Peter Gloor Valdis Krebs Bruce LaDuke Ed Morrison And all interviewees, family, and friends