The document discusses the evolution and impact of social technologies, emphasizing their role in facilitating change and engaging people for a better future. It highlights examples of using platforms like Twitter and mobile devices to organize and promote social initiatives, disaster response, and community building. The ongoing efforts and research aim to harness these technologies to address global challenges and create meaningful change.

1. Building a better future, sooner.
#openwebTO: Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010
Advancing the medium of change,
for a better future, sooner.

2. 13,700,000,000 years ago

3. 4,450,000,000 years ago

4. 130,000 years ago

5. 7,300 years ago - Agriculture

6. 150 years ago - Industrial Revolution

7. We were powerful.

8. 1945 - Hiroshima

9. We were dangerous.

10. 1989 - Exxon Valdez Spill

11. 1994 - Rwanda

12. 2000 - Aral Sea dies

13. We thought we
were in control.

14. 2001 - 911

15. 2006 - Climate Change

16. 2008 - Global markets collapse

17. We were wrong.

18. “A flaw in the model...
...that defines how the world works.”

19. We’re making our
planet inhospitable.

20. We’re killing
each other.

21. We’re killing
ourselves.

22. We’re screwed.

23. But, there’s hope.

24. 1946 - First Computer

25. 1969 - Internet Launched

26. 1973 - Phones go ‘mobile’

27. 1991 - Web Launched

28. 1998

29. 1999

30. 2002 - Smartphone

31. 2003

32. 2004

33. 2004

34. 2005

35. 2006

36. 2007 - Wins “Best of Web” at SXSW

37. 2007

38. 2008

39. 4 billion people
connected together

40. through
a new medium

41. a medium that’s...

42. open

43. mobile

44. social

45. personal

46. public

47. spontaneous

48. engaging

49. practical

50. A medium of change.

51. the medium of change
Data Interaction Infrastructure Devices
an emerging system of social technologies
more people ➜ making more change ➜ for a better future ➜ sooner

52. it’s changing us
•Now over 1.5 •Governor
People Coming Schwarzenegger
billion internet Together responded to
users + 4 billion
individual ‘tweets’,
mobile subscribers
enables publicly,
•45% of people in spontaneously, from
developing world
his BlackBerry
are mobile
subscribers Medium •In the last 2 months
more original
•By 2020 mobile will of
content was posted
be primary internet Change
on YouTube than
device disrupts changes the major networks
•If Facebook were a Systems Culture could have
country it would be of our and broadcast since ’48.
the 4th largest in
the world.
Society Mindset •Ambient intimacy?
•Common ground?
From news to politics the medium is having profound implications. In the aftermath of the Iran
elections in 2009, the US State Department treated Twitter as an essential public service, asking
them to delay scheduled maintenance. Shortly after Time declared it the medium of the movement.

53. it’s changing change
Engagement Action
from centralized to distributed from controlled to self-organized
Obama charity: water #hohoto Haiti Relief
my.barackobama.com enabling practical and spontaneous peer- enabled through sms and
enabled 2m participants creative fundraising and produced event in support common web services:
which led to: providing direct connection of Toronto’s Daily Bread • Wikipedia page created
• 35,000 volunteer groups to projects on the ground: Food Bank within seconds
• 70,000 fundraising pages • give up a birthday gift, • 18d from idea to event • Facebook served as
• $500m raised from 3m jump out of a plane - • no single leader information source
donors making 6.5m fundraising made easy • >dozen primary around missing people
donations • through Twestival 1,000 volunteers • RedCross SMS campaign
• 200,000 offline events volunteers and 10,000 • sold out 600+ attendance raised $7m within 24h
• 2b emails donors raised $250k • >$25k raised • Virtually every online
• 3m phone calls online in through 202 events • over 2t food donated service became donation
last 4 days globally on Feb 12, 2009 gateway.
Awareness
from structured to emergent
Ushahidi Twitter
“The Ushahidi Engine is a platform that allows anyone Through Twitter, people become aware of disasters and
to gather distributed data via SMS, email or web and events before the mainstream media or conventional
visualize it on a map or timeline. Our goal is to create channels can report it. For example, Twitter is able to
the simplest way of aggregating information from the identify earthquake activity before any other public
public for use in crisis response.” source. People are the very sensors of change.

54. For a better future,

55. sooner.

56. ChangeMedium facilitates
conversations and initiatives that advances
understanding, infrastructure, and application of
the medium of change.
researchers
apply
conversations
change- the Medium the future
makers build
initiatives
of Change we want
developers understand
a better medium, more people, a better future,
for change making more change sooner

57. what we’re up to
Topic: Medium of Change Topic: Twitter
A dedicated event in Toronto bringing A pre-event to the Twitter developer
conversations
researchers and developers together to conference in San Francisco in April. Exploring
advance the medium of change. the applications of Twitter for change.
Topic: status.net Ongoing: #cmAnswers
An embedded conversation, weaving change- A monthly public chat to explore how the
making opportunity and community into a medium is changing us, changing change, and how
status.net unconference in Montreal. we can use it to make the world better, sooner.
past future
Ongoing: Research Micro-Journal
A micro-journal for researchers to share insights and
updates on what they researching as they are researching it.
Ongoing: ChangeMedium.org
initiatives
An information site, blog, group and
Ad-hoc: Deep Dives
twitter account broadcasting the latest Facilitated research sprints around specific arenas of change
in the medium. (e.g. aboriginal communities). What’s the impact of the medium
and how can it be used to ease and accelerate change?
Ad-hoc: Deep Devs
Facilitated development initiatives to build critical infrastructure
and specific applications of the medium for change.

58. who we are
• Core Team • Development
Michael Lewkowitz (t | li) Peter Flaschner (t | li)
entrepreneur, igniter design
Ryan Coleman (t | li) Joseph Dee (t | li)
entrepreneur, facilitator development
• Steering Committee Dan Williams (t | li)
hosting
Duncan Holmes (t | bio)
President, ICA Associates • Supporters
Tim Draimin (t | li) SiG@Waterloo
Executive Director, SiG research outreach
James Walker (t | li) SiG@MaRS
Open standards advocate #cmToronto
Austin Hill (t | li)
Entrepreneur, Founder Akoha • Hosted by
Tides Canada Foundation

59. You...

60. ...are changing the world
Data Interaction Infrastructure Devices
an emerging system of social technologies
more people ➜ making more change ➜ for a better future ➜ sooner

61. Advancing the medium of change.
For a better future, sooner.
Contact:
Michael Lewkowitz
michael@igniter.com
519.200.3034
ChangeMedium.org