This is the keynote presentation from Amy Sample Ward at the 2011 Electronic Resources & Libraries conference, #erl11. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org
Presentation from Referencing Reboot: Tools, Tech and Twinkle on 4 June 2014 (English Faculty, University of Cambridge).
Kathy works at the University of Cranfield.
Creation of visualizations based on Linked DataAlvaro Graves
A common task with any relatively large amount of data is to create visual representations that help users to make sense of such data and observe trends that otherwise would be hard for them to appreciate. The creation of these visual- izations usually requires some knowledge in a programming language, making it difficult for non-technical savvy users to create visualizations. In this paper we present Visualbox, a system that makes it easier for non-programmers to create web visualizations based on Linked Data. These visualiza- tions can be accessed by any modern web browser and can be easily embedded in web pages and blogs. We describe how people can create visualizations using Visualbox and we show examples of work done by real users. Finally we present a study that shows that Visualbox makes it easier for users to create Linked Data-based visualizations.
Building Blocks of Social Media - part of the Storytelling & Social Media webinar series by NTEN and TechSoup Global
Presented by: Amy Sample Ward
Is sharing really caring? Well, it can at least boost your internal staff knowledge and your positioning as a resource in the community!
In this webinar we'll discuss the fundamentals of sharing information with social media tools. You don't have to know how to do this already to take part—this is for those just starting out! We'll cover social bookmarking, tagging, RSS and more, plus the tools you can start using for free to do it all.
These slides were used in Farra Trompeter's March 4, 2011, Online Engagement class at The New School, NYC - presentation from Amy Sample Ward. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org
Presentation from Referencing Reboot: Tools, Tech and Twinkle on 4 June 2014 (English Faculty, University of Cambridge).
Kathy works at the University of Cranfield.
Creation of visualizations based on Linked DataAlvaro Graves
A common task with any relatively large amount of data is to create visual representations that help users to make sense of such data and observe trends that otherwise would be hard for them to appreciate. The creation of these visual- izations usually requires some knowledge in a programming language, making it difficult for non-technical savvy users to create visualizations. In this paper we present Visualbox, a system that makes it easier for non-programmers to create web visualizations based on Linked Data. These visualiza- tions can be accessed by any modern web browser and can be easily embedded in web pages and blogs. We describe how people can create visualizations using Visualbox and we show examples of work done by real users. Finally we present a study that shows that Visualbox makes it easier for users to create Linked Data-based visualizations.
Building Blocks of Social Media - part of the Storytelling & Social Media webinar series by NTEN and TechSoup Global
Presented by: Amy Sample Ward
Is sharing really caring? Well, it can at least boost your internal staff knowledge and your positioning as a resource in the community!
In this webinar we'll discuss the fundamentals of sharing information with social media tools. You don't have to know how to do this already to take part—this is for those just starting out! We'll cover social bookmarking, tagging, RSS and more, plus the tools you can start using for free to do it all.
These slides were used in Farra Trompeter's March 4, 2011, Online Engagement class at The New School, NYC - presentation from Amy Sample Ward. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org
Webinar: Strong Connections; Linking your strategy to goals to dataAmy Sample Ward
These slides were used for a Nonprofit Webinars presentation on November 9, 2011 by Amy Sample Ward. For more information visit http://amysampleward.org
This presentation and the accompanying "game" were created for the 2010 National Conference on Service and Volunteering, June 29, 2010; more at http://amysampleward.org
This is Amy Sample Ward's slide deck for the Ignite Sessions at 09NTC (http://nten.org/ntc) - Local is the new Global. NetSquared's Net Tuesday events and Challenges.
This presentation includes templates and instructions for Community Mapping (mapping your community segments), Content Mapping (creating a content strategy), and Tracking Metrics. Amy Sample Ward presented as part of the Nonprofit Webinars series. You can learn more about Amy at http://amysampleward.org or find other webinars at http://www.nonprofitwebinars.com/
How Student-based Community Promoting Open Source for EducationSendy Aditya Suryana
This slide is material of openSUSE Asia Summit 2016 lightning talks. The title is "How Student-based Community Promoting Open Source for Education".
The slide is talk about KSL KUSUKA program to promote opensource for education.
What does the future look like? Is it a dark space where we’re suffering from varying degrees of techamphetamine or are we heading towards a Utopian fantasy of abundance and harmony?
Understanding that our basic human needs and wants barely change, we explore the future state of a range of topics; from our need for physical sustenance through to our age-long fascination of transcending the limitations of our biology.
Looking at the future from a human perspective, our potential for greatness is teetering on a fine line between darkness and hope. We’re banking on the latter.
WTF - Why the Future Is Up to Us - pptx versionTim O'Reilly
This is the talk I gave January 12, 2017 at the G20/OECD Conference on the Digital Future in Berlin. I talk about fitness landscapes as applied to technology and business, the role of unchecked financialization in the state of our politics and economy, and why technology really wants to create jobs, not destroy them. (There is a separate PDF version, but some readers said the notes were too fuzzy to read.)
This presentation was designed as a webinar for Washington Access Fund, delivered November 15, 2010. For more presentations and information, visit http://amysampleward.org
Social Media in Nonprofit Program & Service DeliveryAmy Sample Ward
These slides were originally created for a webinar with NTEN on October 26, 2010 - The webinar discussed opportunities for using social media to expand and open up programs in nonprofit organizations. Connect and continue the conversation at http://amysampleward.org
This is the presentation I gave at the 2011 American College of Preventive Medicine conference in San Antonio, February 19, 2011. For more notes and information, visit http://amysampleward.org
Webinar: Strong Connections; Linking your strategy to goals to dataAmy Sample Ward
These slides were used for a Nonprofit Webinars presentation on November 9, 2011 by Amy Sample Ward. For more information visit http://amysampleward.org
This presentation and the accompanying "game" were created for the 2010 National Conference on Service and Volunteering, June 29, 2010; more at http://amysampleward.org
This is Amy Sample Ward's slide deck for the Ignite Sessions at 09NTC (http://nten.org/ntc) - Local is the new Global. NetSquared's Net Tuesday events and Challenges.
This presentation includes templates and instructions for Community Mapping (mapping your community segments), Content Mapping (creating a content strategy), and Tracking Metrics. Amy Sample Ward presented as part of the Nonprofit Webinars series. You can learn more about Amy at http://amysampleward.org or find other webinars at http://www.nonprofitwebinars.com/
How Student-based Community Promoting Open Source for EducationSendy Aditya Suryana
This slide is material of openSUSE Asia Summit 2016 lightning talks. The title is "How Student-based Community Promoting Open Source for Education".
The slide is talk about KSL KUSUKA program to promote opensource for education.
What does the future look like? Is it a dark space where we’re suffering from varying degrees of techamphetamine or are we heading towards a Utopian fantasy of abundance and harmony?
Understanding that our basic human needs and wants barely change, we explore the future state of a range of topics; from our need for physical sustenance through to our age-long fascination of transcending the limitations of our biology.
Looking at the future from a human perspective, our potential for greatness is teetering on a fine line between darkness and hope. We’re banking on the latter.
WTF - Why the Future Is Up to Us - pptx versionTim O'Reilly
This is the talk I gave January 12, 2017 at the G20/OECD Conference on the Digital Future in Berlin. I talk about fitness landscapes as applied to technology and business, the role of unchecked financialization in the state of our politics and economy, and why technology really wants to create jobs, not destroy them. (There is a separate PDF version, but some readers said the notes were too fuzzy to read.)
This presentation was designed as a webinar for Washington Access Fund, delivered November 15, 2010. For more presentations and information, visit http://amysampleward.org
Social Media in Nonprofit Program & Service DeliveryAmy Sample Ward
These slides were originally created for a webinar with NTEN on October 26, 2010 - The webinar discussed opportunities for using social media to expand and open up programs in nonprofit organizations. Connect and continue the conversation at http://amysampleward.org
This is the presentation I gave at the 2011 American College of Preventive Medicine conference in San Antonio, February 19, 2011. For more notes and information, visit http://amysampleward.org
Maryland Library Association 2008 Conference Creating a Technology Petting ZooBald Geek In Md
Technology Training For Library Staff: Creating a Technology Petting Zoo.
Presented at the Maryland Library Association Annual Live and Virtual Conferences
PPT Presentation given on 10/22/08 for New Jersey Center for the Book "Showing Casing Information Literacies-New Dimensions" @ the Newark Public Library
23 Things @ UL Lunchtime Talk on Tagging and using Technorati given by Sinead Keogh Librarian Digital Initiatives, Glucksman Library, University of Limerick.
I gave this talk at the 2009 Association of Subscription Agents. It describes the concept of technology waves, and how we are at the start of the semantic web waves. The presentation describes two projects Talis is undertaking with scholarly content around the semantic web - a society social networking prototype called Xiphos Network and a product called Talis Aspire to deliver eContent to end users via scholarly resource lists.
Our Staff Tech Training presentation from CIL2008 on how to engage your staff about technology while having a good time.
Slightly shorter than the other version of this presentation
A stripped down version of a presentation I gave to students in Latvia - it's a fantastic time to be shaping the profession of librarianship, so this slide-deck is about the world and the way it's changing, trends for the future, and how to make the most of being a librarian.
Collaborate to Succeed: Implementing New Reference Services with SPLATAmy Vecchione
SPLAT is a unique statewide collaborative focusing on implementing new reference services, looking out in the crow's nest for innovation, and seeking new ideas. This presentation at Reference Renaissance 2010 showcasing how SPLAT has helped Idaho implement new reference services.
Best Practices to Build a Multichannel CampaignAmy Sample Ward
Highlights from the new book, Social Change Anytime Everywhere by Allyson Kapin and Amy Sample Ward; 8 Steps to Build a Multichannel Campaign Plan. Learn more at socialchangeanytime.com
This presentation is from the April 2, 2013 Philadelphia Net Tuesday event presented by Amy Sample Ward. To learn more visit http://socialchangeanytimeeverywhere.com
These slides were presented by Amy Sample Ward at the DonorPro 2012 Conference by TowerCare in Pittsburgh, PA. For more information, visit: http://nten.org http://amysampleward.org
This webinar was part of the 2012 Women Who Tech Telesummit, moderated by Amy Sample Ward, with presentations from Claire Diaz-Ortiz, Michael Silberman, and April Pedersen. Learn more at http://womenwhotech.com
This workshop was part of the 2012 Grassroots and Groundwork conference, at Mystic Lake, MN - given June 8, 2012 by Amy Sample Ward. learn more at http://amysampleward.org and http://nten.org
Building and Nurturing Global Online CommunitiesAmy Sample Ward
This presentation was given by Amy Sample Ward and Bonnie Koenig at the 2012 ASAE International Conference in Washington DC. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org and http://goinginternational.org
Social Media to Tell Your Story and Raise FundsAmy Sample Ward
These slides are from the presentation Amy Sample Ward made on 4/16/12 in Harrisburg, PA, at the PANO Annual Conference. Learn more at http://nten.org and http://amysampleward.org
These are the slides from Amy Sample Ward's presentation at New York Cares' 2012 Leadership Conference in New York City on March 3, 2012. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org
Strong Connections: Linking your strategy, to goals, to dataAmy Sample Ward
These slides were delivered as part of the Internet Kick-off at the 2011 Blackbaud Conference for Nonprofits in Washington DC by Amy Sample Ward. Learn more at http://amysampleward.org or http://nten.org
These slides are from the Rural Health Resource Center's national conference, the closing keynote on Knowledge Sharing Networks by Amy Sample Ward. For more, visit: http://amysampleward.org
These slides were used in a webinar presentation for the National Center for Media Engagement by Amy Sample Ward in June 2011. For more information, visit: http://amysampleward.org
These are the slides from Amy Sample Ward's session at PMDMC on July 15th, 2011, in Pittsburgh. The session was the first in a 4-part social media intensive track at the conference. For more information, visit http://amysampleward.org and http://nten.org
These are the slides from the 2011 National Conference on Volunteering and Service presentation from Amy Sample Ward and Laura Norvig. For more information, visit http://amysampleward.org or www.nationalservice.gov/resources
Community Organizing begins with Community BuildingAmy Sample Ward
These are the slides for Amy Sample Ward and Debra Askanase's presentation at the 2011 National Conference on Volunteering and Service in New Orleans. For more, visit http://amysampleward.org
Technology and Community: Strategic Options for Movement BuildingAmy Sample Ward
This keynote was delivered at the MyCharityConnects Conference as part of Net Change 2011, on June 6, 2011, by Amy Sample Ward. For more information, visit http://amysampleward.org
This presentation was given online as part of the free Nonprofit Webinars series by Amy Sample Ward in May 2011. For more information, please visit http://amysampleward.org
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 4DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 4. In this session, we will cover Test Manager overview along with SAP heatmap.
The UiPath Test Manager overview with SAP heatmap webinar offers a concise yet comprehensive exploration of the role of a Test Manager within SAP environments, coupled with the utilization of heatmaps for effective testing strategies.
Participants will gain insights into the responsibilities, challenges, and best practices associated with test management in SAP projects. Additionally, the webinar delves into the significance of heatmaps as a visual aid for identifying testing priorities, areas of risk, and resource allocation within SAP landscapes. Through this session, attendees can expect to enhance their understanding of test management principles while learning practical approaches to optimize testing processes in SAP environments using heatmap visualization techniques
What will you get from this session?
1. Insights into SAP testing best practices
2. Heatmap utilization for testing
3. Optimization of testing processes
4. Demo
Topics covered:
Execution from the test manager
Orchestrator execution result
Defect reporting
SAP heatmap example with demo
Speaker:
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
In his public lecture, Christian Timmerer provides insights into the fascinating history of video streaming, starting from its humble beginnings before YouTube to the groundbreaking technologies that now dominate platforms like Netflix and ORF ON. Timmerer also presents provocative contributions of his own that have significantly influenced the industry. He concludes by looking at future challenges and invites the audience to join in a discussion.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
LF Energy Webinar: Electrical Grid Modelling and Simulation Through PowSyBl -...DanBrown980551
Do you want to learn how to model and simulate an electrical network from scratch in under an hour?
Then welcome to this PowSyBl workshop, hosted by Rte, the French Transmission System Operator (TSO)!
During the webinar, you will discover the PowSyBl ecosystem as well as handle and study an electrical network through an interactive Python notebook.
PowSyBl is an open source project hosted by LF Energy, which offers a comprehensive set of features for electrical grid modelling and simulation. Among other advanced features, PowSyBl provides:
- A fully editable and extendable library for grid component modelling;
- Visualization tools to display your network;
- Grid simulation tools, such as power flows, security analyses (with or without remedial actions) and sensitivity analyses;
The framework is mostly written in Java, with a Python binding so that Python developers can access PowSyBl functionalities as well.
What you will learn during the webinar:
- For beginners: discover PowSyBl's functionalities through a quick general presentation and the notebook, without needing any expert coding skills;
- For advanced developers: master the skills to efficiently apply PowSyBl functionalities to your real-world scenarios.
Smart TV Buyer Insights Survey 2024 by 91mobiles.pdf91mobiles
91mobiles recently conducted a Smart TV Buyer Insights Survey in which we asked over 3,000 respondents about the TV they own, aspects they look at on a new TV, and their TV buying preferences.
Generative AI Deep Dive: Advancing from Proof of Concept to ProductionAggregage
Join Maher Hanafi, VP of Engineering at Betterworks, in this new session where he'll share a practical framework to transform Gen AI prototypes into impactful products! He'll delve into the complexities of data collection and management, model selection and optimization, and ensuring security, scalability, and responsible use.
Dr. Sean Tan, Head of Data Science, Changi Airport Group
Discover how Changi Airport Group (CAG) leverages graph technologies and generative AI to revolutionize their search capabilities. This session delves into the unique search needs of CAG’s diverse passengers and customers, showcasing how graph data structures enhance the accuracy and relevance of AI-generated search results, mitigating the risk of “hallucinations” and improving the overall customer journey.
Climate Impact of Software Testing at Nordic Testing DaysKari Kakkonen
My slides at Nordic Testing Days 6.6.2024
Climate impact / sustainability of software testing discussed on the talk. ICT and testing must carry their part of global responsibility to help with the climat warming. We can minimize the carbon footprint but we can also have a carbon handprint, a positive impact on the climate. Quality characteristics can be added with sustainability, and then measured continuously. Test environments can be used less, and in smaller scale and on demand. Test techniques can be used in optimizing or minimizing number of tests. Test automation can be used to speed up testing.
Unlocking Productivity: Leveraging the Potential of Copilot in Microsoft 365, a presentation by Christoforos Vlachos, Senior Solutions Manager – Modern Workplace, Uni Systems
Removing Uninteresting Bytes in Software FuzzingAftab Hussain
Imagine a world where software fuzzing, the process of mutating bytes in test seeds to uncover hidden and erroneous program behaviors, becomes faster and more effective. A lot depends on the initial seeds, which can significantly dictate the trajectory of a fuzzing campaign, particularly in terms of how long it takes to uncover interesting behaviour in your code. We introduce DIAR, a technique designed to speedup fuzzing campaigns by pinpointing and eliminating those uninteresting bytes in the seeds. Picture this: instead of wasting valuable resources on meaningless mutations in large, bloated seeds, DIAR removes the unnecessary bytes, streamlining the entire process.
In this work, we equipped AFL, a popular fuzzer, with DIAR and examined two critical Linux libraries -- Libxml's xmllint, a tool for parsing xml documents, and Binutil's readelf, an essential debugging and security analysis command-line tool used to display detailed information about ELF (Executable and Linkable Format). Our preliminary results show that AFL+DIAR does not only discover new paths more quickly but also achieves higher coverage overall. This work thus showcases how starting with lean and optimized seeds can lead to faster, more comprehensive fuzzing campaigns -- and DIAR helps you find such seeds.
- These are slides of the talk given at IEEE International Conference on Software Testing Verification and Validation Workshop, ICSTW 2022.
Alt. GDG Cloud Southlake #33: Boule & Rebala: Effective AppSec in SDLC using ...James Anderson
Effective Application Security in Software Delivery lifecycle using Deployment Firewall and DBOM
The modern software delivery process (or the CI/CD process) includes many tools, distributed teams, open-source code, and cloud platforms. Constant focus on speed to release software to market, along with the traditional slow and manual security checks has caused gaps in continuous security as an important piece in the software supply chain. Today organizations feel more susceptible to external and internal cyber threats due to the vast attack surface in their applications supply chain and the lack of end-to-end governance and risk management.
The software team must secure its software delivery process to avoid vulnerability and security breaches. This needs to be achieved with existing tool chains and without extensive rework of the delivery processes. This talk will present strategies and techniques for providing visibility into the true risk of the existing vulnerabilities, preventing the introduction of security issues in the software, resolving vulnerabilities in production environments quickly, and capturing the deployment bill of materials (DBOM).
Speakers:
Bob Boule
Robert Boule is a technology enthusiast with PASSION for technology and making things work along with a knack for helping others understand how things work. He comes with around 20 years of solution engineering experience in application security, software continuous delivery, and SaaS platforms. He is known for his dynamic presentations in CI/CD and application security integrated in software delivery lifecycle.
Gopinath Rebala
Gopinath Rebala is the CTO of OpsMx, where he has overall responsibility for the machine learning and data processing architectures for Secure Software Delivery. Gopi also has a strong connection with our customers, leading design and architecture for strategic implementations. Gopi is a frequent speaker and well-known leader in continuous delivery and integrating security into software delivery.
GraphSummit Singapore | The Future of Agility: Supercharging Digital Transfor...Neo4j
Leonard Jayamohan, Partner & Generative AI Lead, Deloitte
This keynote will reveal how Deloitte leverages Neo4j’s graph power for groundbreaking digital twin solutions, achieving a staggering 100x performance boost. Discover the essential role knowledge graphs play in successful generative AI implementations. Plus, get an exclusive look at an innovative Neo4j + Generative AI solution Deloitte is developing in-house.
Elevating Tactical DDD Patterns Through Object CalisthenicsDorra BARTAGUIZ
After immersing yourself in the blue book and its red counterpart, attending DDD-focused conferences, and applying tactical patterns, you're left with a crucial question: How do I ensure my design is effective? Tactical patterns within Domain-Driven Design (DDD) serve as guiding principles for creating clear and manageable domain models. However, achieving success with these patterns requires additional guidance. Interestingly, we've observed that a set of constraints initially designed for training purposes remarkably aligns with effective pattern implementation, offering a more ‘mechanical’ approach. Let's explore together how Object Calisthenics can elevate the design of your tactical DDD patterns, offering concrete help for those venturing into DDD for the first time!
32. Getting Started Let the community drive. Stay in the sweet spot. Share the spotlight. Operate in loops. Think big. http://amysampleward.org Amy Sample Ward http://techsoupforlibraries.org
Thank you for the introduction and thank you for inviting me here to speak today. It’s really my pleasure to be here to kick things off! I know that the sessions today and over the next couple days are going to cover a diverse set of topics in detail, so I want to focus instead at a more conceptual level. When it comes to innovation in civil society, there is nothing that can match the speed and ingenuity of communities that come together to make a change, develop a tool, or feed a need. “Innovating at the speed of communities” relies on a few core principles, but underpinning all of them is the concept of innovating WITH, not FOR the community. I want to start, first, with a story…
Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to speak at the Minnesota Council for Nonprofits annual conference; and after my presentation, I spent a couple hours speaking with folks from various nonprofits, vendors and service organizations. I told one woman that I’d be headed here next, and she said, “Oh, I used to do the library makeovers for Target – I love libraries!” She then went on to explain the library program she used to work with at Target and how rewarding it was for her to get to support libraries in schools around the country. It sounded great, until her last comment: She told me that it was a really important program, because libraries are the heart of the community…well, in elementary schools at least. I was pretty surprised that she’d qualify that statement and so I asked her why she didn’t think libraries were the heart of all communities; and she just said, well, maybe they used to be.That conversation is a perfect example of both the kinds of conversations I have had countless times when talking to people (whether they work for a library or not) about the future of libraries as well as the frame I’m using for this talk.
So, why community? Why focus on that instead of content, or knowledge or information or anything else? Well, at least in my opinion, the definition of a library includes the community – those that come every day, those that come to events or use the services, and those that haven’t yet engaged. As I mentioned when I started, in order to be positioned as the heart of the community and to continue evolving our services, programs, and thus our relevance, we need to think about how we innovate or work WITH the community, and not just FOR the community. That word change supports co-design, it encourages collaboration, and it ensures engagement. There are a few core elements of the way communities work that we can learn from as a model for innovation as well.
Communities are flexible. “Membership” isn’t official and moderated (beyond basic rules of engagement) and as such can change all the time, but so can the focus and the operations. Because organized efforts are based on goals and the work or process itself, it’s easy for communities to iterate or change at any time and remain flexible in the decisions and steps created towards achieving those driving goals.
Leadership and decision-making come from adoption not from executive authority. If there’s an idea that the community is behind, and a project or plan that’s adopted (whether it’s a new way of operating or a new tool), then it moves forward, regardless of “who” thought it up or campaigned for it. Adoption is something we’ll come back to later as well.
Instead of grant deliverables or profit, passion and impact are the bottom line motivators for change. Obviously “profit” is a slippery slope, but in most scenarios, it isn’t the community at large that would financially benefit off of change. It’s that distance from financial consequences that let communities put best interest and opportunity ahead of other influencers.
Communities share, pass on, and constantly expand a collective wisdom and knowledge from experiences, events, movements and legacy. In an organization, when someone leaves, that knowledge is lost, but with a community it is shared so constantly and knowledge sharing is built into the way communities operate, that it is harder for information to disappear.
Organizations, whether nonprofits, institutions, human services, or even ad hoc groups, can harness these elements of communities and use a community-driven model to design programs and services as well as create a platform for collaboration, and reposition themselves as the heart of the community. We can provide a map, the vehicle, and even the road snacks, but the community needs to be the driver. When we take over the driving, we move the community to the backseat and lose the opportunity to go where the community wants. Before I talk about strategic elements of the community-driven model, I want to share some key conditions that need to be in place to ensure a library or any other organization can move to a community-driven model.
Working with the community, working with anyone for that matter, requires a great deal of listening. But in a community-driven model, you can’t just listen for the sake of learning. You have to go beyond that and listen for action. Listening takes many shapes and what you “hear” comes in many forms and from many directions. The ideas, questions, requests, and needs that you hear regardless of how direct they seem, should provide you with the inspiration and impetus for either new programs, services or offerings or ways to change those that you already have in place. If you aren’t in a position to take action based on what you hear, there’s little purpose in listening or trying to use a community-driven model. The community will see that you aren’t making changes, aren’t communicating, and aren’t collaborating and will disengage.
Building on that listening, and supporting you in taking action based on what you hear, it’s integral that you have the capacity to change. There may be many things you do and provide that the community loves. There may also be things that the community wants you to change – and those may not be limited to a specific service or program. It may be larger than that. And without the capacity for change, the actions you take and the integration you can achieve with the community is limited.
Not only do you need to be listening and taking action, but as an organization, you need to have a culture that supports collaboration. Without one, you’ll be impaired further along the road as you start trying to implement new programs or services or innovate the way you work because you will be taking on all of the responsibility, management and work. Collaboration in the community-driven model doesn’t just mean you invite the public to meetings about what you’re doing, it means they are invited in, invested in, and share responsibility for the work you’re doing together.
Communities use adoption as collective decision making and prioritization. As such, adoption can be seen as a currency, measuring the worth of your programs, services and opportunities. Those that aren’t adopted are prime targets for iteration and evolution and great places to start involving the community in creating changes that result in adoption and use.
All of these principles and community-driven practices all require communication and transparency. The community knows you’re listening because you are consistently sharing back what you hear and what might be possible. Your capacity for change and the opportunities to collaborate are visible through open communication and public information. You work with the community in a transparent process of engagement so community members can see when they might want to get involved, when they aren’t interested, and when there’s room for change. These principles all underpin the degree of success you will have with your community engagement and integration. They also create the foundation for a community-driven strategy.
As I’m sure many of you already know, much of this work, whether it’s building up the community, working on engagement, listening, evaluation, or anything else, relies on a strategy continues to come back around to the planning elements and through to evaluation, over and over. Not exactly a simple circle, but a cycle that after a few steps feeds back to the beginning. From listening, to creating to evaluating and then back to the listening again so that you can modify and then evaluate, and so on.
The first step: Identifying your community. That may sound simple, like “my town, or my campus, or my organization.” But think about it in more detail. What are they like: what are the demographics, the data, the stories? Where are they: where do they go and how do they get there? What other services do they use or organizations do they work with? What kind of action and interaction already happens, and what actions or interaction are they looking to find? Whether it seems important in the moment or not, it’s really valuable to make a list or chart or picture, whatever you want, of all the information you have about your community. The more you list and share, the more you’ll start to see patterns or clear paths emerge.
The next step is focusing on the right goals. I like to refer to that as finding the sweet spot. To do it, you first identify what your community wants – to do, to achieve, to create. Next, identify what you want. Those two “wants” will overlap and that gray area is the sweet spot. It’s important to remember that not everything youwant to do or achieve, matches up with with your community wants, and vice versa. Maybe you provide services, and your community doesn’t want to be providing those services, but they are happy you are doing so. And maybe the community wants to endorse a specific candidate, and youdon’t. But you can share a vision for the kind of community you want to support and create together. That’s the sweet spot where you can count on focusing energy.
After mapping the community and identifying shared goals you can focus on, you can start identifying the online tools and technologies that the community (especially when you break it down into segments) already uses, for what, why, and how. You can compare the tools they are using with the shared goals in the sweet spot to highlight opportunities already in place to start more strategic communications or use of those tools and beginning targeted engagement. Don’t ever go for a new, shiny, cool social media platform or tool simply because you’ve heard others talking about it. Know where your community is and what tools they want to use, and either use those or build them together. At least if you plan on interacting with them!
And finally, you want to identify the roles needed to create, facilitate, and implement the programs and services you design with the community. I used the car metaphor earlier; another that works is to think of this as throwing a party. You need to have someone making food, someone pouring drinks and someone else pointing out the bathroom. Just because your community is excited for the party and plans to be there, it does not mean that the party can just happen. Someone has to host, someone has to clean up. If youhave the capacity to do that, there’s a great chance a good party can happen – especially if you’re willing to leave the punch and party games to the natural leaders that emerge in the community, allowing for ownership of the party’s outcome to be shared with the guests, and not just your library or organization.We are at a very interesting time – with shifts happening locally and globally, governments changing, and new paradigms emerging. Such times create roles beyond the creation and implementation of programs, services, and institutions. But roles that will decide how we move into the future. For communities to change, they need a catalyst; are libraries ready? In order for change to be realized, we need vision for working toward shared, real goals; can libraries do it? To shape our future, communities need support to build and distribute power; can libraries support that?
What are the technologies that support community-driven engagement and models of working? Well, they can be anything, really. Internally, take inventory of all the various assets you have, from servers to websites to software. Also think about access – access to resources and information, as well as access to partners and other organizations.
Externally, map all the various technologies in play already and that could be put to use. Whether it’s social media platforms or content that has captured the interest of the community – from citizen journalism to video storytelling.
When put into straightforward terms like this, community-driven methodologies sound pretty simple. But at least for the libraries I have talked to, there are some major barriers standing in the way of operating in a model like this. First, the fear of succeeding, of actually being the heart of the community. I often hear things like: If we promote our space, everyone will try to come here; if we promote our services, everyone will try to use them. Maybe it’s just a matter of changing our perspective, or maybe it requires an actual paradigm shift. There’s a communication breakdown at play - not about promoting events or programs but about promoting possibilities, proving the library is open for what people want it to be.
Another barrier is the idea that we are all so different. I have heard before: I’m a university library, so I can’t learn from or build on the work from the community library because it is just so different here. I agree that every organization, city, region, and culture have differences that make us unique. And I’m glad we do. But when it comes to creating libraries of the future, we can’t limit the places where we take inspiration or we limit the options for collaborators and innovation.
Lastly, I have encountered a damaging dedication to a form of the membership model that’s outmoded. Libraries that say: we serve our members in the given community (whether that’s a city or a campus or anything else). Libraries that survive and thrive are ones who let go of the mindset that our members all have library cards.
Some of the most interesting conversations I’ve had about the future of libraries doesn’t start with a discussion of how we use the library now, or what the library means to us today. Instead, the conversations start with “I wish that I could” or “I’d love to use my library for” and then exploring the way libraries support our lives and work regardless of how we may perceive them today. So, I want to share a few ways that I personally want to use my library.
I work from home. I occasionally head to a nearby coffee shop to work for a change of atmosphere. But what I really love to do is hot desk, or work for the day from a friend’s office that has an extra desk space. I only have my laptop and my notebook with me, so all I need is an outlet and the wifi password to get to work. I do it because the ability to work near others working, helps me focus and keep at it, but it also means that when I need a short break, the people around me are working on very different projects or work in different fields. The organic conversation often highlights new ideas or examples that I otherwise would never know about, and can even generate new collaborations and projects by finding ways to team up. I’d love my library to be my coworking space.
I have a few topics that I am passionate and knowledgeable about and happy to teach or help others interested in learning more. With platforms like School of Everything and the Free School, I’m willing to sign up and put on small classes or provide training for free. But it happens in a vacuum. I might have someone contact me, ask for help with their project, and we meet at the café for an hour or so. And then the following week, I get the same request from someone else. I’ve love for my library to be both a physical and an online learning community. A place where I can post topics and hold classes to share my knowledge with the community.
For libraries to truly be the heart of a community, they need people coming in, all the time. But work hours aren’t necessarily the times that generate the most interesting networking opportunities for the community. I spoken with various libraries who, when they learned about the NetSquared Local program asked why they couldn’t participate – and I told them that of course they could! The NetSquared Local program is a network of groups around the world, currently 80 cities in 26 countries, that hold monthly events focused on technology and social impact, and the topics vary from group to group depending on what’s most interesting to the local community. I think there are also some great examples to be used from the way museums have used social media to boost attendance via the power of social networking – whether it’s through special offers for the mayor on foursquare, late night events for networking and exploring the space, or community-generated content about the services and programs and even physical space. I’d love to be able to use my library as the network hub.
As someone that works with community groups on citizen journalism and other content or media creation projects, I know there’s a surplus of content available that’s created by the community and often valuable to the community, but often not known about, not accessible, or otherwise lost. Libraries have a great opportunity to collaborate with the community media organizations whether it’s a department within the school or it’s a nonprofit or public media organization, to integrate community-generated content into the archives and catalogues of the library, ensuring that more knowledge and content can be accessed and circulated.
Built on top of Library Cloud, ShelfLife visualizes library stacks. Users can search, browse and otherwise navigate the library with this interactive system. Most importantly about this project is the fact that Library Cloud and ShelfLife open up the possibilities of what can be done through APIs and innovative uses of data.
The University of Amsterdamconverted an existing 27,000-square-foot library into a public space that had no visible books to accommodate the 1,500 to 2,000 students who come to the library every day. Books are stored in other repositories or depots and the space is instead focused on work and collaboration.
The Making a small world smaller forum builds on a proposal jointly developed by the State Library and RMIT University, which explored how a new center at the State Library could use elements of social enterprise, community development and social media to increase Victoria's intellectual and social capital. The proposal would bring together RMIT students, industry partners and staff from the Library to develop programs that focus on the socialization of international students, facilitate entrepreneurship among young leaders in regional Victoria and engage local secondary students in innovative activities.
I know that much of this was abstract and theoretical, but you will be talking about engaging your communities, co-designing the libraries of the future for the next three days. Before I close, I want to share a few principles you can start using today as you go to sessions, and right away when you get back to your work.Let the community drive: As the organization/institution, you can provide the map, the gas, and even the car, but the community needs to be the driver. That will ensure passion and impact can go into steering, knowledge can help guide the way, and if no one wants to drive you have a pretty clear answer to adoption!Stay in the sweet spot: There’s an area that I like to call the “sweet spot” that is where the institution’s goals and the community’s goals overlap. That’s where you can collaborate, harness the most passion and energy from each group and operate flexibly knowing you care about the same things.Share the spotlight: Remember, you’re not driving. Your staff shouldn’t be in all the leadership positions nor should all the responsibility for moving a project (or program or service or tool) forward with development fall only on your shoulders. This is an opportunity, again, to gain adoption, harness passion, and ensure longevity.Operate in loops: With community-driven design, there’s no linear path, instead the cycle is really that: a loop! Once you come up with a plan, and you test it, you then evaluate it and rethink it, and then iterate on the plan, test it, and come back around to evaluating it. Anytime in there you can make changes in direction or function and it’s okay, because you will get to plan, try and evaluate as you go.Think big: Not just big, but bigger than you. Think of plans and services that are larger than your organization or your reach. The community is, inevitably, larger than your staff, your target audience, etc. So, if you want to be community-driven and operate nimbly, keep your goals big enough to guide you there!
This might sound silly, but I want to show you something. In order for this to work, you all need to close your eyes. If you really don’t want to, that’s okay – but trust me, it’ll be just for a second. Go ahead, close them. When I talk with folks at libraries, regardless of the size or the affiliation, about the opportunities for integrating and working with the community, I always hear push back or complaints that they don’t have anyone in their community that’s interested in getting involved, or that they haven’t seen a single person try to engage or heard from anyone that wants to do that. When I ask how they know that their community isn’t interested, they say that they just haven’t seen any proof. But, right now, you have your eyes closed, and you can hear me. You don’t need more proof than that to trust that I am really still here, standing at the podium, talking to you. It doesn’t matter what I look like, or if you can see me from where you’re sitting or not. You can still hear me. And we can still work together. You can open your eyes.
Here are the images as well as resources for continuing this conversation.
Thank you! I hope you have a few questions and I also hope we can continue talking about all of this together. Please feel free to contact me any time. But I think we will take questions now with the roving mics.