JP recaps Cluetrain: we are human amidst the tech

Among the many presentations at 2gether08, the one that led to lots of “did you catch that  …” remarks  was JP Rangaswami talking about the Cluetrain Manifesto ten years on. At the event is seemed like a touchstone for our explorations of the relationships of people, technology, commerce and society. Now you can see JP here, introduced by Euan Semple. (read more...).

2gether @ handheld learning 2008

It was a great pleasure to be a participant at 2gether08 where I was joined by colleagues from South Thames College who were explaining and demonstrating one way in which the kinds of technology already available to young people are being used for powerful learning experiences as well as platforms for grass-roots activism. In this case they were discussing their LIFEWISE initiative where arts, dance, business studies and technology combined to raise awareness of the campaign against gun and knife crime. (read more...).

Involve aims to engage millions

At 2gether08 I met up with my friend Richard Wilson, who runs the excellent participation think tank Involve. They are definitely thinking big in using new media to scale up the scope for citizen engagement. I shot this brief interview, and then asked Richard to send me some further thoughts. (read more...).

BBC adds more support for Simon’s Coca Cola Campaign

Simon Berry got a double boost at 2gether08 last week for his campaign to get Coca Cola to use their sophisticated distribution channels for rehydration salts to save children’s lives. Currently 5500 children die each day in Africa from diarrohea. (read more...).

Andy urges us to Do the Green Thing

Andy Hobsbawm from David Wilcox on Vimeo.

Andy Hobsbawn established the first international Internet agency back in 1994, and so when he became concerned about climate change and living a greener life he thought about how to use the skills and creativity around his business. (read more...).

2gether - big things for love

It is commonplace to go on about the affordances of new technologies and how in the right hands they can allow us to overcome economic impediments that curtailed our ability to connect, collaborate, share and converse to do in Clay’s lovely phrase ‘big things for love’ . 2gether feels a bit like that. In (read more...);

Help Tracey and her team tackle climate change

Community networking to tackle climate change from David Wilcox on Vimeo.

The aim behind 2gether08 is not just to talk about social issues and digital technology, but to start forming collaborations for practical action. The Social Innovation Camp that Anna Maybank described here shows how that is possible.

One big idea now emerging at 2gether08 is using online networking, and public service media, to help communities reduce their carbon footprints. (read more...).

Technology is boring

Technology gets socially interesting, Clay Shirky argues, when it has become technically boring. Now the web and related technologies are ubiquitous enough to have reached this point, we’ve got to work out happens next.

With the Social Innovation Camp we decided to dive right in, get our hands dirty and build some prototypes for web-enabled social innovations - tools that use social technologies to help people create change for themselves, from the grassroots up. At the moment, however, we see a disconnect between what the technology supplies and what society needs. (read more...).

Andy aims for a Web of Generosity

Andy Bell from David Wilcox on Vimeo.

Some of the most interesting conversations at 2gether08 will, I suspect, be when activists and social media types get together with TV broadcasters and digital marketing specialist. That’s because they’ll have to talk about what’s engaging and makes a difference, rather than the latest tools and industry trends. (read more...).

Physical, mental… digital: a new health for a new century

Improve the health of our relationship with digital technology, and I believe we can change our lives, and by extension, make the world a better place. At 2gether08, The Digital Health Service will bring us back home to where digital technology brings well-being to the people of the planet. (read more...).