Technology and Social Action: Designing a future Sheffield, UK, June 20 & 21, 2005 A WAY FORWARDS Citizen involvement in civil society goes far beyond just voting. Social action takes effect by capturing the imagination of individuals, engaging in dialogue, galvanizing direct collective effort and bringing about change. Trade unions, residents' associations, environmental and development groups, voluntary & community organisations, campaigns for freedom of speech or human rights: all express the vital role of social action in society. The global diffusion of communication technologies in society has changed the speed with which situations of social need are noticed, and the ability of social actors to respond. Logistics and coordination within and between groups benefits from technologies, from mobile phones and email, from a simple spreadsheet, to complex project management software. How can technologies and organisations be designed to facilitate effective social action? * How can individuals and organisations (NGOs) maximise their benefit from technologies: e.g. online networks, electronic petitions, (e-)participation, online fundraising, organisational learning and development? * What risks accompany the promise of technology to serve social action? How can organisations respond to the different technical experience of different members? * How do technologies relate to organisational aims and open democratic values? * How can emerging social technologies (blogs, wikis, social bookmarking etc.) be used to promote effective knowledge sharing and networking for positive change? * How should organisations respond to the very different attitudes to technology amongst their members & supporters? * How do technology costs and developments such as open-source software impact on the work of organisations? * How do current trends in technology impact on different groups in civil society? How can organisations respond to these trends and set out alternative directions? * How can designers and design skills help improve the effectiveness of social actors? What is the role of the arts in supporting social action? YOUR VOICE COUNTS We wish to bring together people involved in social action, as individuals or as members of groups, to explore the potential of technology to assist their actions, and the design challenge of finding effective ways to utilise technology. The Second Workshop on Technology on Social Action will take place at Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield on the 20th and 21st of June 2005. WORKSHOP FOCUS The workshop will be organised around three themes. Free / Libre and Open-Source Software (FLOSS) Open-source software might offer social action organisations lower software costs, and shares similar values of openness and knowledge sharing with the social action sector. But how well are current open-source projects matched to the requirements of organisations in the social action sector? Are there unmet requirements, or unrecognised opportunities for innovation? Where can organisations turn for advice? This theme will explore the current scope of open-source software and services in relation to the needs of the social action sector, and develop an agenda for future developments. For more information about this theme, please contact Andy Dearden (A.M.Dearden@shu.ac.uk) STORYTELLING: narrative and drama to galvanise social action People relate to one another way in all kinds of ways. Whenever calls to take action are in the air, relations are more likely to be passionately animated than colourless and objective. The conflict of voices wanting different things can mean some people are put off entering the arena, and that energy fizzles out before action can be taken. People have stories to tell and to share, to mutually appreciate their excitement and their grievances. The ability to engage through storytelling could be a way for communities to build momentum, and to galvanise their efforts. This theme will focus on innovating online environments that create opportunities for dramatic and narrative storytelling and exchange. It will ask how to create new electronic media that are designed for joint participation in writer-reader, publisher-subscriber, actor-audience roles. The outcome will be a set of design challenges, relating to technological opportunities, the nature of social action and understanding of conflict, narrative and drama. For more information about this theme, please contact Leon Watts (L.Watts@bath.ac.uk) EVALUATING AND LEARNING FROM TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS While there is a large body of research and knowledge to inform those concerned with the design and use of digital technologies in business and government, there is much less for those involved in social action settings. The purposes, contexts and values of ICT use in social action are frequently radically different, limiting the extent to which useful knowledge can be inferred. Hence, effective evaluation can play an important role as a vehicle for social and organisational learning about technologies and their use. This theme will focus on exploring issues in the philosophy, design, conduct and dissemination of evaluation of technology-related projects. The objective is to ensure both that lessons are learned and are presented in forms which can be applied in different social action settings. The workshop will use one or more case studies through which to identify key issues in T&SA evaluation. For more information about this theme, please contact Steve Walker (s.walker@leedsmet.ac.uk) WORKSHOP STRUCTURE Participants in the workshop will be invited to work with a sub-group on one of the three themes. Each sub-group will collaborate over the two day workshop to: 1. Share understandings of issues, drawing on historical and current developments 2. Explore potential innovations in relation to the theme 3. Establish realistic design goals for the short and medium term. Plenary sessions will permit the groups to share their findings, debate and gain feedback from a wider audience. HOW TO PARTICIPATE If you participated in the first Technology and Social Action Workshop (Held at Leeds earlier this year), then please email Paul Manning, p.manning@shu.ac.uk, identifying which of the three themes you are most interested in pursuing. If you have not previously participated in the project, to apply please email Andy Dearden: a.m.dearden@shu.ac.uk briefly explaining your relevant interests and background in technology and social action. Financial support for travel and accommodation is available but preference will be given to members of voluntary organisations. WHO ARE WE? We are the organisers of the Technology & Social Action project. We have been funded by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Board and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council to advise them on the design & technology research agenda for the 21st Century. We are committed to finding out and properly communicating the needs and aspirations of the social action user community for the design of sensible & usable technologies. STEERING GROUP Andy Dearden, Sheffield Hallam University. http://www.shu.ac.uk/schools/cms/teaching/amd Mike Press, Director, Grays School of Art, Aberdeen. http://www2.rgu.ac.uk/subj/ats/ Steve Walker, Leeds Metropolitan University http://www.leedsmet.ac.uk/ies/im/people/swalker/ Leon Watts, University of Bath. http://www.bath.ac.uk/comp-sci/people/csslw.shtml ADVISORS David Wilcox, Partnerships Online http://www.partnershipsonline.org.uk ========== HURIDOCS-Tech listserv ========== Send mail intended for the list to <huridocs-tech@hrea.org>. 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