Vancouver International Digital Festival

Creative Exchange Recap

Monday was quite a day. Like all of you, I couldn’t make it to every session and, boy, there were some tough choices! Fortunately, every session was taped and we will be providing all those who registered this year with access to the podcasts soon. Below are some of my reflections about the day.Starting with Ori Brafman’s low-key keynote, we were treated to some gently offered and sometimes quite humorous wisdom about the nature of organizations. Ori outlined the starfish and the spider models of organizing groups. Decentralized groups that shared a core set of values and leveraged pre-existing networks were all shown to have power and influence despite not having the resources often associated with, well, power and influence. Groups as diverse as AA, Al Qaeda, Quakers, and Craigslist all shared the starfish model. Centralized organizations that depended heavily upon one leader were spiders. Big corporations and states at various times in their life cycle were compared to spiders, which however complex and skillful they may be, chop off their head and they’re toast.Then came the panel many of us were waiting for: Web 2.0 Democracy or Mob Mentality? Andrew Keen, well-known polemicist in the digital media scene, was up against four other bright young guys all heavily invested in the online space. Keen, sometimes called the “AntiChrist of Silicon Valley” was a bit more like the “Simon Cowell of Silicon Valley” but definitely held his own and challenged the assumptions of some of the other speakers. It was great to watch them all try to define the social contract needed in the digital age, and to do it respectfully and thoughtfully. Mike Sikorsky from Cambrian House made great points about the “implicit” and “explicit” wisdom of the Internet as well as pointing out that if Web 2.0 and user generated content is to fulfill its promise, “the crowd needs compensation.”After a great lunch, I came back to hear about the latest activity in Second Life. The bright lights from the brand spanking new Master’s of Digital Media Program over at the Great Northern Way Campus, and Chuck Hamilton, whose new job is to teach IBM how to play (how cool is that!) sat in and shared their experiences of modding, experimenting, and collaborating in metaverses. Apparently, spaces like Second Life are working so well for work collaboration that one of Chuck’s colleagues working for IBM in India enthusiastically announced “Geography is History.” Yes, ponder that one. It was a fascinating glimpse into the potential for these virtual communities to be thinktanks for how we “do” community. How we work, live, and play in it.My conference ended with Anastasia Goodstein’s presentation about youth culture online. Funny, smart, informative, Anastasia brought a lot of us back in touch with our teenage selves. She shared the highs and lows and gave some great tips about connecting with this group. Hint: they may have a bazillion new gadgets to use to do bad things and good things with, but all in all teenagers have not changed much. Phew! Or should I say, Darn!?Then, armed with all this great info, and busily making connections between the provocative ideas I’d heard throughout the day, I blissfully went off to talk it all out and share at the VIDFEST Happy Hour in the swank Opus Hotel Lounge. Great food. Great people. Great conversation. It was a happy hour to end a happy day.