This is forwarded from Jon Ippolito, apologies for delay.
Begin forwarded message:
> From: Jon Ippolito <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: 27 April 2008 00:25:07 BST
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Alternative models of governance
>
> Apologies for the shotgun approach...I'm on the road--
>
> Katie wrote:
>> Volunteer organisations (not just floss) can have a tendency to
>> constitutional monarchy because volunteering is often about who has
>> the capacity and energy at any given time. This can be good if the
>> monarch(s) are careful with the informal power
> they have.
>
> It sometimes seems from Euro-ethnic history that the best form of
> governance we can hope for is a benevolent dictator. Joline Blais
> argues that the original role of elders in many Native communities
> offers a much better model for emergent
> leadership.
>
> In the US government, the Supreme Court has the ultimate authority
> over all lower courts. In the Haudenosaunee and Wabanaki confederacies
> of the American northeast, intertribal councils had the highest
> respect but the least power; councils at the
> next level down garnered less respect but had more power, and so on.
> So ultimately it was local people who made local decisions.
>
> Because of the respect accorded elders, however, it often transpired
> that the entire confederacy would follow the advice of the oldest
> members. This may seem the same outcome as if a benevolent dictator
> were in charge, but because the process of
> decision-making recognizes the local sovereignty of all members, the
> system seems more equitable to everyone.
>
> Janet wrote:
>> Some cultures do have this kind of focal length eg. "7th generation"
>> thinking where you act in order to achieve an outcome for people who
>> will be here in 7 generation's time.
>
> The "7 generations rule" comes from the Haudenosaunee, known to
> outsiders as the Iroquois.
>
>> Being explicit about the kinds of participation and share and
>> therefore revenue from shared work is useful. The contracts for
>> collaboration are likely to be a good starting point for that kind of
>> conversation.
>
> James Leach alluded to the work of the Connected Knowledge conferences
> and the Cross-Cultural Partnership template, which is a framework
> designed precisely to cover collaboration between two or more parties
> with different cultural or personal
> expectations:
>
> http://connected-knowledge.net/
>
> jon
>
>
>
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Beryl Graham, Professor of New Media Art
School of Arts, Design, Media and Culture, University of Sunderland
Ashburne House,
Ryhope Road
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SR2 7EE
Tel: +44 191 515 2896 [log in to unmask]
CRUMB web resource for new media art curators
http://www.crumbweb.org
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