Infinite are the specific differences of men’s customs and laws, but they can be summarized as follows: one entrusts monarchies, others oligarchies, and some to people in political power. Our legislature stopped looking towards any of these governments. If we can say so with such violent language, the theocratic government is established by placing in God power and strength.

This was written by historian Flavius Josephus, the first to coin the term theocracy. In its original sense, theocracy gives God political power; God is entrusted with the task of regulating relations within communities.

Since the emergence of the mobile and collective web, are we in the process of transferring political power to the Internet? Are we appointing another entity to the onerous task of governing men?

God (point-zero)?

The great digital fabric shares several striking similarities with the Divine Creator. Like God, the Internet is eternal and immaterial. It’s intangible but nonetheless “present among men.” It isn’t the property of people, governments, or institutions. It belongs to nobody and is not accountable to anyone. It’s universal.

God is often believed to possess three awesome qualities: he is all knowledgeable, all powerful and has the ability to be everywhere. Let’s see if the Internet can compete in these domains….

The Omnipresent Internet

In recent years, the Internet has left the dark caves in our homes and follows us in our bags and pockets. The Spirit is everywhere!!

It was there when we drew upon our smartphones to find our way. It was still there when we are with our circle of friends and we wanted to fact check during the middle of a conversation. It guides us at all times through the path of knowledge, assisting with friendships and work. It guides us on off-roads and through poorly marked highway exits….

Tomorrow it could be incorporated in our bodies, allowing us to unite with the Spirit through the sheer force of thought.

The Omniscient Internet

As it was useless for Jonas to escape the eyes of God by leaving the country, the Internet also knows everything!

He knows everything about you – who your friends are, what you’re reading, your distractions, your thoughts, and your most shameful vices.

Your history on Facebook, Twitter, and Foursquare permits the divine digital entity to know you thoroughly to the point where it’s able to anticipate your needs [FR] and helps you respond.

The Omnipotent Internet

Power is often measured by its capacity to be used for creation or destruction. In this respect, the Internet is not far from our Divine Creator.

Certainly, do not expect to see evil being struck by lightning or the seas part for digital exiles driven away by the vile HADOPI [FR]. Yet the Internet is impressive and ever-growing.

Within 10 years, Wikipedia collected the greatest sum of knowledge ever compiled by humanity. Isn’t this just as impressive as when Jesus promised to rebuild the temple of Jerusalem in three days? The Internet is now capable of removing dictators, as seen in Tunisia and Egypt. It’s the heart of the rebellion in Iran, and this momentum will not stop anytime soon.

Divine promises vs digital promises

When God wanted to be heard by men, it was not enough to be a blazing fire – he had to speak about morality and the afterlife. The Internet seems to understand this, as it carries the key promises that could start a religion:

Promise of Truth

I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.

Originally said by the Nazarene, the Internet could make the same claims because it’s the largest amount of knowledge ever curated by man and the most accessible. It’s knowledge to infinity for our ignorant minds! In addition to knowledge, the Internet provides transparency, restoring truth where lies, propaganda, and conspiracy once prevailed. WikiLeaks is probably the most prominent example, but it’s far from being the only one. Certain websites allow you to rate your own company, and social networks assist in creating transparency among its members.

Promise of Spirituality

Every religion seeks to relieve us of the weight of the world, where material necessities dictate our laws and behaviours. Jesus once promised “Follow me and you will never go hungry.” Well, Digital Theocracy can make the same assertion.

The Internet breaks beyond the material need for paper to diffuse information. There is no need for a studio to compose music. No need to go to the office to work [FR]. It’s worth noting the sharing economy [FR] rendered possible by the Internet can take advantages of objects at any time without necessarily having to own them. Under these conditions, the accumulation of material goods seem both unnecessary and counterproductive.

Promise of Immortality

What would a religion be if it didn’t promise immortality at the very minimum? When we die, the dust will return to dust, but the Internet can guarantee a (digital) life after death.

The site la vie d’après.com [FR] offers a range of services from sending messages to your loved ones after you die to safeguarding  your digital identity by storing your memories for your descendants. Crazier projects such as mylifebits propose digitally recording all the “data” in your life, and subsequently transplanting the information into another organism.

Can the Internet govern men?

“If God is for us, who can be against us?” –  Saint Paul

If the Internet resembles God, it seems to be causing a new religion. What might this new DigitalCity of God look like? Can the Internet take control over the destiny of humanity? These are questions we must seriously consider!

The response is not evident, but I can see three trends which favor the emergence of Digital Theocracy:

The unifying Internet

To govern men, it’s necessary to know how to unite them. The Internet is able to unite communities which were previously dispersed or poorly organized. Social networks consolidate our circle of friends and professional contacts. It can be measured in rallying protesters to a cause.

The Internet does not need charismatic politicians, stories of the brave, unionist, or the clandestine revolutionary structures for it to unite people. It basically has no need to institutionalize – a first in the history of mankind.

The organizing Internet

The Internet became the major force in humanity’s collective intelligence, which makes it a decisive instrument in organizing the city. Search engines like Google structure the order and flow of information, and gives it overall coherence by highlighting the most relevant information. Other tools for organizing, structuring, and curating data exist, such as Quora, which facilitates the question and answer process. Likewise, Pearltrees allows its users to share and organize their interests on the Internet.

The methods used to organize data and the ideas proposed by the Internet are quite original; it’s organic and passes through a hierarchy. Everyone is free to propose what they want, and good initiatives are retained while the others are returned to the abyss. These decisions are not made by one authority, rather by a collective viral process.

On the Internet, everyone can act as a proposing force according to one’s skills, and also a force of selection according to their tastes or needs.

This is the idea behind Twitter – it offers original content and highlights those which have the most retweets. This may be the organization model of the future.

The Internet providing justice

To be capable of governing, one must know how to establish justice. The Internet is also able to divulge into this function. Beyond the anecdotal side of investigation, crowdquesting anonymous users (such as the case of Xavier Dupont de Ligonne [FR]) demonstrate that digital traces can be easily exploited. LOIC allows any user to attack a list of hostile sites with DoS attacks. Frankly, this use of direct force is a savage form of Internet justice, although there is the gradual establishment of online ethics, netiquette, and other tools to build an e-reputation which can enhancecooperative behavior [FR] and punish abuses.

Don’t get carried away completely just yet: the Internet is still a young God, just released from the metaphysical limbo which it slept until now. It’s still too weak to be completely independent of some human structures. Certain states may still be muzzled, and some companies may use its divine power to their advantage. It still needs material instruments (computers, smartphones, servers) to be fully expressed. For the digital zealots who await the coming of the City of God on earth, there is still a long way in establishing the web’s reign on earth. But faith is known to move mountains.

Cet article Are we living in a digital theocracy ? est apparu en premier sur Mutinerie, libres ensemble - espace de coworking à Paris.

Coworking answers various needs, ranging from “my flat stinks, I need a REAL place to work” to “I need a proper place to talk to my clients” or “I desperately need fellows for after work drinks”.

Maslow’s pyramid (or hierachy) of needs begins with physiological needs, then progresses to saftey needs, love and belonging, esteem and self-actualization. Following these steps, the pyramid of coworking could look like this:

1. Basic Needs

Basics needs are the physiological needs of the independent worker. Basically, it means having a proper desk, a stable Wifi, some storage and so on. Below is a list of what a coworking space should provide
- A reliable WiFi connection

- A comfortable desk

- Office equipments (printer, scanner etc…)

- Storage spaces (lockers)

- A meeting room

- Food and drink (inside the space and also in the close neighbourhood)

- Proximity (not to remote from coworkers’ homes)

- A quiet room to focus on your work

2. Safety needs

Being an independent worker means making some sacrifices, especially at the beginning of your career. Say goodbye to clear revenue streams. It can be sometime hard to know how much money you’ll get this month. No more bosses or colleagues to turn to when you’ve failed. You’ve got to take your own responsibilities. Coworking, by being flexible, helps you dealing with unpredictability. It provides you with:

- Financial safety (coworkers only pay for the time they spend in the space and can adjust their expenses to their revenue streams)

- External and professional advice for your projects

- Trust between coworkers

- A cool and relaxed atmosphere

3. Love and belonging

Who said living free meant living alone? A coworking space gathers together a community of people united by commons values and lifestyles. Coworkers are part of a crew, living, working, and acting together. You’ve got to provide your community with:

- Both professional and non-professional events (the border can sometime be hard to define)

- Affinities between members

- A coworking visa allowing coworkers to be part of the global community of coworkers

- Collective projects between members

4. Esteem

A nice work place, a structuring environment and a community that supports you… Everything is here to start expressing yourself personally. When joining a coworking community, you could:

- Be acknowledged for your hard and soft skills

- Become an active member of the community

- Have an audience for your projects

5. Self-actualization

This is the ultimate stage of the pyramid, the one we are all struggling to reach for our communities and ourselves! Coworking helps:

- Be in a creative and stimulating environment that will boost your skills

- Keep on improving with trainings and daily water cooler chats with your fellow coworkers

- Live and work in accordance with your values

- Share your knowledge

Cet article The coworking pyramid of needs est apparu en premier sur Mutinerie, libres ensemble - espace de coworking à Paris.

After the rural exodus, following the industrial revolution, are we now facing a digital urban exodus. Perhaps this movement is now following the digital revolution?

Since the 90’s, the rural population in France finally increased, after seeing a diminishing population for the past 150 years. The rise, which remains rather modest, regards more the outer fringes of cities, rather than true urban areas. But it has seemingly brought an end to this inevitable process.

More than one out of 2 Franciliens would like to leave the Ile-de-France region. Half of them would like to live in a small or medium sized city (less than 100.000 inhabitants), 26% in the country and 18% in a big city. This phenomenon conceals different realities which, according to me, are insufficient when attempting to conclude a real urban exodus. Price increases in central urban areas, leads those to move towards the peripheral areas of cities, resulting in the closing of urban industrial sites. It also leads to an increase of those retiring in rural areas, or individuals who leave cities due to pollution and insecurity.

At the moment, it was not sufficient to just to observe movement from central to peripheral areas, when attempting to conclude a real urban exodus. The primary basis for rural exodus was economical and technological. After the industrial revolution, the need for a strong workforce increased. Salaries were dropping rapidly in the agricultural field, and exploding in the industry. To subsist, the farming population has moved toward to industrial sites, resulting in a high demand for said workforce.

Similarly, in order to know whether we are really facing a urban exodus, we have to ask ourselves these questions: are rural areas becoming economically more attractive than cities? What are the factors helping us to understand the foundation and the features of this emerging phenomenon? Of course, the truth is not often simple, and what follows does not pretend to apply as a general rule.

A digital urban exodus

It is almost commonplace to say that digital technology emphasizes teleworking and mobility. However, this is a central element to understanding urban exodus. More importantly, the digital revolution should be assessed as a real revolution and not just as a practical tool.  We could first state that digital technologies allow us to work from any place. Technology now allows all workers to accomplish tasks with a computer or a cell phone, when just 15 years ago, it would have required a costly and heavy set of tools. In many activities, the internet provides people with access to millions of individual markets, whether you are living in Paris or deep within Ardèche…

Even in fields, which are not directly related to the knowledge-based economy, means of production are distributed. There are plenty of examples, such as the 3D printers, or other experiences relating to distributed production. Digital technologies allow a better use and accessibility of common goods through new collaboratives practices.

A second approach would be to observe, beyond technics, what digital technology could bring to open the boundaries of what is actually possible. Neolithic and industrial revolutions started with innovations aimed to make life easier. But eventually they started changing everything, such as our relationship to space, to others and to ourselves. They redesigned our thinking software.

In the same way as the industrial revolution moved the source of allowable values from agriculture to industry, the digital revolution has moved the values of industries toward intellectual production.

However, intellectual production is not dependent on complex material infrastructures that we usually find in cities, but it relies more on a ecosystem, whether it is urban, rural or even virtual. The economic advantage of cities, which was decisive during the industrial era, now has a lesser meaning.

An urban exodus led by self-employees

It would not have been an urban exodus, as long as rural areas could not be considered as real attractive economic areas. But, by saying “attractive economic areas”, I do not mean a transposition of successful models during the industrial era. The urban exodus should not be viewed with the same outdated ideas. Rural areas have never been adapted by people who had a salaried position.

The rural exodus mostly concerns independent workers (farmers and artisans), who have left their work to become employees. It is a fair bet to make that the urban exodus would be the inverse of this phenomenon.

There is a strong correlation between the urbanisation movement in the Western world and the number of freelancers.

In 1830, in a still rural France, there were around 50% of self-employed workers. In 1930, they were only 33%. After a stabilization, due to the Great Depression (which was basically a crisis of industrial Capitalism) and the World War, the number of self-employed workers fell again. In 2007, they represented less than 10% of the working age population, as shown in this excellent report titled: “The Self-employed Worker, a Figure of the XXIst Century”. The correlation between industrialisation, rural exodus and self-employment is strong.

However the number of self-employed workers is still increasing in all industrial countries. In France, there were 9.6% in 2007 and 11.6% by the end of 2012. Also, the number of freelancers are at an estimated 35 million in the US and 27 million in Europe. This rapid increase is also followed by a reevaluation of freelancers when compared to stable employees. Thus, the urban exodus will be mainly led by the freelancers.

Rural areas are broad and sparsely populated areas. They require autonomy and versatility, which are less compatible with the salaried status. They are more suitable for independent workers who are able to manage their daily schedule and travels.

In the agricultural world, it is impossible to assess work in terms of hourly productivity according to a specific time table. What matters then, is to be available during some key moments, such as crops, weather conditions, opportunity or incidents. This quality is essential for freelancers and entrepreneurs within knowledge based economy. Self-employed people can telework much easier than traditionally employed worker, since they do not need to be localized in an area where the workforce is available. The self-employed worker is mobile and could truly enjoy the low costs of rural areas.

Emmanuelle Pometan, founder of Agence Nouvelle Culture, left Paris 6 months ago to settle in the region of  la Drôme where she is working most of the time. She only goes to Paris three times a month. “I did not lose any clients since I settled outside of Paris, and I did not miss any meetings. On the other hand, my company’s image did not suffer, in fact my clients find my workstyle rather modern.”

From functional space to space as an ecosystem

People who says that localized work is dead are actually working in an industry defined by a localisation: Silicon Valley. That means that space still matters. It is one of the most  important factors for change, said Jim Keane, Vice-CEO of Steelcase.

Our lifestyles are inevitably related to our means of subsistence, and this means evolving over time with technological developments. Historically, populations started settling in one place  ever since the neolithic revolution. The change from a hunter-gatherer, to a settled way of life, has considerably changed social relations and lifestyles.

Because sedentary life needs space, it calls for an extensive settlement allocated over large territories, which means an important rural population. Industrial revolution does not tie individuals to the land anymore, but rather to factories and mines, which started building new cities based on an intensive development model. These new industrial cities are no longer considered to be frictions or commercial exchange areas, but rather the infrastructure needed for production.

The functional city model developed by Le Corbusier, which became the predominant model during post-War reconstruction, impacted cities by dividing them into functions: life, work, leisure and transportation infrastructures. Housing estates, business centers, and shopping centers have been created according to this functionalist mindset.

By thinning urban functions and dividing cities, these models were unable to keep all positive aspects, while it was formerly the role of cities. It will probably also be the role of the cities within the digital revolution, because their productivity highly relies on positive externalities, captation and dissemination. The predominant cities of the digital revolution will be able to to generate meetings in a authentic and friendly exchange, creating serendipity, social links, and a sense of trust and belonging. If you are interested in digital cities, I wrote another article entitled: “Digital City, Ideal City”.

The digital revolution does not abort the role of space, but instead it transforms the space. It makes a new meaning and a new use. This new use of space exists in an ecosystem rather than in an infrastructure.

It’s a framework favoring some distinct activities, since an ecosystem is structured by a spectrum of parameters found in permanent interaction.

Thus the urban exodus will be sustained by multifunctional spaces. A concrete example found in rural areas is the multifunctionality of some shops, like when a bakery can also provide money withdrawal or tourist information. This is an example of ecosystemic approaches that have been successful.

Xavier de Mazenod from Zevillage underlines the importance of multi-service locations in rural areas. “The idea that one place is equal to one function does not work in rural area.” The telecenter of Boitron welcomes various activities, such informatic coaching, parties or even elections. With the digital revolution, the environment replaces the infrastructure and the project replaces the profession. Each activity may correspond to different environments, and with this objective, one city offers an ecosystem favorable to many activities. Soon it becomes easier to find clients, partners, to promote its activity, and to access information…

The countryside allows for better concentration and productivity. As an example, Emmanuelle really appreciates working alternately in rural and urban areas. Today is it a better economical choice for digital workers to take advantage of this diverse ecosystem according to its needs? It will probably be a major issue for the future of digital workers, typing in the different environments that they move through, which is necessary to carry out their activities.

Cet article A typology of needs for coworking spaces est apparu en premier sur Mutinerie, libres ensemble - espace de coworking à Paris.

During the ‘Coworking Europe 2011‘ conference in Berlin, some of us argued that we couldn’t just observe our differences without trying to make a bit more order in that big boiling mess united under the banner of ‘coworking’. Many participants tried to define what a coworking space is exactly. This task appears to be pretty tough. We were all doing things in our own ways, trying to serve our different communities the best we could. Our methods, our business models, and our types of organizations are quite different.

The global coworking movement is united by values and goals more than by a specific type of service. It’s like a hydra, sharing the same body and the same soul, but having different heads.

In one of his recent articles, Alex Hillman wrote about the difficulty of defining what coworking is exactly. 

A definition assumes there is only one, and the experience of Coworking Europe conference showed us that there is not only one kind of coworking.

So, as he says, the important issue for coworking is to describe it, not define it.

Sebastian Olma even wondered if coworking was somehow following Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principe, used in quantum mechanics, which states, ‘The more precisely the position is determined, the less precisely the momentum is known in this instant, and vice versa.’ Basically the closer we think we are to a definition is exactly when the definition changes. If a direct observation of coworking seems impossible, if we can’t really come out with a satisfying definition of coworking with the classical approaches, why not following Olma’s intuitions and use a bit of quantum theory?

Wave–particle duality postulates that all particles exhibit both wave and particle properties. Quantum theory says that ’waves’ and ’particles’ are ways of seeing things and not things in themselves. If coworking is a quantic object, you can’t define it with words but you candescribe it from two angles, the ‘wave’ angle and the ‘particle’ angle, and the crossing of both angles will be the closest description of the reality. That sounds juicy doesn’t it?

Coworking is made of ‘particles’, the physical reality of the various spaces spread around the world, but it is also made of ‘waves’,or vibes, the energies that underlie the movement.

I think we naturally tend to define concepts or movements  with a ‘particle’ focus. We observe the different business models, the various types of organization, the type of people involved in a movement and hope we could find a satisfying definition with those elements. But this can lead to misunderstandings. If you have tried to explain coworking to an uninitiated person too late at night, I’m sure you’ve experienced this kind of situation:

‘Coworking is sharing a working place with flexible workers (freelancers, entrepreneurs, teleworkers)’. And the guy in front of you replies, ‘Ok, you’re talking about a kind of business center…’

That’s a typical example of what happens if you describe the movement without its vibe.

Don’t get me wrong, forgetting the ‘particle’ scope and focussing only on the ‘vibe’ leads to another trap:

‘We are creating a place designed to share vibes and energies, to help people grow in knowledge and creativity. A place where people are free to come and go, work in a trusting and friendly atmosphere…’

‘Ok, you’re talking about a kind of hippie camp.‘

As every good quantic object, coworking always needs to be explained with both “particle” and “wave” properties to be truly understood. Yes it’s a bit esoteric, but I like it this way!

This article has been translated by Deskmag

Cet article Quantum Coworking est apparu en premier sur Mutinerie, libres ensemble - espace de coworking à Paris.

Cet article The sharing economy VS. the dominant model est apparu en premier sur Mutinerie, libres ensemble - espace de coworking à Paris.