Social Justice
February 09, 2008
The burgeoning "Internet Economy" is redefining operational assumptions and models for all organizations within the public and private sectors. This is particularly evident as free access to information increases and the clash between open source and proprietary development of software intensifies. But the transformation underway does not stop in the realm of bits and bytes; it is spilling into the traditional mainstays of agriculture and all types of industry and threatens to alter our most basic tenets of how to market, value, and receive compensation for our creativity, collaboration, and contribution. This posting explores some of the novel approaches underway in response to these changes and set the stage for viable business models in the near future.
The long tail of the Internet provides opportunities for individuals to post information, knowledge, experience, and insight from one location and reach potential audiences almost anywhere else in the world at any time. Countless millions of individuals, businesses, and organizations of all types use websites, wikis, blogs, etc. to do just that. Collectively, the number of intelligent insights and innovative ideas posted every minute is sufficient to change the world many times over.
Despite the countless, remarkable observations and viable solutions presented, it is difficult for all but a narrow slice of contributors to make a living from doing so via Internet media. Unless there is a subscription fee to the site, the content of postings is free to read. In many instances, incorporating or reproducing that content elsewhere only requires acknowledgement of the original contributor / author to do so.
Under these circumstances it is difficult to receive payment for the work itself. Instead, payment is made based on what else readers do in and around the material they are reading: how many embedded links they check in the posting, how many advertisers around the periphery of the posting do they visit, how many RSS feeds and email notifications to they elect to receive, to name a few.
Continue reading "Giving It Away, Making Money"
posted by Steve Bosserman on Saturday February 9 2008
updated on Monday February 11 2008
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October 09, 2007
Rick Nelson is the inventor of SolaRoof, a novel approach to greenhouse design and function that integrates a unique covering, heating / cooling system, and infrastructure / framework. It will revolutionize the greenhouse industry. More than that, once the materials are certified for use in human habitation, it will be disruptive to the housing and building industry as well. So what is SolaRoof, anyway, and why does it carry such potential to change the world? Let's find out.
Revolutionary Technology:
The greenhouse construction is unlike any other. Rather than a single layer of covering or glazing there are two. Each layer is a laminate of woven fiber mesh sandwiched in between two sheets of transparent plastic material. The laminated layers are sealed against the top and bottom of the roof and wall frames to create air-tight spaces. This combination by itself offers hardly any insulating value. However, fill the space with bubbles--yes, bubbles--and the equation becomes totally different!
The distance between the two layers varies depending on the desired amount of insulating value. Each inch is roughly equivalent to an R-factor of 1. A distance of a little over a yard yields an R-factor of nearly 40. That is almost unheard of in traditional construction techniques. And given the transparency of the two layers of covering, over 80% of the photosynthesis-catalyzing sunlight reaches the inside of the greenhouse.
In the SolaRoof webpage: Green Buildings for Urban Agriculture and Solar Living, two illustrations show how the process works from one extreme season to the next. Quite ingenius!
Continue reading "Greenhouses That Change the World"
posted by Steve Bosserman on Tuesday October 9 2007
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July 10, 2007
One of the drivers behind technology development is the quest for human equivalence —the point where technology performs at a level of functioning that is equal to or greater than the functioning of the human brain. While it is speculative at best to estimate if and when such a goal is achieved, recent history illustrates that the increase in capability and capacity of technology is ramping up a rather steep slope. And if we are to trust the application of Moore's law, technology's prowess is doubling every 18-24 months. At that rate, it doesn't take much to project a future wherein technology is closing in on human equivalence.
As a trend develops it is useful to be able to track its progress and anticipate its trajectory. Choosing or crafting a set of markers that give indication of a trend's speed, depth, and scope as it gains influence and becomes an impetus for change is critical. While there are many markers from which to choose, the most durable and universally applicable sets concerns value added, particularly, where and how value is added.
The simple Wikipedia example about making miso soup from the above link is a good one to illustrate how advances in technology change the value-added equation. First, the value of the soup as the end product is comprised of the value added by the farmer to grow the raw product, soy beans, plus the value added by the processor to the soy beans to produce tofu, plus the value added by the chef to the tofu to prepare the soup. This "value package" utilizes a combination of equipment, input, labor, and know-how applied in various locations, stages, and timeframes—and is based on a specific capability and capacity level of technology.
What happens when technology develops further? There are several possibilities: the soy beans are grown in close proximity to the preparer; the yield of soy bean plants and desired quality and characteristics of the beans are increased; the equipment that harvests soy beans conducts post-harvest operations that condition the beans for making tofu; this equipment is smaller and more compact which accommodates localized production; methods of packaging, storing, and shipping soy beans or tofu are more integrated thereby consuming less energy and taking less time. In these instances, advances in technology are applied to the value-added equation dramatically altering the value package. The result is a system utilizing less costly and more productive equipment, requiring fewer inputs and less labor, and deeply embedding human knowledge and experience into new processes and tools. This has the potential to be transformational—and in relatively short order, too!
Continue reading "A Broader Framework in Which Localization Occurs"
posted by Steve Bosserman on Tuesday July 10 2007
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July 08, 2007
In response to my earlier posting about Localization, Bob Banner, publisher / editor of Hope Dance Magazine sent me an email noting that Julian Darley was the founder and director of the Post Carbon Institute. While James Howard Kunstler is an Institute Fellow, he has his own website that covers a wide range of related topics. Please note that my 6 July posting is now updated to reflect this correction.
Bob also mentioned in his email that Issue 62 of Hope Dance Magazine is "...a special issue we did on RELOCALIZATION that features BALLE, Judy Wicks, the PCI, Michael Shuman's Small-Marts, Local Living Economies, Bill McKibben, many book ad film reviews, a LOCALIZATION FILM FESTIVAL and more.. all in a tabloid of 56 pages." If you are interested in Localization, you will find this issue chock-full of useful information that can be quickly applied in a wide range of localities. Take a look!
In addition, he printed an extra 2,000 copies that are available in lots of 50 for $25, which includes shipping. If you be interested in hard copies for local distribution, please contact Bob and Hope Dance at this embedded link.
posted by Steve Bosserman on Sunday July 8 2007
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Giving It Away, Making Money
February 09, 2008
Greenhouses That Change the World
October 09, 2007
A Broader Framework in Which Localization Occurs
July 10, 2007
A Voice for Localization
July 08, 2007
The Case for Localization
July 06, 2007
Distribution Channels for Agriculture Equipment Systems in India
February 03, 2007
Agriculture Megatrends: Ten Trends Redefining the Practice of Agriculture in the World
February 01, 2007
Food Systems and Distances Traveled
January 02, 2007
Oil Addiction and the Business Case for Change
December 29, 2006
Riff on Michael Shuman
October 21, 2006
Localize - Link - Globalize: A Closer Look at India
September 03, 2006
Localize - Link - Globalize
August 27, 2006
Declaring Independence
July 04, 2006
Understanding Diversity as a Dynamic
February 19, 2006
Ground Truth and Multiple Truths
January 25, 2006
Affiliations: Cycles of Corruption and Renewal
January 19, 2006
A Richer Concept of Ground Truth
January 10, 2006
Adding Value and Receiving Fair Compensation
January 03, 2006
Ground Truth and Social Sensors
December 26, 2005
Syllogisms about Power, Corruption, and Change
December 23, 2005
The Problem of Power
December 12, 2005
Pareto and the Pyramid of Power
December 10, 2005
Confessions of a Chocoholic--It's All in the Bean
November 25, 2005
A Philosophy of Solutions
September 18, 2005
Integrity and Ground Truth
August 31, 2005
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