[cetfosscell] Repost : Making decisions using loomio
- From: Kevin Martin <youcancallmekevin@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: cetfosscell@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 14 Apr 2014 12:10:41 +0530
This is a repost of Praveen A's post on the SMC (Swathantra malayalam
computing) mailing list regarding loomio.
>>>It's time to upgrade the way we make decisions together.
How do you feel about the NSA leaks? Ever feel like there are people
up top making really dumb decisions?
Or has your boss ever made a poor decision that didn't consider the
complexity of a problem you had some insight into?
But what if you are involved in the decision? Then you have to sit in
a meeting room for three hours listening to your opinionated
colleagues battle it out over minor details.
Turns out, all of these scenarios are connected. They are about the
way we make decisions together, on both a global scale, and on a
personal day-to-day basis. The thing is, for the most part, Obama,
your boss, and your pedantic colleagues all want the same thing -- to
make the right decision. The problem is, they have the wrong framework
for doing it.
21st Century democracy
In 2014, our proud democratic system consists of ticking a couple of
boxes on a piece of paper every four years. The rest of our big
decisions are left up to a handful of politicians -- a system which is
proving to be easily corruptible, ineffective, and paranoid.
In the workplace, decisions are made by either top-down control,
lengthy meetings and/or a mess of unorganized emails. The result is
design-by-committee nightmares and simplistic decisions that don't
consider the complexity of the problem or the people they affect.
So what's the alternative? There must be a way to harness the
collective wisdom and experience of everyone affected by a decision.
A new way to make decisions
In the same way that Wikipedia has re-envisioned the way we access
information, let's re-envision the way we make decisions together as a
society.
What should democracy look like in the 21st Century?
Universally accessible
In the 1700's, access to information was limited and communication was
slow. So it made sense that only a small number of people could make
the big decisions.
Now, communication is instant and access to information is becoming
universal. Access to decision-making should be the same.
Fast and responsive
You're not always going to know what the right answer is. That's why
we often delegate decisions to other people. But our current systems
for delegation involve year-long political campaigns and cut-throat
battles over job promotions. Old methods for old times.
Delegation should be instant and dynamic. If I trust somebody to make
a decision on my behalf, I should be able to delegate to them
instantly. And if they lose my trust, I should be able to take it away
with the same speed.
Based on constructive dialogue
When it comes to big decisions, our society has a tradition of banding
into separate factions (often just two of them) and battling it out to
the death, with no one wiser at the end of it. Similarly, when we make
decisions together on a day-to-day basis, often one inconsiderate
person can turn a healthy discussion into a polarized debate that
doesn't get anywhere.
Our discussions should exist in a framework where collaboration is
encouraged and good behavior is rewarded. Wikipedia and StackOverflow
both do this brilliantly.
The good news is, we're working on the problem.
I'm part of a team that's building an online decision-making platform.
It's an open source app called Loomio, and people say it could change
the world.
"Loomio unleashes the internet's potential to bring people towards
consensus rather than polarized debate." -- Douglas Rushkoff, author of
Present Shock
The prototype is enabling thousands of groups to make constructive
decisions across the world, including in countries currently facing
political strife like Ukraine, Egypt, Taiwan, Brazil, and Hungary. And
it's also being enjoyed in workplaces, city councils, community
gardens, schools, and lots of other organizations.
"One thing which I think is truly unique about Loomio is not only
the diversity of participation, but how this range of people of quite
different backgrounds took each other seriously and communicated
constructively." -- Jaime Dyhrberg, Wellington City Council
We need your help to bring it to the world.
Our mission is to make collective decision-making accessible, simple
and enjoyable for everyone. We're almost there. We just need a little
bit of money to take this to the world.
We could get traditional venture capital investment, but that would
destroy the spirit of the project. Loomio has to be free. Free from
ads and corporate interest, and responsive to the needs of real
people.
You can help this happen by supporting our crowdfunding campaign.
https://medium.com/p/111bcf6a11a1
https://love.loomio.org/real-democracy-needs-to-include-everyone
We already use loomio every day to make decisions for Pirate Movement
of India, FOSS Community of India (including poddery.com maintenance)
and for Diaspora development. Loomio software is also using loomio to
develop. <<<
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