5/20/96
Five or six years ago I began a series of essays on community networking called "Letters to the Fourth World." They were written to those who believed in and, in many cases, were trying to build community networks. They were pioneers really, people who were on the cutting edge of a new communications revolution. They had seen the power of this new medium, sensed its possibilities and, to me, represented literally a "fourth world" which transcended traditional first, second and third world boundaries as easily as this new medium transcends time and space.
Far fewer of those essays were written then I would have liked. With the handicap of actually having to DO the things I was writing about, time was at a premium. I regret that now. I really DID feel as though a new age of communication was forming and, while I could not possibly have predicted the way events would eventually unfold, I still feel that way today.
A few weeks ago, Ann McFarland, one of the prime movers behind the Akron Free-Net and the newer and even more powerful Akron Community Network, contacted me. She knew I had retired from the field but asked if I would write one last letter--a message to her workers which would somehow summarize what community networking was all about and serve as a guide for their work in the future.
I agreed to a Final Letter to the Fourth World.
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It's funny in a way. I started this letter by typing "Dear..." and then suddenly stopped. Dear... who?
I didn't have that problem years ago. I personally knew virtually everyone who was working in community networking and even knew, at least by name, a fair percentage of the users. But to whom am I writing now?
Certainly I am writing to Ann McFarland's group in Akron, Ohio; but am I writing to a larger audience as well? How big IS the "Fourth World" these days? How many hundreds, how many thousands, of people are interested in, thinking about, planning on, or actually operating a community network? I know there are well over a hundred systems in operation across the U.S., Canada, and Europe; and there must be something like a half-million users or more.
I know those numbers sound great. They sound somehow... comforting. It sounds like each community networker is building on a framework already begun by thousands of people in hundreds of locations around the world. And to a certain extent that's true.
But as much as it sounds like you are walking down a well-worn path in building your system, you will soon discover that you are not. Soon you will see that path narrow, grow fainter, and in places even disappear completely. With that in mind I wanted to leave you with some thoughts--a compass if you will--that I hope will give you some direction when you find yourself hip-deep in decisions and it seems like the wilderness has won.
I am not going to write a "How to" essay on community organizing, or setting-up hardware/software platforms, or for fund-raising. Those are all things that are solvable by you in your own way. I would rather keep this brief and try to focus on one thing. I am not even sure what to call it. It's not really what I see to be your "mission" or "objective." It's more like what I see to be the CALLING of community networking.
You see, the trick of doing community networking well is to understand--truly understand--the enormous power you are in a position to liberate and to figure out a way to harness it for the good of the community you are in. The first step in doing THAT is to understand that the power is NOT located "elsewhere"--it is right in front of you in your own town.
If you are skeptical, let me try to convince you with an assertion that goes something like this:
"Within 10 miles of the center of any reasonably well populated area is the answer to just about every answerable question a person could ask."
Still skeptical? Think about it. Think about your own city or town. From brain surgery to bicycling, from quantum mechanics to auto mechanics--I am willing to bet that within that 10 mile radius is SOMEONE who knows the answer to just about any answerable question you could have.
Think about your own situation. How much do you know? I don't mean necessarily how many college degrees do you have, I mean how much do you know about all manner of weird and wonderful things? Now multiply yourself times the number of people in your community--ALL of them. Include the newly minted college graduates and the newly retired college professors. Include the people who work in the factories and farms. Include all the people with a lifetime of experience--people who can not only tell you how to fix the carburetor on a '58 Chevy, but can offer you some insights on living that are definitely not found in a formal Introduction to Philosophy class.
Do you understand the unbelievable power those resources represent?
Have you ever come across one of those weird statistics that sort of shocks you? Things like: if the electrical power of a single lightning bolt could be harnessed, it would light-up the City of New York for two days--that kind of thing? Well this is on the same order of magnitude because the implications of my radius assertion are just as stunning.
What would happen if we could somehow harness those untapped information resources--the resources that exist not just in books written by a handful of authors, but in the minds and lives of everyone? What would happen if we could somehow capture that lightning bolt and utilize the thousands of lifetimes of experience and learning that *naturally occur* in every community in the country? What would happen if there were a common fountain of information available in each community to which anyone at any age could add, and from which anyone at any age could draw?
People spend their whole lives acquiring knowledge, expertise and experience. Up to this point in our history the benefits of those resources, for most people, have been confined to that person's family, immediate friends, employer, and that's about it. What would happen if we could use this technology to break-down the walls of that confinement and free-up those resources?
Would we still teach the same way? Up to now, the ultimate rationale for our educational system has been to prepare new generations to enter the work force. How would that objective be changed if it were possible to modify the civic duties under which we live to include participation in interactive, one-to-many dissemination of knowledge and skills via this technology?
Would we still learn the same? Up to now, formal education has been largely textbook based. How would that change if in addition to the textbooks one had easy access to people who spent their lives in the arts, or the sciences, or who themselves experienced the history described on the pages of the history books?
Would we still learn at the same rate across our lifetimes? All too often learning is front-loaded in peoples lives. As they get older, they don't get dumber; rather, the outlets for their expertise get fewer until, by retirement, all too often they feel no need to learn or stay current in anything. What would happen if there were an outlet for expertise--a rationale for learning-- that spanned ones entire lifetime?
How would our professions change? Would the role of librarians remain largely that of managing printed materials, or would it become that of managing community information--in whatever form? Would the role of the teacher remain that of a lecturer, or would it finally (and truly) become that of being a guide. Would not health professionals have a radically new and powerful way of promoting community health? Would not community legal professionals have a radically new and powerful way of promoting understanding of the law? Would not religious leaders have a radically new and powerful way of carrying their message? Would not government leaders not have a radically new and powerful way of reaching their constituents?
If we can properly harness the capabilities of this technology, how much of a shift in the quality of life would that represent? How many lives would be affected?
Seen in this light the construction and operation of a community network is not simply something neat you can do with an interesting technology. It is much, much, more than that. But to realize that potential you must design and operate your system with that potential firmly in mind.
Your job is to build a COMMUNITY computer, not just a slick bus station to elsewhere. Yes, you should be connected to the Internet. Yes, it is fine to have links to wonderful and exotic sites all over the web. Yes, it is great to have Usenet Newsgroups. All of this is terrific, but NOT if it undercuts the development of similar online resources in your own town.
Your job is to build an INTERACTIVE medium, not just a giant electronic brochure dispenser. Yes, it is fine to provide access to local static information files. Certainly, connect to relevant static web sites. But NOT if it is a substitute for people in your community answering real questions posed by real people. That is the true power of this medium--don't cripple that power!
Your job is to build a system for ALL THE PEOPLE in your community, not just the early adopters of technology. I tell you this in all seriousness--your ultimate target audience, in most cases, does not even know what a modem is right now. Your real target audience is, even as you read this, working in a factory, or a steel mill, or on a farm. You are not going to get these people online by offering them access to the card catalog at the University of Paris. You MIGHT get them online by offering them access to local information and communication resources that have genuine meaning and utility for their lives.
Make no mistake, the "community networking revolution" has not been won--far from it. If anything, we are probably in a more perilous position now than we were over a dozen years ago when I first began my work. I sometimes think we have forgotten WHY and FOR WHOM we set out to do all this in the first place. But, by the same token, it is not too late. It is a battle that can still be won and YOU can do it.
I am out of the race now--so are a number of the other "early pioneers." I am old and tired beyond my years. In my case "enough" has proven to be "too much." But there is a new generation of community networkers coming up--new faces, new voices, new ideas. It is to them--to YOU--that this field must be passed.
We lit the community networking torch in the late 70's and early 80's with 300 baud modems, 16K personal computers, and more enthusiasm than common sense. We showed what COULD be done, now you must carry it on from here--into new technologies, into new approaches, into new services, but above all, into the 21st Century without compromise.
Just never forget the imperative that is forced on you by the reality--the utter tyranny--of "the radius." It is both the agony and the glory of doing community networking.
Last Updated 28 August 2003 1600 pdt
jtm