Final discussion - where next?

Tom Steinberg facilitated the final session at the September 8 workshop. He first of all asked us to respond to the challenge "We'd all be better off if we..." We responded with...

1) ... had somewhere trustworthy go for advice.
2) ... could learn effectively and cheaply from each other.
3) ... shaped, rather than were shaped by, the technology we use.
4) ... had a fund for developing socially focussed, scaleable software projects.
5) ... had an intermediary between the techies and the NGOs
6) ... had designers who served the poor
7) ... had a community of practice
8) ... could encourage campaigners to spend some of their time on advertising the value which is already out there.

In response to these, we could:

1) Tell people about LASA.org.uk .
2) email each other with follow-ups. Post to the blog. Hold another event.
3) Write a manifesto! Take forward this list. Produce a poster.
4) Get Tom to blow his overdraft on developing it (already happening). Pilot participative calls. Contact European IST.
5) Publize and distribute "Non-Profits in a Box". Publicize the Non Profit Open Source Initiative
6) Add this to the manifesto (which kind of commits us to writing one).
7) See what happens
8) Bundling money with resources. Join Circuit Riders. Work on a project together (in Bulgaria?)

Now, if we don't have plenty to chew on there, I don't know what!

I'm just going to add what I think are my three most important thoughts about the day:

1) I need all the help I can with the Civic Hacking Fund.
2) It is useful to divide civil society activities into Creating Things That Don't Exist, and Helping People Use Things that do Exist.
3) We need to establish to what extent markets or self-help will or won't emerge for learning about different aspects of ICT use. Will it be like literacy (tends to need state intervention), or driving (value encourages the public to learn themselves)?