Hello everyone!

I am presenting a talk at the Wikipedia – Critical point of view event, organised by the Institute for the network culture and The Centre for Internet and Society, Bangalore, India.To be held at Amsterdam, 26 & 27 March 2010. I thank the organisers of the CPOV events for their effort on putting together a great set of Wikipedia researchers and practiciouners. It it is important to create channels and spaces to meet, exchange, discuss among the several and multiple critical perspectives in the research of Wikipedia and in general in thinking about the implications of open collaboration forms.

Plus I would like to share with you a recent post I did for the Wikipedia – CPOV webiste. The post provides an overview of the evolution of the Wikimedia governance and the role of the Foundation across time. Furthermore, I hope it could also help to contextualise my presentation at the CPOV which will address the role of the Wikimedia Foundation for the Wikimedia eco-system and its international-global expansion.

Here it is the post at the Wikipedia – CPOV website: http://networkcultures.org/wpmu/cpov/resources/resources_in_english/wikimedia-evolution-in-terms-of-governance-and-the-creation-of-a-foundation/

Comments, critiques and suggestions are very welcome! Mayo

Hi everybody!

I would like to share with you the happiness on seeing initiatives based on transform the way knowledge is produced and access. Interface “A Journal For and About Social Movements” is one of the ones I love the most. The Journal is open access and peer-reviewed, plus combine action and research oriented perspectives. After three great issues of Interface: 1. Movement knowledge; 2.Civil society vs social movements; and, 3. Crisis, social movements and revolutionary transformations; a new issue is in preparation.

My friend Alice Mattoni, together with other colleges, is under the next issue of Interface which is dedicated to “Voices of dissent: activists’ engagements in the creation of alternative, autonomous, radical and independent media”. The call for contributions is open. Send a paper, a reflection, a book review, report on a particular experience. The deadline for submissions is May 1. The issue address important questions for movement strategy which will benefit for major discussion. Addressing questions such as:

· What are the places and sites in the media environment where alternative media develop today?
· Does it still make sense to speak about ‘media activists’ in a technology-saturated environment? Who are today’s media activists and, more broadly speaking, who are the alternative media practitioners and how are they connected to different social movements?
· How are traditional media (radio, magazines, television, print) used as alternative means of communication nowadays? Are there instances of media convergence in this respect? What effects does this have on the communication practices of existing social movements?
· What are the challenges, problems and issues that alternative media have raised and still raise within the social movement milieu?
· Do alternative media present a gender-neutral context? Or are alternative media practices embedded in the same patriarchal discourse that envelops mainstream media?
· Do technical criteria and the logics of media production necessarily win out in the long run over questions of alternative production processes and attempts to treat media as the voice of people in struggle?

Finally, to me the commitment to transform the research on social movement of Alice Mattoni by supporting an issue of Interface Journal is an example to follow. After finishing a Phd on Media practices in precarious movement, Alice Mattoni finds the time and the sense to priories the taking care of this issue. Unfortunately it is not very common (and an unrecognized effort by the University systems) to priories contributing to create debate among activist and to facilitate spaces to spread the results of social movements research. So, an applause to Alice Mattoni!

More info on the call for contributions to the issue at: http://www.interfacejournal.net/2010/02/call-for-papers-issue-4-voices-of.html

Interface is a prove that research can be done in another way and that spaces of dialogue of action and research are very fruitful.

Viva Interface!!! Mayo

Hello!   

It was an honor to present my research on the governance of digital commons at the Wikimania 2009 (Annual meeting point oif Wikipedians).

Wikimania as a whole was a pleasure (I enjoyed and learned many things on the Wikimedia complexity) and an energizing experience. The Argentinian organizers did a fantastic job.

My presentation was centered on the Wikimedia case study.  If you like to see the video of the presentation you could see it here:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:200908261415-Mayo_Fuster_Morell-The_governance_of_digital_commons_Wikimedia_Governance_Case_Study.ogg

The video of the other presentations and sessions at Wikimania are availeble here: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Wikimania_2009_presentations

I hope that you like the presentations. Comments and suggestions welcome! Mayo