Critical Networks

-- Forwarded message -- From: Dante-Gabryell Monson  Date: Mon, Apr 18, 2011 at 3:33 PM Subject: "critical networks" : requirements and development practices ? To: Michel Bauwens  Cc: econowmix@googlegroups.com, p2p-foundation 

Hi Michel, Hi p2pf'ers

did you come across materials laying out a synthesis of very specific characteristics and requirements around what I am tempted to call

="critical networks" ?=

Perhaps there is some other name for this ?

I think of "critical network" as distinctive from, yet potentially including, the concept of "critical mass".

In the way I envision it, "Critical Network" where the required "critical" properties for an operational or emergent networked system may not merely be a mass of users, but specific properties ( such as measurable forms of reciprocity, physical location, resources, knowledge and skills, or other variables ) related to the constituents and context for specific intentional

"process economies"
to be enabled.

Including the mode of access to resources required for specific kinds of emergence.

I want to understand ( and have access to examples of ) various characteristics required to facilitate and multiply "local process economies" for viable and convivial living systems

http://p2pfoundation.net/Process_Economy

as to document step by step strategy proposals,

not merely in a "enclosed" / monetized approach,

but rather within a larger

wealth acknowledgment system
http://p2pfoundation.net/Wealth_Acknowledgment_Systems

towards communal sharing in intentional economic networks.

I put an emphasis on understanding

"starting points"
for ( at first small scale ) "critical networks".

I can find inspiration in

homebrew revolutions
( and examples such as e-farm, open manufacturing, ... ), but also recommendations related to the set up of

"transition towns"
( http://www.transitionnetwork.org/resources/transition-primer )

I can also find inspiration in ( reading excerpts online ) of books such as

http://www.integralcity.com/

and the

p2p urbanism
and p2pf blog, wiki and lists.

/////

What I wish, is to

define requirements more accurately,
offering

post-industrial alternatives
to sometimes publicly supported "gentrification urban development models" ( which I observe here in Brussels too ), that seem to be aligned or inspired by Richard Florida's Creative Class approach of development http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_class

I am also particularly interested in converging such understanding into building up "games" , and use such

games as a form of synthesis practice to empower "critical networks"
for a intentional information and communication framework, with incentives and related metrics, empowering collective intelligence and collaborative action.

I am aware such question may open up a large conceptual map, including the ones already layed out by you and p2pf peers.

I am interested in condensing it, into

specifics, specific step by step examples
. e-farm may offer an example.

I want to know

where and how to focus/aggregate attention
as first steps, and bring it into

"real social"
http://p2pfoundation.net/Real_Social ) "real games".

For the moment, I consider

"Housing Cooperatives"
and

"Group Purchasing Organizations"
as starting points in post-industrial frameworks, as some first aggregator layers, on which to build other relational dynamics around food and housing.

Food production
,

food logistics
, but also food as aggregator, such as http://sharewiki.org/en/Semantic_Kitchen , and then alternative currencies and wealth acknowledgment systems supporting more and more complex transaction potentials.

I also like the approach of

learning spaces as aggregators
for bringing together "Critical Network" requirements and development practices, such as the "University" project promoted by Dougald : http://dougald.posterous.com/day-27-help-me-start-a-university

Perhaps some of you read ( I did not ) the "integral city" book.

Is there a comprehensive list of requirements set out ?

Also, what are the capital requirements for such kind of

"ventures"
, as to converge or

purchase infrastructure
requirements to enable the functioning of a critical network for a

p2p resilient and convivial civilization of collaborative individualists?
In addition to development practices, I wish to outline all of these requirement into modules, that help define the costs on a context based approach for

"business plans"
, packaged and sold as

"use value insurance"
...