From Knowledge Federation
Through a series of events, Knowledge Federation has self-organized to become a community-and-project capable of bringing IT innovation, and knowledge work in general, to a new, systemic level – where basic work patterns in science, journalism, education and governance are being recreated.
Knowledge Federation community began to self-organize in October 2007, at the Topic Maps Research and Applications conference in Leipzig, Germany, where several of us realized that we were already working on the next stage – developing socio-technical systems for knowledge work that are enabled by Topic Maps, and indeed by a large and rapidly growing number of other knowledge work technologies. We gave the approach to knowledge work we wanted to support the name 'knowledge federation.' Googling 'knowledge federation' led to Professor Yuzuru Tanaka, a leader in knowledge media R&D in Japan, and he was invited to join us. We also invited to our conversation some of our colleagues we felt needed to be there.
Workshop I: Charting the knowledge federation approach and resources. The first Knowledge Federation Workshop, held in October 2008 at the Inter University Centre Dubrovnik, was a meeting of a small group of international researchers working on creative IT-enabled patterns for knowledge work. We chose 'knowledge federation' to denote our shared destination – the
good knowledge work practices that can now be enabled by technology – meaningful organization of knowledge resources, and co-creation of community-wide critical insights. At the workshop we began federating our ideas about knowledge federation, and charting the corresponding technical tools and interaction patterns. It was clear to us that the already existing or emerging IT tools could revolutionize knowledge work; but that the progress on putting them into practice had been slow. We realized that the key task was to recreate and change the actual knowledge work practices; and that this task required that we organize ourselves in a different way, and develop a different way of working.
Workshop II: Initiating Knowledge Federation as community-and-project capable of recreating knowledge work practices. At the Second Knowledge Federation Workshop in 2010 at Inter Unuiversity Centre Dubrovnik, knowledge work system designers were joined by journalism innovatgors (Paddy Coulder and Øystein Rakkenes), scientific organization innovators (John Wilbanks, and many of us), and by researchers and field workers in visual communication, business organization, intellectual property law and other relevant fields, as well as by our two initial corporate stakeholders (Cerpus and Induct Software). At the opening of the workshop we were encouraged to perceive ourselves not as individuals pursuing a career in a certain discipline or profession, but as cells in a collective or (at the limit) global mind – and to begin to self-organize as it might suit this larger role. That was the origin of the two key elements of future Knowledge Federation: (1) a community which is a federation (a suitable combination) of experts and other stakeholders (2) practicing self-organization or 'bootstrapping' (using their own community as medium or sandbox to develop and test solutions). During the three working days of the workshop we began to work on systemic solutions for journalism, science and education. After the workshop, self-organization continued around a Ning-based community platform, and through email and Skype.
Miniworkshop III: Breaking the news. The IT - innovation- business aspect of KF. At the miniworkshop that Knowledge Federation organized in July 2011 at Stanford University, within the Triple Helix IX conference, we were able to introduce Knowledge Federation as 'an enabler of systemic innovation.' This pointed at the commercial / IT aspect of Knowledge Federation - in exactly the suitable environment, where Triple Helix meets Silicon Valley and Stanford University – the global center of innovation. The vision we presented was that the Web and the related technologies made it possible for IT innovation, as well as for knowledge work in general, to ascend to a new level, where complete and entirely different systemic solutions for large and small subdomains of knowledge work (public informing, academic research, education, governance) can be developed. Knowledge Federation was introduced as an organizational structure and a way of working that are needed to enable systemic innovation. After its second workshop in Dubrovnik, Knowledge Federation self-organized as a federation of (currently eight) projects, where each project is innovating in a specific domain of knowledge work, and all the projects together compose Knowledge Federation as the general or generic systemic innovator or as we like to call it, 'the game-changing game.' This organization is currently being implemented on the new Drupal-based community platform KnowledgeFederation.net.
Workshop IV: Rebuilding the foundations. The focus of the workshop "Knowledge Federation Dialog Belgrade 2011," which Knowledge Federation organized on September 25, 2011 as part of the Quantum-Informational Medicine conference, Belgrade 2011, was on the foundations for knowledge work. Quantum-Informational Medicine and Knowledge Federation share a fundamental interest: To develop a holistic framework for science and for knowledge work in general, i.e. a framework that does not unnecessarily limit our worldview, but helps us evolve culturally and socially. Quantum-Informational Medicine approaches this task by extending the conventional methodology in life sciences by the paradigm of quantum physics. Knowledge Federation approaches the same task directly, by developing more reliable socio-technical processes for social creation of truth and worldview. In 34 short presentations international participants highlighted latest results in quantum medicine (where acupuncture-based techniques are developed further using modern technology and scientific experiments, mainly in Russia and Ukraine) and surveyed a broad variety of traditional and emerging approaches to health and medicine. The purpose of the dialog that followed was to begin to federate this heritage, by weaving together common threads, and by creating solid academic foundation on which a broader and more accurate understanding of (latent possibilities in) human life and culture can develop.
Workshop V: Empowering good journalism. The 'contemporary issues' or 'world problematique aspect of KF. Journalism can be a key to positive global change. The Knowledge Federation Workshop Barcelona 2011, titled "Co-Creating an Innovation Ecosystem for Good Journalism", will apply the Knowledge Federation way of working in an already germinating innovation ecosystem in Barcelona. For us this is a welcome opportunity to bring our work to a new level – evolve the existing 'way of working' to something closer to a 'methodology.' And then apply this methodology in a real-life situation, to a most interesting contemporary systemic issue – recreation of a good journalism. This workshop will take place at Santa Monica Arts Centre in the center of Barcelona, November 13-16, 2011.
Workshop VI: Systemic Innovation for Collective Creativity. Knowledge Federation Workshop, Dubrovnik 2012,will take place September 30 - October 3 at Inter University Centre Dubrovnik. The title "Systemic Innovation for Collective Creativity" suggests that the focus of the lectures will be on deepening our understanding of those two concepts and their relationships. The practical part of this workshop, however, will be focused on recreating education, by creating and conducting the Knowledge Federation course.
Knowledge Federation Course: Systemic innovation in education. Knowledge Federation Workshop and Course, Dubrovnik 2012, to be held September 30 - October 6 at Inter University Centre Dubrovnik. Selected twelve students from around the world will be beginning in knowledge federation by federating Douglas Engelbart's work.
