DAY 4 - DELEGATES MEETING :
Since i am not a official member of any of the organization taking part in the conference, i must not put down my views about their meetings and practice. However, as a viewer, i found a significant part of democratic practice in all the organization.
People, know me as a man who does not uses a "smart phone". Now in the very last day, i have successfully lost my phone that transformed/promoted me from near luddite to real luddite state. I searched for it in all possible places and still i cannot find it. All contacts gone... poooofff :D. However, i came to now, that some other guy have even lost his laptop. thats really sad. I hope he did not have any of his vital/research data. I learned how not to search for a phone by the way. Thanks to those awesome volunteers who helped me search for the phone and spread the news through their internal chat groups... :)
INFORMAL + FRIENDLY DISCUSSIONS
My well wishers, peers, friends, researchers, geeks, from the communities gave me valuable - life saving suggestions, which made me think over about myself and my current practice. Shrinivasan advised me start a company and consult stuff based upon my skill set. People have literally scolded me to write a blog or have a vlog for years, and i believe i hade this time.. :D. This time i thought i would talk less and listen more, but situations made me speak with folks around me and sometimes even dominating derailing myself from the listening mode.
I do found some of my attitudes that are passively dominating which i am working on it. Moreover, each discussion appended to my cognitive dissonance, which is already stretching itself out of the white box. I think i could manage dissonance and practicing less and less procrastination than ever.
I know what u are still expecting.... i cannot share those stuff we discussed with u...
WHAT I LEARNED ?
A loooooooooot. Lot of stuff about technology, techno-politics, information-politics, socio-technical interfaces and frictions emerging out of it, social mobilization, alternative infrastructures, about design stuff, about womens participation in technology, net neutrality, aadhaar, UPI, India Stack, journalism, wikipedia, mesh networks, commons infrastructure, critical civic policy intervention, data commodification, India's economic condition, demonitization - its usage as a "katana slash" by the government - and got more confident about my thought process. I have met a lot of elders who have been doing research as their profession, and now pursuing their love/passion in free software and allied systems. Conversed with people from other states in different languages like Telugu (i can speak a little and could understand), wherever and whenever possible. Tasted great and awesome phone by the way.
Slept relatively more than the volunteers and relatively less than the remaining peers :D. Observed, that still the communities have to engage a lot more women participation and encourage their influx, to neutralize male domination. In both the cultural session, i have seen equal pariticpation of male and female artists, where as in tech. community groups like this, the ratio is not even near to equal. I am pretty sure people are working towards gender equality in Free Software and similar systems realm. For the past 4 years, atleast, i have seen a steady raise in women participation, even if it is not as much as male pariticipation. Folks i feel, that this thing has to be seriously acted upon. Correct me if i am wrong about the view... :). I am still not convinced for i have missed the Women in Technology session. However, my dear friend, Sohom was one of the few men who attended the session. I like to learn from his observation soon... :)
I also found people discussing innovative ways to engage people to increase the participation apart from conventional forms like starting GLUGS, arranging workshops, organizing camps, etc... which i personally feel a better step towards propagating the views and philosophy of this great community to a wider public. I also hope that we shall intervene through more civic participation on policy research and against draconian acts. We cannot only code and change the system, we have to act physically and critically. One thing i am pretty sure is that lot of folks who attended this conference, would have a better view of the world they thrive in & would have realized how invisible laws, policies, systems have influenced their life till now. Those who have that sparkle mind opening experience, would look far more deeper and wider than ever before.
@ /.\ ----+----------------------------+/ \ | Atlast you completed.... ! | | What a relief !!! | +----------------------------+ +----------+ | yeah ! | +----------+---- ( me )@ /.\ ----+-----------------------------------+/ \ | dont you think you write too much | +-----------------------------------+ +-----------+ | kind of ! | +-----------+--------- ( me )@ /.\ ----+-----------------------------------+/ \ | i predict - only about 1% of your | | friends read this article... :D.. | +-----------------------------------+ +-------------------+ | duh.. i dont mind | +-------------------+---- ( me )