How far into the future can we reasonably plan?

"Language, actually, was developed in response to these tools--writing, too. My point is that the key technology that runs through all of this is communications. Humans, in essence, are a communicating organism. We started as a very dispersed species, became more organized in cities, and then came mass communications. The invention of the printing press brought books to large populations. Then, in this century, radio and television completely changed the psychology and social setting of most of the world's people."

Creating a "Virtual" Long Island Constitution: Part Three

A simple graphic to illustrate the new Long Island "triad."

Unlike a traditional WIKI (Wikipedia for example) our processes can not be anonymous if they are to be effective.

If you can't put your name to something and be willing to discuss, explain or debate your position, then you probably don't feel strongly enough about the process to participate.

More in Part Four.

Creating a "Virtual" Long Island Constitution: Part Two

We should view the "Virtual" Long Island Constitution as a hybrid creation. Part legal, part ethical, part technical: organic, dynamic, reality based.

How do we start? 

We could, of course utilize existing "constitution" models out there. I would prefer to create from the ground up (although this one, while not directly on point, isn't too bad).

Let's start with some sort of Long Island Constitution "WIKI" or other easy to use collaborative model. This, I think, will generate the most diverse and creative beginning.

Remember this is a collaborative effort. It will encourage us to think out of our "own silos" and to concentrate on "global" Long Island issues and how our piece of the puzzle fits into the overall scheme. 

More in Part Three.

Creating a "Virtual" Long Island Constitution: Part One

Great ideas, for the most part, transcend the forces which try to hold them back. It may take awhile, but the ideas generally  prevail.

Great ideas need, however a structure which allows them to be heard, develop and, ultimately, become reality. This is the genius of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights. It allows for ideas not contemplated at the time of the creation and modification of those documents to eventually find a voice and have the opportunity to succeed. Long Island requires its own type of  constitution;  a "Virtual Long Island Constitution."

What do we mean by a "Virtual Long Island Constitution?" 

If we view the nature of the universe as one of constant change ("Change alone is eternal, perpetual, immortal." Arthur Schopenhauer) and with apologies to the "strict constructionists" out there, then we must be prepared for change and have instruments which allow us to negotiate change as simply as possible. Luckily for us we live in an era in which great change is occurring, so the tools are readily available to us.

What will our "virtual" constitution look like and what will it contain? At the outset it should contain some type of reasonable, broad ethical framework which governs the way we interact with one another, individually and organizationally, to promote positive change on Long Island. 

Our "virtual" constitution is a living, dynamic, document. It is easily modifiable to fit the rapid change which will be a constant in our lifetime and beyond. 

We may look at this "virtual constitution" as the third leg of the Long Island Congress and Long Island 3.0 process. It helps hold the entire process together and allows it to remain stable and secure. It permits us to overcome the "extraneous chatter" and concentrate on the core issues and processes which will help Long Island move forward.

More in part two.

Thinking About Long Island

We join spokes together in a wheel,
but it is the center hole
that makes the wagon move.

We shape clay into a pot,
but it is the emptiness inside
that holds whatever we want.

We hammer wood for a house,
but it is the inner space
that makes it livable.

We work with being,
but non-being is what we use.

What is Long Island? 

A geographic region to be sure.  A series of interconnecting communities or a series of random communities? A place to come from or a destination? 

There are many ways to view Long Island.

But how about Long Island as an idea? Not as a means to an end but an end in and of itself?

We need to think of Long Island comprehensively rather than as a series of issues to be addressed or problems to be solved.  We must think of how one issue influences all relevant issues. 

For example, how can we build affordable housing if we don't know how it affects the traffic, sewage disposal, energy needs, school enrollment among some items and what type of housing and where and how much and for how long  ...

Some might view those types of question as being obstructionist, that we are simply against building. This is not the case. We must have a comprehensive, long term approach to Long Island and the influence our decisions will  have on successive generation. 

In short, we need to use our intelligence and resources to think about and plan for what Long Island is and what it reasonably may become. Not just what we think it should be, but as a practical matter, what are our limitations and how do we overcome those limitations. How do we achieve balance.

We can never know how to achieve a balanced existence on Long Island unless we view Long Island as one entity, as a sort of "dynamic idea accelerator" which may have many moving parts (diversity creates a constant stream of new ideas), yet operates in a cooperative and positive manner.  We should not continue to rely on the "great man (person) theory" to find a solution to our problems. No one individual has all the answers.

We must also encourage our Long Island schools and universities to train our young people in the great possibilities of what Long Island can become. Not in an isolationist sort of way, but in a way that gets them thinking about how all the parts work on Long Island and how they can make them work in a better way. Because if they can do it in their own back yard, they can do it anywhere in the world.

The Long Island Congress and Long Island 3.0 attempt to offer some initial structure to this concept, to "create a pot" or "build a house"as it were to fill with whatever our imagination and abilities can conjure up and to create a new Long Island we can all be proud of. 

It won't be perfect and it is an ongoing process. But thinking about Long Island is a good first step and continued thinking will keep Long Island alive and well as a region, an idea or both.

Thanks to the LI Biz Blog ...

... for adding the Long Island Idea Factory to its "Must Read Blogs" section.

Long Island Congress: Breaking the Cycle of Stagnation

What will it take to break the "cycle of stagnation" that affects so much of what we do here on Long Island?

It is probably no secret by now that communication and accurate information play a large role in any type of significant, positive change.

Those of us who have been observing communities, government and organizations here on Long Island (I'm into my 25th year of observation, a mere child compared to some!) are continually struck by the "themes" which continue to appear time and time again with different players playing the same tune. Whether its taxes or development or energy or any of a thousand issues, we never seem to make the progress we feel we should, or can. This feeling is obviously not unique to Long Island and Long Islanders (many of the themes in this blog are transferable to other regions), but it is what we are interested in and will continue to focus on.

It is not that our leaders (from whatever discipline), are "bad people," corrupt or are misleading us or that the general populous of Long Island is unwilling to change or that we don't have sufficient resources and brainpower to make the changes. It is just that we are not organized properly and have not empowered ourselves with the right tools to get the job done.

There are no short term, magical solutions to addressing Long Island's issues. For example, comparing Long Island to other regions to find solutions may be part of an answer, but it will never be the entire answer. Why? Because each region, including Long Island has a uniqueness, sometimes easily quantifiable, sometimes not that requires us to use a higher level of analysis (which is why we need diversity of opinion).

Additionally, making pronouncements that changing a part of the problem is in fact the answer to all our problems is equally destructive ("The greatest enemy of progress is not stagnation, but false progress." Sydney J. Harris). We all have a desire to have people say good things about us and obviously those in power have a need to maintain the staus quo to some level (even while appearing that they wish to change it!). Why? Ego, power, fear, money, ambition ... you name it. This hasn't changed since the beginning of human existence. This does not make them bad people. It makes them, and us, human.

"How to be innovative is a burning question for top management in the world today. Most organizations are looking for ways to improve their ability to create ideas and to develop the best environment for idea creation. More organizations are turning to the practice of knowledge management for sharing experiences and expertise, integrating knowledge, and generating new knowledge. What organizations need is a better understanding of how knowledge management is related to the innovation process and how it can be used to help foster innovation within organizations."

So how do we change?

First we have to accept that we can and must do things better. Here there is probably universal agreement.

Second we have to identify what the primary and secondary issues are. Here we can probably get a substantial majority to agree.

Third we have to design an approach to address the issues. Here we have a problem.

We generally don't speak the same organizational language and probably can't even agree on a way to get started. Sure we convene a "task force" from time to time on related subject matter that issues a report that sits on a shelf somewhere and we make a stab at bring folks with a "common" issue together for a common purpose, but it's kind of like being invited to a dance with no music. Everyone looks at each other, says nice things (generally) and goes home without ever truly interacting. There's no rhythm, no dynamism and therefore ultimately no purpose, in a real sense, to the dance.

So how do we begin to change this "lack of rhythm" on Long Island?

By first agreeing on some way to communicate in a dynamic way. Long Island 3.0 can give us the tools. Long Island Congress can give us a non-confrontational organizational structure.

Real answers based on accurate information presented in a dynamic format.

It's up to us if we want to change. There is really nothing else preventing it.

"But in some ways it'€™s less the business model that they chose, but the commitment to being transformational that I found most intriguing. It takes guts to revisit every assumption, premise, brainstorm, strategy and relationship on a regular basis. It's uncomfortable not to have familiar benchmarks; reinventing the wheel is harder than it sounds on a whiteboard. Reversion to the mean happens for a very simple reason: Innovation is terrifying when done right."

Some interesting material ...

Innovation Focus

"If innovation is not widely understood to be the community's lifeblood, the pace of member acquisition will slow and membership will slowly erode." (Net Gain: Expanding Markets through Virtual Communities, by John Hagel III and Arthur G. Armstrong)

The principle of "innovation focus" is concerned with 4 architectural layers as 4 domains of innovation, and with their cross-pollination. The measure of innovation value of each is in the value of new possibilities that they can open to the community.

For example, good design brings social and knowledge innovation into interplay with one another and with business and technical innovation. That interplay will lead to more consistently high returns than environments strong in only one or two dimensions of innovation.

Therefore, virtual learning environments should be optimised--with effective, real-time feedback loops--for synergy across the social, knowledge, business, and technical layers of the architecture."

More here ....

Insourcing?

Question. What would happen if all Long Island school districts, municipalities and other political subdivisions utilized UPS (or some other company) to "insource" operations?

Among additional questions: Would it save money? If so, how much? How can it benefit Long Island business? Can it be used to promote Long Island as a region to the rest of the world? What elements do we need to do an accurate cost-benefit analysis?

Just one of the many questions the Long Island Congress "think tank" project may help us find a straight answer to.

Simple. Not Simplistic.

The key to the success of our Long Island Congress/Long Island 3.0 project is to design a "launch" that is easy to understand and immediately engages a "critical mass" of relevant individuals and organizations.

We see many in the public theatre make statements that, while on the surface may sound logical, are in fact rife with inaccuracies and "half truths" which ultimately undercut what the individual or organization may be attempting to accomplish. Simplistic, counterproductive and potentially dangerous.

It bears repeating. The Long Island Congress (despite its name) and Long Island 3.0 are not "platforms" for individual or organizational "advancement." The goal is to create an environment where good work may be accomplished for the advancement of all Long Islanders. 

Is this "egalitarian" view possible? Can we keep it simple yet make it effective?

Yes, if it is organized properly from the beginning. Make no mistake, it is a large task subject to many pitfalls. But, as we've said previously, what's the alternative? To continue to issue "static" reports unconnected to one another or to wait for the next "great individual or organization" to come up with a thunderbolt of an idea that will save us all? Haven't we seen by now that approach usually fails miserably?

No, the truth is much more basic. Great changes come slowly, through hard work, good organization and mutual cooperation.  The key is to create something that transcends our own existence and ambition and that remains a viable entity  continuing to produce positive outcomes for Long Island for the foreseeable future.

We'll start to lay our some of our "specific" methods soon as we get more folks on board. 

As always, all ideas and comments are welcome.

Baldrige Program: A useful idea for the Long Island Congress?

Baldrige and Local Government: Isn't This a Private Sector Program?

"Although the Baldrige program began as a way for American business to compete more effectively around the world, the framework was developed to promote quality and excellence, not simply to drive profits. The seven criteria form a set of values and core concepts that any organization—public or private—can use to its advantage.

Public school systems, colleges, health care organizations, and numerous service businesses have won Baldrige awards. There is no reason to believe that cities and counties would not benefit from the framework and the rigor associated with the process. In fact, it is probably more accurate to say that local government has a lot of catching up to do if it wishes to be compared with the best Baldrige organizations, regardless of sector.

Baldrige for government can work because the seven criteria are built on a set of interrelated core concepts and values that promote organizational excellence. Here are brief descriptions of the core values and concepts that underpin the Baldrige model.

Visionary leadership. The management team should serve as role models through ethical behavior and personal involvement in coaching and developing future leaders. Both strategy and customer/citizen goals need to be aligned. Commitment and initiative are built throughout the organization.

Customer-driven excellence. Customer- or citizen-driven excellence is a strategic concept. It is devoted to obtaining and retaining citizen support as well as maximizing competitive position. It is critical to understand and develop citizen-focused outcomes.

Organizational and personal learning. Learning results in a more satisfied and versatile employees who stay with the organization. Bright, innovative employees provide a distinct advantage in meeting the needs of the community.

Valuing employees and partners. An organization’s success depends increasingly on the diverse backgrounds, knowledge, skills, creativity, and motivation of all its employees and partners, including both paid staff and volunteers.

Agility. A capacity for rapid change and flexibility is a key to success. Organizations face ever-shorter cycles for introducing new or improved programs and services as well for meeting expectations to deliver them more rapidly.

Focus on the future. Creating a sustainable organization requires under-standing the short- and long-term factors that affect the organization and its environment. Developing employees and partners along with creating opportunities for innovation are key concerns.

Managing for innovation. Making meaningful change improves your services, programs, processes, and operations to create new value for the organization’s stakeholders. Innovation builds on the accumulated knowledge of your organization and staff.

Management by fact. An effective administrative management system depends on the measurement and analysis of performance. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Selecting key performance measures and indicators is critical.

Social responsibility. An organization'€™s leaders should stress responsibilities to the public, ethical behavior, and the need to foster improved communities. Organizations should not only meet regulatory requirements, but treat those requirements as opportunities for improvement beyond mere compliance.

Focus on results and creating value. An organization’s performance measures need to focus on key results. Results should be used to create and balance value for your key stakeholders—customers, staff, the community, vendors, partners, and the general public.

Systems perspective. The Baldrige criteria provide a systems perspective for managing your organization and its key processes to achieve results in the form of performance excellence. The seven Baldrige categories and the core values form the building blocks and the integrating mechanism for the system. Successful management of overall performance requires organization-specific synthesis, alignment, and integration."

More here ...

Long Island Supply Chain Project?

How about a Long Island Supply Chain Project?

Perhaps model it along the lines of Wal-Mart's well regarded model (whatever else we may think of Wal-Mart!).

If they can do it world-wide, why can't we set up a system for all Long Island school districts, municipalities and others which comports with New York State law and which gives preference (where practicable) to "local suppliers."

We can and we should.

We already have some smart folks on Long Island ( here and here among others ) working on these issues.

What is needed, as with many other projects on Long Island are new organizational models and connectivity with other Long Island projects.

The Long Island Congress and Long Island 3.0 projects may help in that regard.

"I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world." - Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-born American Physicist

Dynamic Media Reformulation: Part Two

Preliminary conceptual chart (click for larger image).

As always we should view this in the context of all previous posts and diagrams. It all really does connect and work together at different levels.

If I could put it all in one post that made sense, believe me, I would.

On a base level, think of the LI Citizen Media projects as the  Wikinews  and Mediawiki phenomenon combined with very sophisticated meta-analysis and distribution tools. Dependent, of course on public participation, but not as dependent on "individual editing" and the incorrect results that may occur.

More in Part Three.

Dynamic Media Reformulation: Part One

OK, so there is this huge amount of information out there on a particular subject (or series of related subjects) and we want to gather it, vet it, analyze it, outline it, read it in brief, read it in detail, share it and promote it. How do we do accomplish this task?

Clearly there are search engines and software programs available today which do a pretty good job of getting most of this accomplished, but how easy is it to use? How effective? How available? 

What we're proposing within the overarching context of Long Island 3.o is a Citizen Media Network (and related integrated Citizen Alert Network) which will not only allow all citizens of Long Island to access information, but to create, in effect, their own manner of understanding the subject matter and maybe more importantly, how others are perceiving the same subject matter and to share and organize along those lines.

For example say the subject is energy which we've discussed in previous posts. How does anyone ascertain what the reliable information and facts are on the subject? Do we rely on the energy suppliers? Do we depend on the regulators? Do we depend on the media? Or ... do we depend on ourselves and our neighbors?

What if we can draw information from any sector and, among other actions, analyze it based on established protocols and algorithms (with the ability for those more advanced users to develop their own and share it with the rest of us mere mortals) and "reformulate it" to answer the questions we pose in a simple and flexible manner? Impossible?

Not impossible even with today's technology with more powerful products designed every day.

We must realize however that, with this new way of communicating someone's "ox is going to be gored." Even as "mega media" goliaths are being formed and re-formed, information has a need to become "unshackled." Traditional media is already struggling to compete with the new information dynamics. To be sure, good journalism and good journalists will always be in demand. But good journalism will not necessarily always be a profitable business. And good journalists may be found everywhere, not just in traditional media outlets.

What we propose as part of our Long Island 3.0 project is to create an outlet for this new media and information dynamic here on Long Island with the Citizens Media Network and Citizens Alert Network under the premise that more accurate information is better and more public participation is better still.

More in Part Two.

Essential reading ...

Just back from England and Wales. Read The World is Flat (Version 3.0) by Friedman along the way. 

100% on point. Essential reading for our Long Island 3.0 project.

A critique of Friedman's thesis and also worth reading, is here.

Simple statements

I've been asked by some of you if I can summarize the 90 some-odd posts of the Long Island Idea Factory into a couple of simple statements. So here goes ...

Long Island Congress Mission: To establish an effective, flexible methodology and structure so that organizations and the public may work cooperatively and dynamically to promote positive change for Long Island.

Long Island 3.0 Mission: Utilizing web 2.0 and 3.0 technologies, create an environment which will give organizations and the public the ability to meet the Long Island Congress mission.

There it is. For details, please use the search function of this site or look at the "Label Cloud" on the right hand column and click on the subject that interests you.

Thanks for all the kind words, encouragement and commitment thus far. We should be ready to get underway shortly. 

As always, please send me your comments good or bad. 

If you are interested in any of the projects in the Long Island Idea Factory, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Interesting reading ...

A new report on restructuring the New York Empire State Development organization has been issued.  Another "static" report, but helpful nevertheless.

It contains a number of proposals that coordinate with the Long Island Congress/Long Island 3.0 concepts as well as some other positive programs currently proposed or underway on Long Island.

Connect the dots ... use the Long Island Congress.

Excellent Idea, a few suggestions ...

Suffolk County Executive Levy has an excellent idea with his proposal to pool municipal resources for greater investment power and inter-municipal cooperation. Some Long Island municipalities have been utilizing the MBIA for a similar program for some time now.

But do we really want the New York State Comptroller managing Long Island's money? We may like and trust the current comptroller, but will it remain that way in the future? We believe Long Island must maintain some level of independence.

Perhaps a reasonable alternative to consider is to, through the MBIA or another entity, create a financial organization that keeps control of Long Island's money on Long Island and, among other ideas, allows each political sub-division to be a voting "officer" in the organization (Long Island Municipal Cooperative Investment Group [LIMCIG)?), and encourages investment on Long Island and in companies and organizations that benefit Long Island in some manner.

Keeping the money on Long Island opens the door for a wide array of possibilities, including investment in "workforce housing," purchase of open space and development of recreational facilities and job creation by assisting appropriate business development on Long Island. Perhaps we even have financial institutions here on Long Island who would like to participate in this project. The list of possibilities is only limited by our collective imagination.

Obviously, investment of municipal money must be in a safe place. However, we do ourselves a disservice by not controlling our own destiny as best we can.

A LIMCIG type organization fits very well into our Long Island Congress/Long Island 3.0 proposal as one type of "economic engine" that propels Long Island forward.

We must continue to create "economies of scale" within the various disciplines here on Long Island, but we must also ensure that all of these "concept clusters" work together as a harmonious whole.

The case for Long Island 3.0

"If Web 2.0 is about knowing what citizen's know, want and value, and if the Semantic Web is about government knowing more about what it knows (by making otherwise hard-to-find connections), then the future holds incredible promise and the reasonable expectation of a few bumps along the way. Fletcher, Miri and Chopra would likely agree with what O'Reilly recently told BusinessWeek: "Web 2.0 is the messy way that the Semantic Web is actually happening."

Good article on why the Web 3.0 concept (Semantic Web, Knowledge Web) is important (click for entire article) and, by inference, important for Long Island.

Simple.gov is also a persuasive argument for change and would be a useful tool to use in implementing a portion of the Long Island Congress/Long Island 3.0 project.

Thank you, but I can think for myself ...

"But really the biggest myth is that these shifts in media consumtion are all about blogs. Blogs are just one of the little pieces of social software that knit my life together. Flickr, instant messaging and Skype help too. I often say that my network is my filter, and whether it's on friends' blogs, via e-mail or via IM, I'm constantly getting a feed of information that is more relevant to my life than the crap that passes for 'authoratative comment' - as Simon Kelner Editor of The Independent called it. What a load of self-important tosh." 

Interesting article on blogging, news and opinion.

The important point for us and the Long Island 3.0 project, is that even in this "web 2.0" work we live in presently, many people are already creating their own information environments. Some are more sophisticated than others.

The vast majority of young people use social networks of one type or another. Are they likely to settle for  "pre-packaged" traditional media as they get older? I don't think so.

As we morph into the Web 3.0 environment, news and information will become more available and more easily "manipulated" by the end user. Long Island 3.0 (and the Citizen Media Network) anticipates this shift in news and information utilization, and attempts to create a framework in which we may use all existing and emerging technologies for a positive purpose.

The case for "verifiable vendor-neutrality"

"Open standards are clearly a good thing. Hurrah for open standards, etc. Nail my hat to the ceiling! But anyone who has been involved in community and consortium committees where there are commercial rivalries engaged knows that the thing that kills or corrupts a standard is when the spirit of mutual accommodation is overtaken by the spirit of competition. When I look over the standards that I have been to one extent involved with, at ISO, W3C and tangentially at IETF and OASIS, the golden rule is that the standards that come out of a nasty process have problems. The rancour during the Open XML debates does not auger well either for ODF and Open XML, in this respect, but I am an optimist."

Excellent analysis of how we should approach the "open standards" or "verifiable vendor neutrality" issue.

100% on point for our Long Island 3.0/Long Island Congress project.

Thanks to the Information Innovation Exchange ...

... at Long Island University for adding the Long Island Idea Factory to their blogroll.

Nice people doing excellent work.

Thanks again.

Also, a good idea here in  Suffolk County. Sounds like it has the potential to be a great program.  The MBIA has been providing a similar service for some time now.

Its called the "Shared Services Initiative" and part of its mission is to share information technology. Again, we repeat. Please make sure this integrates with other initiatives on Long Island.

 It will be a perfect component of the Long Island 3.0/Long Island Congress concept if designed properly.

"Gary Bixhorn, chief operating officer of Eastern Suffolk BOCES, said Levy's initiative, which he welcomes, is "more a functional consolidation, rather than an organizational consoldiation."

Now we're on the right track.

Long Island 3.0 Problem Solving: Part One

The above chart (click for larger image) is an initial conceptual diagram of how Long Island 3.0 might be used to arrive at a rational decision on a particular issue.

"Knowledge, the object of knowledge and the knower are the three factors which motivate action; the senses, the work and the doer comprise the threefold basis of action." - Bhagavad Gita (400BC) Sanskrit Poem incorporated into the Mahabharata

Change for the sake of change?

How does "change for the sake of change" affect the long term health of Long Island?

We define "change for the sake of change" as those acts which have as their primary motive the appearance of facilitating a substantive change for the public good. 

The initiators of these acts, whether government officials, members of the media or others, may do so for a variety of reasons. 

Some feel the only way to get any change at all is to get some change, no matter what it is. This is done primarily out of frustration, legitimate or not, as to the pace of the change they feel is important. 

Is the change important for their future or circulation or legitimately important for Long Island's future? Sometimes the legitimate and self-aggrandizement/financial elements suit a common purpose. More often they do not.

The danger in this type of change is that sometimes it causes more damage than the problem it purports to fix. 

The public perceives the minor change which got so much attention and required so much effort as a major change. The natural reaction to a major change is then to call for a "rest period" before any other change may take place.

Ultimately this start and stop routine results in little if any substantive progress and generally causes individuals and organizations to grow further apart.

We must be able to think and act on multiple levels simultaneously.

What we propose in out Long Island Congress and Long Island 3.0 concepts is a "perpetual process" in the best sense of the term. Not a "perpetual process" which doesn't lead to solutions, but the type of "perpetual process" which comes to solutions but makes sure those solutions are constantly "recycled" into the process to ensure their continued viability.

Think, communicate, act. Repeat.

Any knowledge that doesn't lead to new questions quickly dies out: it fails to maintain the temperature required for sustaining life.     Wislawa Szymborska 

"Smart" Radios

"Mobile-gadget makers are starting to take advantage of software-defined radio, a new technology allowing a single device to receive signals from multiple sources, including television stations and cell phone networks."

Good article on an "open source" approach to mobile communication here. It explains the pros and cons with a helpful chart. 

As we've explained in multiple previous posts, secure open architecture is a vital component to the Long Island 3.0 (and New York 3.0) concept. With great institutions like Stony Brook leading the way in wireless communications, Long Island is poised to be a world leader in this field.

Moreover Long Island is poised to be a world leader in demonstrating how this technology and compatible technologies can lead to a regional renaissance.

Good work on Long Island

Some good thinking at the United Way of Long Island. 

Yes, we should learn how to be more efficient within our own sphere of expertise. But we need more. We need a multi-disciplinary approach for Long Island as proposed in Long Island Congress and Long Island 3.0. 

It is good that the United Way is getting the process started in their field, but it will only be a part of the solution unless coordinated with other elements of Long Island society. The same can be said for other efforts underway aimed at "consolidation." 

As we have stated before, one may "consolidate" in different ways. Consolidating functions and organizations may be a part of the solution if it makes sense after an unbiased empirical analysis. But "consolidating" how one approaches problems and arrives at solutions into a "unified theory of regional coordination" will have a longer and more positive effect on Long Island. 

No form of consolidation will eliminate the desire for people and organizations to express their ideas and try to do a better job, nor should it. Consolidation, in any form, should not stifle creativity and original thought.

The consolidation we are speaking about in our "unified theory"  is a process. We are giving people and organizations the tools they need to cooperative voluntarily, while enabling original thought and growth. "Give a man a fish, and you've given him a meal. Teach him to fish, and he'll have food for a lifetime."

Some other good work being done here at  Long Island biz2biz.com  and 411 Karma.com (in fact I would encourage the United Way to look into this concept as a part of its mission).

I believe both sites, and the United Way, would benefit from the Long Island Common API(s) idea we offered some time ago (among many other ideas available on this blog and elsewhere we can use to form a common Long Island language).

We need to speak the same language (or at least have competent interpreters!) if we are going to communicate in a positive and productive manner.

Meta-editorialism: Part Five

A logical outgrowth of the Long Island 3.0 concept is a virtual mass communications network.

This would include all of the elements we have previously talked about including LIWIKI, Long Island Metadata Portal, Long Island Alert System(s) and the Long Island Congress (Virtual Community Congress, Long Island Citizen Media Network/Long Island Citizen Alert Network) inclusive) among the major concepts.

What does this mean for the traditional forms of mass communication? As the semantic or knowledge based web advances it obviously allows more choice not only in the type of information available, but how we receive it.

Traditional sources will still maintain a level of respect, but people will expect more from them. As the web 2.0 is beginning to demonstrate, there is an explosion of information and ideas available and the manner in which we interact with one another is becoming more and more sophisticated.

What is needed now is more structure to, what seems to be, chaos. It isn't really chaotic, its just that we have not fully developed the tools or the conceptual approach to use the abundance of information at our disposal in a consistently productive manner.

Long Island 3.0 in all its various current and yet to be developed forms, is an attempt to give some structure to the chaos so that we may use all available information for productive purposes.

Long Island WIKI (LIWIKI): Part Two

We talked some time ago about an advanced Long Island WIKI (LIWIKI) which would be a segment of our Long Island 3.0 concept and pointed to a good initial attempt to create a basic Long Island WIKI already underway.

The New York Times magazine had a good article this past weekend which I encourage you to read. It demonstrates how there is a large, mostly voluntary group of folks who constantly check facts and attempt to block inaccurate information. This, to me anyway, indicates a hunger for the "truth" and the scale of the project demonstrates a dissatisfaction with depending solely on "traditional" sources although they remain a large part of the news gathering effort (especially Google News).

What if we could take the WIKI concept and expand it to essentially create a "universal" information exchange for Long Island? What would we need to do?

As we stated before, multiple open standard data structures are required so that all Long Island data has the opportunity to be included, vetted and analyzed. This does not mean there is only one data method or one main database for the information. As we have stated before, we must make the information exchange flexible and easy to accomplish. I have no doubt we have the brainpower here on Long Island to accomplish this and I know there are models already employed that we may emulate and modify.

If we make the process flexible and easy to accomplish and we get some of the "major" players on Long Island engaged in the process (some of whom have already expressed an interest), we can create the type of synergistic model that will propel Long Island and Long Islanders to create an environment for positive change.

More in part three. Stay tuned.