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Copyright 2010 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open EconomicNetworks (I-Open) 4415 Euclid Ave 3rd Fl Cleveland, Ohio 44103 USA
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The Institute for Open Economic Networks (I-Open)
Written by Betsey MerkelOpen Source Economic Development (OSED) is one form of OpenEconomic Networks. OSED is a specific investment model of howyou build these networks. It’s an approach to build strategy maps for open economic networks geared toward teaching and replicating.
FAQ's about Open Source Economic Development
Q: What is Open Source Economic Development and what does it mean to do economic development from this kind of approach?
A: Open Source Economic Development is a way of thinking aboutleveraging the passion and knowledge of individuals to strengthensocial networks in five areas of economic investment: Brainpower,Innovation, Education, Dialogue & Inclusion, and Branding Stories.This is accomplished by adhering to principles of behavior that buildtrust with one another. These principles are:
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Everyone is encouraged to participate
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Everyone has something of value to offer
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All participants listen carefully to each other and consider allideas and viewpoints
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A positive and constructive atmosphere is maintained
Copyright 2010 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open EconomicNetworks (I-Open) 4415 Euclid Ave 3rd Fl Cleveland, Ohio 44103 USA
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Everyone understands that discussions are open forums andthere is no right or wrong answer
Q: If Open Source Economic Development means anyone can participate anywhere, anytime, does anyone organize it or is it just chaos or some kind of leaderless, hierarchy-free self-organization?
A: Different from top down organization invitation-only meetings,Open Source Economic Development is an inclusive process thatrequires guided leadership. The need for innovation in education, for example, is a topic everyone can relate to. A successful way toestablish a process leveraging individual initiative is to host an OpenSpace gathering in education. Areas of interest and new ideas abouteducation will emerge. The next step is for committed partners towork together collaboratively to design next steps toward takingaction.
Q: Do the thousands of people now in corporate, government,funding, and civic leadership positions have any role or power in anOpen Source model?
A: Yes. Open Source Economic Development discriminates only bythose who have initiative and are known for getting things done.Every individual has ideas of value. The challenge, regardless of prior experience, is to practice behaviors that build trust and encouragecollaboration, enabling a free flow of diverse idea exchange. Once aclimate of sharing is established, “group think” can evolve to the next
The String Quartet is a collaborative model we can learn from. The Matangi Quartet at the 8th Banff International String Quartet Competition. Photo Credit: Donald Lee
Copyright 2010 Betsey Merkel and I-Open. Creative Commons 3.0Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works. Institute for Open EconomicNetworks (I-Open) 4415 Euclid Ave 3rd Fl Cleveland, Ohio 44103 USA
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maturation of thought resulting in new idea innovation.
Q: Does Open Source Economic Development mean in the end everything is common property and no one "owns" anything?
We need to be careful not to confuse property ownership with ideaownership. Innovative thinking is the result of a deep consideration of many perspectives of a single problem and does not happen in avacuum. Open Source Economic Development activity is in service of the public good - providing opportunity to accelerate individualthinking and mature regional thinking. Trust is an importantcomponent, because it allows contributors to realize that what theyoffer will be returned exponentially in the form of ideas, social capitaland professional services. Mutual respect of idea origination, that notwo ideas are alike and the understanding that idea creation is notfinite are important understandings to grasp. This kind of thinkingallows individuals to "let go" of ownership, which impedes ideadevelopment. Everyone benefits cooperatively.
Q: Do people need any new kinds of skills or knowledge or competencies in order to "do Open Source" and if so which, can they be learned, and how?
2004 United Way Clean Up Day, PAVolunteers from Old Point National Bank and NASA Cleaning and sorting food, and painting fences at Salvation Army. Bungee jumping in Australia.We need to becomfortable multi-tasking on a high level and beable to "bungee-jump" from the 10,000-foot level to rock bottom.
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