John Maguire: Open Source Ecology

“Open Source Ecology founder Dr. Marcin Jakubowski and the OSE team explain the philosophy behind their work. Special thanks to our remote collaborators Tom Griffing, Zach Dwiel and William Neal.” Open Source Ecology: Still going strong in 2013. The Global Village Construction Set is ever-evolving. The CEB-Press (Liberator), Lifetrac Tractor, and Hydraulic Power Cube are …

John Maguire: Hackerspaces & Open-Source Creativity — Making Up for Educational Shortfalls

“Inspired in part by the open source movement, public spaces are emerging where people congregate to share ideas, make cool projects, teach, and brainstorm with collaborators on everything from coding to cooking. With no leaders, they have one rule: “Be excellent to each other.” Take a tour of the hackerspace Noisebridge, located in the heart …

John Maguire: Mesh Networks and Pirate Internet

“From SOPA and PIPA to ACTA to CISPA to the TPP and now back to CISPA, internet activists have been caught up in a deliberately bewildering game of whack-a-mole with freedom-crushing legislation. Now, ISPs are doing an end run around the whole legislative process altogether and voluntarily collaborating with the entertainment industry to spy on …

John Maguire: Alternative Currencies Centered on Hours

Wayne Walton explains a new complementary currency that is popping up around the US. Mountain Hours, Mile High Hours, and Island Hours are just a few examples of this voluntary co-operative currency, which allows for more transactions than were previously available connecting more unmet needs with unused resources. Completely sustainable, shifts power of the monetary …

John Maguire: WikiHouse – An Open Source Construction Set

How It Works: “WikiHouse is an Open Source construction set. It’s aim is to allow anyone to design, download, and ‘print’ CNC-milled houses and components, which can be assembled with minimal formal skill or training.” WikiHouse is an important piece of the puzzle for developing local-resilience and self-sufficiency from the bottom up.   WikiHouse and other ambitious projects such …