Visioning 2026 Blog
10 Trends Shaping the Future of Our Communities
As we transition from a burgeoning economy to one that's rapidly deflating, people are realizing that placemaking offers the ideal approach to improving our cities and neighborhoods in these hard times.
Placemaking puts people first. It is a holistic approach based on public involvement, on citizens working to make things better. Capitalizing on communities' often overlooked assets and can-do spirit, placemaking shows how we can advance everyone's health and happiness without spending huge amounts of money.
We now see the limitation of the privatized pursuits that flourished in recent years, and are rediscovering the importance of truly public spots"parks, markets, waterfronts and downtowns, to name a few"where we can come together to meet our needs and solve problems.
Taking stock of our work over the past year, we noticed 10 significant trends that are redefining the world as we know it, even in a down economy. What stood out in looking over all that we accomplished in 2008 was how people can still make big changes in their community if they have the right tools.
- Placemaking gains ground around the globe
- Collaboration is the key to making change
- Greenplace: How community revitalization fights climate change
- Placemaking is essential to vibrant travel destinations
- Libraries emerge as new town squares
- How cities stay lively 12 months a year
- The Power of 10 leverages community assets
- Public markets provide a leg up in a down economy
- The rise of community-based transportation planning
- New developments create innovative models for destinations
http://www.pcma.org/Convene/Issue_Archives/November_2008/Leading_By_Example.htm
http://www.uli.org/ResearchAndPublications/Magazines/UrbanLand/2008/August.aspx
Creating the Foundation for the Creative Molecular Economy
Technology, Disabled, Social Networking--Making Connections to Learn about and Solve Problems
He estimated that “an active online community may well take six or more months to organize, as there is inertia and shyness to overcome.” There will also be costs to create such an online community, he said, “for Web hosting, associated technology costs and set-up labor.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/18/business/smallbusiness/18edge.html
2nd Enlightenment Group Established to Further Future Generative Dialogue
Tuesday is our first 2nd Enlightenment meeting. Larry and I have discussed a lot of topics/ideas for things to do/talk about – I know you are surprised!
Anyway, we thought we might want to take advantage of a community meeting Sue Fuchtman is having in her bid for mayor. There fore we will be meeting, at least at first, at Central Park at 6:30 p.m. so that we can make our presence known and give her some food for thought about the Visioning 2026 process and the future of Norfolk. Plus there are free cookies!
Depending on how that went and the weather etc. we would reconvene at the Chamber offices to discuss future meetings/topics and strategies for seeding Norfolk etc. with future’s context and transformational learning.
Just as an aside, Scott has sent her the document by Rick Smyre – Democracy in a Learning Mode – due to a discussion they were having at one of the planning and zoning meetings. So it would seem that she is a least interested in looking at different approaches to the future. . .
I am excited about starting our monthly meetings (2ndTues. of the month, times and location TBA) on future trends/context and enlightenment!
Learn more about the purpose of a 2nd Enlightenment. Read about the first 2nd Enlightenment Conference and Workshop held in Columbia, SC in 2006.
Area Resident Presents At World Futures Society in Washington DC
News Release, Norfolk, NE, 08/08/08
Area Resident Presents At World Futures Society
How will this 3D virtual reality environment such as Second Life affect our business and personal lives in the future? That is what Norfolk resident, Larry Wenzl, Nucor Steel Engineer, Leadership Norfolk graduate, Visioning 2026 team leader, and Master Capacity Builder is trying to help many to understand.
Larry's 30 minute presentation (2.8 MB PDF) to the World Futures Society held in Washington DC, July 27, 2008 was part of a session chaired by Rick Smyre and David Baldwin, titled, Growing Your Community for Constant Change. Larry's presentation is titled, "Interlocking Networks in Second Life."
Read more about the agenda from the final program, Washington DC, July 2008, page 26-27, Growing Your Community for Constant Change, Sunday July 27th, 2-3:30 pm.
The presentation material included:
(1) Emerging tools of virtual reality, virtual reality is an "Immersive" technology where you create connections with others and why this technology will be so prevalent, e.g., remote collaboration, enhanced communications, team productivity, reduced costs.
(2) Collaborative creation is fun, involving virtual meetup of diverse group, futures generative dialogue, construct
(3) Virtual networking to include the benefits, no geographic boundaries, merging of different networks of people
Larry shared with the audience that there are weak signals inside an emerging trend which includes:
- In the UK, Second Life use is increasing faster than other online services (except for Facebook and YouTube)
- Emergence of organizations existing only in the virtual world
- In-world partnering
- New technology will allow avatars to teleport between worlds
Larry concluded his presentation with the following statement on the value of establishing virtual interconnected networks that include:
- Diverse Individuals more efficiently interact to create lifelike immersive solutions that can be tested and utilized for real world applications.
- Immersive Technology creates a connection with others that perpetuates involvement.
- Innovation and success depend on our ability to remain open to creative experiences that bring us into meaningful contact with transformative solutions.
*********
So how as a community can we take advantage of this trend to prepare for the future? Should we consider a 2nd Enlightenment Club in the Norfolk area that will use 3D virtual reality as a stepping stone for endorsing future changes? What about on-line social network such as LinkedIn and Creative Molecular Economy group and the Community Transformer Network.
Related material was also highlighted in a Wallstreet Journal article. The financial marketplace, bandwidth, hardware, networked community are leading indicators for statements such as this, "Last year, Gartner Research predicted that 80% of all active Internet users will have a virtual-world presence by 2011."
A number of industry groups are working on open 3D standards. As soon as one of these gains widespread acceptance, anyone will be able to build a virtual world that is connected to any other similarly coded virtual world – just like HTML now allows anyone to create a 2D Web page that is connected to any other 2D Web page.
Stay tuned for more 3D virtual reality Second Life stories and their impact on communities and regional areas like Norfolk and Northeast Nebraska.
Add www.Visioning2026.com to your bookmarks and your RSS reader. Contact Larry Wenzl through email at wenzll@asme.org.
Join the Community Transformer Network
Interested in joining a national and soon to be world-wide network of people helping to transform their communities for the future. Please register at the following web to get connected with other like minded individuals and learn together.
http://www.communitytransformer.com/
Third Millennial Center and Second Life Application
How can you use and establish a real-world community infrastructure facility, incorporate the concept of transformational thinking, and model it in a 3D virtual environment?
Several local Master Capacity Builders in concert with individuals involved with developing Second Life collaboration opportunities have offered a concept paper The Third Millennial Center as a vehicle to develop a new community learning platform.
The Third Millennial Center concept paper integrates multi-generational living facilities, high bandwidth communications architecture, technology laboratory, demonstration, and education center, entertainment and recreation activities, food and eating operations, along with information and knowledge kiosk center(s), and an eco-friendly natural landscape environment with renewable energy resources.