Could Twitter and Occupy help our charities, trade unions and voluntary organisations to both stay relevant in the times ahead and live our values through the ways that we organise?
This question is asked, and answered, by activist Liam Barrington-Bush in his new book Anarchists in the Boardroom. Liam went to Oaxaca, Mexico in May 2012 to begin weaving together stories from grassroots social movements, online uprising and forward-thinking businesses, to paint a picture of what it might mean for an organisation to be ‘more like people’. Part of Liam’s writing process involved online conversations. I took part in some of these on his blog, and then supported the crowd-funding campaign to get the book published. It has been great to been a little part of this journey, and I’m delighted that thanks to our ongoing online conversations Liam has arranged to come and share his thinking and stories with us in Dudley. We’ll be discussing the ways that digital technology is changing the ways that community groups and voluntary organisations in Dudley borough work.
While we probably won’t hit the anticipated 60 people booked to attend the Book Launch in London on Wednesday, there has already been lots of interest in Dudley CVS’s Voluntary Sector Network event with Liam on Friday 4 October (places are free – book here) and Dudley CVS’s Building Blocks programme is also offering free places on a training session with Liam on the afternoon of Friday 4 October (details and bookings here).
For any readers in or around Birmingham, there’s also an informal meet-up with Liam arranged on Thursday 3 October, from 5pm at Brewsmiths coffee shop, see more and RSVP here.
Digital Dudley 