When systems are localised / small enough for people to know each other these problems can self correct. Though not always. I think there’s some magic dust we need to identify and spread around…
Example: Several months ago I joined Nottingham hackspace. They have some simple and, you might think, tempting to abuse hackspace rules. Here they are in bullet form:
Rule Zero
Do Not Be On Fire.
Being a Member
- Pay-What-You-Like But Pay Monthly
- The 35L Rule
##Using the Space
- Talk is Cheap Discussing ideas is wonderful and exciting, getting too attached to them is not. See [http://www.bikeshed.com/ The Bikeshed Anti-Pattern]. Rule sometimes also interpreted as "Just get on with it".
- No CRTs Thank You relates to Hackspace donations & equipment you may bring to the Hackspace.
Carefully consider the true usefulness and/or interestingness of an item before bringing it to the space. Seek permission for large items.
- DO NOT HACK means DO NOT HACK If you're leaving something and you would rather it was not hacked, please label it with a DO NOT HACK notice. If you see something has a DO NOT HACK notice on, don't hack it.
- '''Don't just *try* to clean up after yourself'''. Aim to clean up a little bit more mess than you make, because we all miss things from time to time, and mess builds up.
- The Space is Not For Sleeping Under the terms and attendant fire regs of our lease, overnight stays are not officially allowed.
- Don't be a contemptible fellow (be excellent to each other) - This is our main rule of behaviour. It takes priority over all other rules.
##Provisional Rules
- Be Bold - This is a newly-proposed rule under discussion.
When I was joining I was really surprised, and somewhat intrigued, to read the rule about membership fees, rule 1: “Pay-What-You-Like But Pay Monthly.” Er really?
And rule 8 “Don’t be a contemptible fellow (be excellent to each other) - This is our main rule of behaviour. It takes priority over all other rules.”.
These are the “laws” of the hackspace but there are no hackspace police, lawyers or judges. There are trustees and there are members, but no-one is tasked with enforcing rules. So does it work? Yes, definitely, and this is quite a large community - several hundred members. While some will know quite a few of these, clearly no-one knows everyone personally.
There is some surveillance (RFID controlled entry/exit - so members have access 24x7x365 - which logs entry and exit, and possibly some CCTV - not sure). So if it was needed, behaviour that needed to be tracked to a perpetrator could probably be narrowed down considerably, except the perpetrator could pretty easily destroy the logs, because essentially everyone has access to everything. So there’s a lot of transparency here, no-one is particularly in a position of power to abuse with impunity. Others can easily raise issues and call on the community to deal with problem situations, but TBH I’d be amazed if it ever got to something serious. There’s an element of self responsibility too - not leaving valuables around for example - although a lot of the hackspace kit and materials has value, the hackspace - all members - bears that risk together.
There is an active Google group mailing list, and very occasionally, someone refers to a particular rule, typically helpful cautions to not “be on fire” or “get on with it”. And when someone speaks offensively, “not to be a contemptible fellow”, and when stuff has not been tidied up etc.
It all reminds me of the internet before it became widespread. Years before the web began internet newsgroups and email all self regulated in this way and there was no spam. Flame wars (heated discussions) arose on forums an were handled (much like here) mostly by the community, but the system of loose regulation was not exploited in the way the web and internet is now.
If you read up on rule 1 (pay what you like), the only proviso is “If you are taking more from the space than you are giving you will be politely asked to increase your monthly payment.”
Notice that the most important rule which really is the only one that matters is rule 8: *“don’t be a contemptible fellow (be excellent to each other)” (taken from Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure).
The reasons this works might be complex - its a bunch of humans after all - but I think one key really is that those who are members all believe and want the space to work. The amount of time some people put into just helping it work is astounding (which reminds me of this project). No-one is paid, and it all runs on the voluntary monthly subscriptions of members - this is a big space with a big rent, and it is choc full of tools from sowing machines to arc welders. I’d call this WILL.
No doubt it attracts certain types. But enough people buy into it and care about making sure it works in one way or another. The difficulty seems to arise when systems become too large and too fragmented, even too diverse in terms of purpose and values. This is when problems arise and we end up introducing stronger enforcement, as a response and, well, that eventually is how we get here.
Fragmentation comes from different sources: prejudice, distance, blaming… but ultimately I think misunderstanding. Of not trusting each other and therefore feeling justified in “being a contemptible fellow” because that’s how we see the other fellow as being.
How to facilitate this on the larger scale is a our challenge. I don’t think it is going to be created by reverting to an unregulated free market any more than it is achieved by endless new regulations and enforcement. Both miss the point I think, while both are understandable responses to different perceptions of what is “broken”. What’s nice is to see that underneath, even in the most passionate (ahem) arguments on this forum, I think Project SAFE (and much credit to @dirvine, his vision, his values for this) has attracted a bunch of people who want essentially the same thing for themselves and each other. I’d call this LOVE.
I think this is a fabulous community, and I guess that’s why I have found myself putting so much will into it. Far more than I though I would want to, and far more than I would have imagined I was physically capable of. And I see this from a lot of others here, and I hope you all realise where I’m coming from even when I myself have been “passionate” in my own interactions with you
I think the will is evident in most everyone here. Our differences can be overcome through learning about each other enough to trust, the love side of this equation. For that we need to have good will, and to get to know each other. I really feel that happens over time here, and that this is very important. I’m interested to know what you all think, about everything here, including of course these ideas.