UnSummit, Mad As Hell, & MadInMinnesota.com

Yesterday was UnSummit 5, and, as always, it was a great day. Big thanks to Meg Gerritsen Knodl, Mykl Roventine, and Don Ball for putting it together.

Mad As Hell
I led a session called "Mad As Hell" about how we can start a movement toward civic collaboration. (The title/premise is inspired by this iconic scene from the movie Network.) It was a great discussion, and I really appreciate everyone who came and contributed.

Here's the short version:
The system is failing us – in hundreds of ways – and we as individuals feel powerless to do anything about it. We vote, and then wait for the people in power to make changes for us. Because that's all we feel empowered to do.

And even if we think there's something more we could do, society places such a stigma on "political" dialogue that we're often hesitant to talk about it. How can we come together to make positive change if we can't even talk about the issues we're facing?

Well, I want to get us talking. I want to get us moving toward collaboration. Because there's strength in numbers. And if we can come together, get the conversation going, and start making connections, we can make positive change happen.

With those goals in mind, I'm beginning a new venture: MadInMinnesota.com.

MadInMinnesota.com
My vision for this site, which I shared yesterday, is for it to become a collaboration tool. At this moment, it's a simple Tumblr, but I want to make it into something bigger – a place where people can connect, manage projects, track progress, share updates, plan events, and find valuable resources.

During the session yesterday, people had some really good suggestions for how to build and expand the site. I'll be asking for a lot of help and feedback in the coming weeks/months, and I'll be looking for people to participate.

For now, we need posts and comments.

Posts should simply answer two questions: 1. What are you mad about? 2. What are you going to do about it? (Question #2 is an important element.)

They could be short conversation starters:

What am I mad about?
I'm mad that the State government is about to shut down.

What am I going to do about it?
I'm going to start a conversation right here about possible solutions. What could we do about this if we found enough people to work together?

Or they could be more involved action plans:

What am I mad about?
I'm mad that broccoli costs more than a Big Mac. People with limited incomes deserve healthy food, too.

What am I going to do about it?
I'm going to gather 10 people and start a community garden in my neighborhood. We'll grow the vegetables, then we'll donate them to low-income community members.

Posts could be about any issue relevant to you. The main goal is just to start talking. (I should note: highly contentious or aggressive conversation is often counterproductive, so I encourage you to focus on making positive progress, rather than finger-pointing.)

If you have a few minutes today, please head over to MadInMinnesota.com and take a look. Submit a post. Leave a comment. I really appreciate your participation!

I look forward to hearing your feedback and to sharing further updates with you soon.