Pondering how democratic tools & rules are only as good as they can reflect a group's consensus.
The #benevolentdictator model in open systems, ie FOSS & now fedi instances, despite problems (centralisation, burnout), remains compelling. It could also be a Team with control (as with post-BDFL projects like CiviCRM) – the key is decision-makers have to reflect consensus. Because it's all open, they know the community can depart/fork with relatively low cost (unlike the Zuskian/techbro dictator).
None of this meant as an attack on [#sociocracy, which I think was designed as a consensus system when everyone is in a literal room together… & def not #mutualism which feels to me the closest political theory to reflect the fediverse. Things here are both common & owned in overlapping groups with some shared principles. I'm personally v interested in & grateful to learn from this exploration of digital democracy beyond Git's Issues+PRs (aka corp governance motions) & Merges/Forks (aka votes).]
This -> https://werd.social/@ben/110645300070487117 is why I'd encourage any of the latest Twixiles to join a democratic, member-led instance, like social.coop, where I've been since 2017.
It doesn't solve all problems, and the tools and norms are still evolving, but it makes a big difference to be in a Fediverse space that is answerable to the people who use it (most of us also pay, > $1/month - so moderators are paid (not enough) too. #MastodonMigration#TwitterDown#socialcoop#mutualism.
Big news! Felix Jäger will soon join the #ecoevo#modelling group at @unihohenheim as a doctoral researcher funded by the Studienstiftung! Hooray! He will study transitions from #mutualism to #antagonism and vice versa within #networks of interacting species.
(Btw, he received the good news just one day after I insisted on having him on the new group picture, even though he was not yet an official group member. So maybe I found the recipe for funding success?)
🆕 Congratulations to Joana Dias Pereira and Rui Henriques, who were awarded the 2023 António Sérgio Cooperation and Solidarity Prize, in the Lusophone Studies and Research Category, for their book on the history of mutualism in former Portuguese colonies. 🎊
Happy #InternationalWorkersDay! Especially in these times when we could probably use a new workers international as a spiritual successor of the first.