COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION
CAN TRANSFORM THE WORLD
♥
• What Is RNDTBL?
RNDTBL is a stylization of the word "roundtable," a dialogue where everyone is equal. This is the name of a tool that we are developing which is intended to assist a group of people in performing in-depth collaborative research. This research is aimed at the resolution of world problems through the creation of easy to understand, step-by-step DIY ecological engineering projects applicable to a wide variety of different environments.
It operates like a forum in that there are a series of topics that act as spaces to dialogue about different aspects of a world problem. However, instead of replies being organized within a list, they are displayed within a network graph. The more that the people within the group interact, the more connections that are made between the items that they are contributing. Together, they are building up a map of their collective knowledge about these subjects!
Multiple viewpoints can share the same space without one becoming "dominant" over another. For example, it wouldn't matter if dialogue about one specific topic started to flood the forum as it would all be contained within its own "branch" within the network graph, existing in parallel to other "branches". In this way, both the "pros" and the "cons" of any topic could always be presented together. We are attempting to remove the necessity of moderation roles by having everyone involved hold each other accountable as much as possible, not necessarily by trying to advocate for particular viewpoints, but by continually making the consequences of individual behaviors plain.
By integrating their different viewpoints and showing what they are each contributing to the whole, that group of people would then have a more comprehensive basis for addressing issues amongst themselves and within society in general.
Once a problem is well-defined and a promising method of handling it is formulated through collaborative research, then tools are provided to assist in creating a physical space to test it out, refine it, and sustain it on the local level. [See the features of the tool, as well as the philosophical and scientific underpinnings of its design below.]
• What Does The RNDTBL Logo Mean?
The pink hexagram-looking shape is the topology for a "mesh" or "fully connected" network. In other words, it represents a group where every individual is connected to every other one. It has resilience. If one link breaks, everyone can still communicate. The shade of pink is my favorite color, Baker-Miller Pink. It is, quote: "...a tone of pink which has been observed to temporarily reduce hostile, violent or aggressive behavior." Altogether, this symbol represents a communication system in which all people are continually interacting in harmony.
The tree represents Nature in general. However, the juxtaposition of it with the above symbol represents the constructive interplay of the organic and technological. Technology should serve Nature, not destroy it. Further, how people treat each other is often a reflection of how they interpret Nature. For example, it is likely that a person who "objectifies" others probably treats Nature itself as something that must be "controlled" because we are all interconnected by Nature. Everything is alive. The Web of Life is the most primary network and it thrives through mutualism.
The white letters spell out RNDTBL when followed clockwise. White is often a symbol of purity or divinity. The circle has a similar connotation, being a representation of the infinite, wholeness, or completion. It is without beginning or end, beyond space and time. The letters are also at the tips of the branches because they are like "fruit", the culimination of something. Nature culminates in a transcendent Love when All are united in a mutually constructive purpose.
• What Features Will RNDTBL Have?
[In Progress...]
