“Us Now” documentary available free online
Us Now, the groundbreaking documentary is about the power of mass collaboration, the internet and its potential impact on society, is available for viewing free online for a limited time at http://www.joiningthedocs.tv.Â
Directed by Ivo Gormley, the film explores how the web is changing the many ways in which we can organize ourselves. From a democratic football club where the fans pick the team to a lending service where everyone can be a bank manager, Us Now brings together the leading thinkers in the field of participation and web culture to describe how mass collaboration could change society. As the co-author of Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything, I was asked by Ivo Gormley to participate.
The UK documentary had its North American premiere 2½ months ago in Toronto. One of many attending the premiere was Ruby Ku, a self-described 20-something SciBus student at the University of Waterloo. Ruby was good enough to track down the URLs for many groups featured in the film:
- School of Everything - a website that helps people who want to learn meet up with people who want to teach.
- Zopa - a market place where people lend and borrow money to and from each other, sidestepping the banks.
- Couchsurfing - a worldwide network making connections between travelers and the local communities they visit; participate in a better world, one couch at a time.
- The People Speak - a campaign to engage young people on the global issues that will shape their future - an initiative from the United Nations Foundation.
- Slice The Pie - a music financing company that aggregates thousands of people’s opinions about upcoming bands and allows fans to invest in producing albums.
- MyFootballClub - join members from over 80 countries who own Ebbsfleet United and vote on all key decisions from team selection to financial budgets.
- Mumsnet - a social enterprise + community of parents sharing their know-hows on the net and meeting up in real-life.
- Open Everything - global conversation about the art, science, and the spirit of “open.”
It would be great to see the documentary go viral. If you haven’t seen the film, please give it a try. And if you like it (which you will) tell as many friends as you can.