Comments on: Power and service at elite institutions gathering https://techandsocialchange.mit.edu/2018/10/10/power-and-service-at-elite-institutions-gathering/ MAS.S63 Fall 2018 | Wednesdays 10-1 in E15-341 Wed, 10 Oct 2018 14:42:54 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.4.1 By: Savi https://techandsocialchange.mit.edu/2018/10/10/power-and-service-at-elite-institutions-gathering/#comment-2141 Wed, 10 Oct 2018 14:42:54 +0000 http://techandsocialchange2017.wordpress.brownbag.me/?p=1077#comment-2141 A. I enjoyed your first value. I felt that was very self-aware and demonstrated a desire to be self-critical.

B. For the action-driven one, I would also recommend thinking about building in ways to also be “reflective”. Move fast and break things doesn’t always work and sometimes leads to big things getting broken. Sometimes the best action is no action!

c. I actually really like your convening, and wish this could happen! Its hard to find easy ways to apply institutional knowledge to real world problems because it often stays isolated in the institutions it was created in

]]> By: Charles Holbrow https://techandsocialchange.mit.edu/2018/10/10/power-and-service-at-elite-institutions-gathering/#comment-2118 Wed, 10 Oct 2018 14:33:29 +0000 http://techandsocialchange2017.wordpress.brownbag.me/?p=1077#comment-2118 Non-hierarchical is a very interesting value. It’s worth looking as some non-hierarchical organizations and events to study how they work in comparison to more traditional and common structures. A common outcome is that an implicit hierarchy emerges. This is not a pure advantage or disadvantage, but it is worth being aware of. The more a group or community operates with consensus, the more time it takes to make decisions, and the more time is taken away from action items. Or, said another way, as is attributed to Oscar Wilde

“The trouble with socialism is too many evenings.”

But there’s trouble with hierarchy too, so it’s not a criticism, just a trade off!

The other thing that comes to mind for me is the question of commitment. It’s great to have a plan, but how many people follow through? I think this would be a really interesting research area. Why do people engage in altruistic activism? Why factors effect how committed and persistent people are? Seems like a really good area for study!

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