OFFDEM 05 Pre-Program

Welcome
1

OFFDEM 0x05 - Pre-Program

Scope

This year OFFDEM aims to set the grounds for an inter-syndicalist platform to enable solidarity behind the software technicity, to engage developers to consider their work as part of the world beyond their sole privilege. We hope to achieve this by clearing up the conditions of emergence and sustainability of an internationalist, inter-syndicalist movement.

We believe that such an organisation for commons/free software could allow us to take back control over our economies. We propose to specifically focus over long term work and build up concrete objectives in interconnection with other movements of resistance, starting from the people here.

OFFDEM is a commitment

Is it your first time at OFFDEM? Then you need to understand the way we organize. Most people wrongly assume that OFFDEM is just another hacker event, and that they know how those are organized. But…

Methodology

Go on, read the methodology, because it’s very important that you understand what you’re getting into. This is not your typical hacker event for you to enjoy over the weekend. It means engaging yourself into something bigger, something that drives us to think about free technology production, question your privilege, engage your creativity, and take responsibility in the long term.

Our various work groups aim to cover the larger aspects of technology stakes. We’re building a network of people willing to reclaim the course of history through technicity and collective practices, to serve the general interest and not the privilege of a few; it may be that the general interest commands less technology and a focus on what should be built and what should not. Welcome to OFFDEM, where cooperation trumps competition.

Accessibility

As part of our methodology and especially since some of us are deaf people, it’s very important to take extensive notes of our discussions on the dedicated pads. This will allow everybody to engage whatever their condition. Now, if some of you are ablo to interpret sign language, that would make it even more accessible.

Considering the wheelchair accessibility, most of the building is at the ground floor (there’s still a little step at the entrance). The main room is second floor, but there is a platform that we will check in the next few days. If you’re blind or visually impaired, please reach out the @ well-being.team by email or with a DM to the group.

Also, please voice out if you want to make sure your disability will be took into account. And if you wish to engage in making OFFDEM better accessible to any condition, please request a membership to @well-being.team.

Sorting out the CFP

An intersyndical platform should enable tuning the specific conditions of its members to a wider, common agenda, and vice-versa. Thus we need to first dedicate time to identify starting points and perspective to a collective understanding of the situation. That vision of the current stakes will enable us to build up on top of it in the longer term.

Outcomes

We would like to come up with the necessary basic structure for an inter-syndicalist platform and design, for instance:

  • commissions (technical - daily work)
  • workshops (practical - emancipatory)
  • projects (development - long term)
  • camps (in-depth study - intensive)
  • base groups/GA (discussion/deliberation)

Pre-programme

The workshops have no attributed hours as we hope for your continuous presence accompanying the unfolding of our collective thinking.

Day 1: mapping

This first day will be focused on assessing our community, our strenghts, the specificities of our methodologies and our multiple capacities.

WG1 - @ bonds.wg: mapping the situation along the supply chain (organisations, movements)

This work group gathers several intentions Its form will therefore be a mix of the following proposals. Its outcomes aim to identify which structures/struggles already exist, what are their (lack of) interconnection/solidarity and their practices?
*NB: The link below will only work if you subscribe to @offdem.0x05 worgroup

WG2 - @ demil.wg: drafting an antifascist threat model of our existence
  • Stop Arming Israel initiative and envisions to shed light on the vulnerabilities that colonial, imperialist states can exploit against a resisting population, to foresee possible mitigation measures.
  • Technology of the border

Day 2: moving on

From there on we will build up and structure with the existing movements.

WG1 - @ synware.wg: drafting an international, decolonial syndical platform

Let’s start figuring out syndicalist software and methods for specific contexts. This Work Group will divide itself in specific workshops

WG2 - @ e-waste.wg: scavengers local organisation for collective data sovereignity

This session means to share methods to assemble the capitalist overproduction scrap to build up resilient, decentralized and interconnected infrastructures

Evenings

Your turn

We hope that this pre-programme will brighten up the very purpose of our invitation. Your feedback is still much welcome if you wish to further develop the intertwining of the initial proposals. If this version suits you, feel free to open up a new topic dedicated to the Work Group in which you wish to engage.

2 Likes