(2013-04-17) Johnson Noveck Nyu Gov Lab Event

Steven Johnson will be attending the 2-day event at Beth Noveck's NYU Gov Lab (Governance Lab) on Citizen Engagement. For movement-building, it’s important to stress the commonalities between these different (Peer Progressive) networks, but for practical application, we need to study the distinctions. And we need to avoid the easy assumption that decentralized, peer-based approaches will always outperform centralized ones. One of the key values of peer progressivism is intellectual and professional diversity; groups that draw on different conceptual frameworks consistently outperform more single-minded groups. I’ve tried to live by those values in my own work -- diving into long-form historical studies, covering contemporary science or popular culture, building web platforms -- and the Gov Lab has been conceived in very much the same spirit.