POSITIVE NETT-WORKS ASSOCIATION

Positive Nett-Works is a Germany based non-profit association of adventurous educators, futurists, artists and social entrepreneurs specialising in creating participatory public spaces on cultures, futures and co-shaping sustainable societies.

*german "nett" ['net'] = nice

Sustainability is an important message to share with the public. "Making people think" however, appears to be one of the hardest challenges for advancing societies. Standard PR strategies are usually boring and closed. They do not inspire for participation. Our strategy is to create playful public environments that often raise astounishment, and appeal very much to participants, audiences, youth and media.

During the World Exposition expo2000 in Hannover, Germany, Positive Nett-Works developed and hosted the future-raft, - a swimming symbol for a positive future, made of the breaking down industrial era's junk, serving as platform for the journey towards a positive future.

Amazingly, youth, administration, politicians, NGOs and companies supported it over a 5-year process. "What is this all this about", bewildered visitors would ask when they entered the wobbly, womb-like structure, - "We are shaping the future! Welcome to a future laboratory, conferencing space and party spot, all in one! We are collecting and discussing best practice projects from all over the world, while developing new ideas with... you. Have a seat!"

Here is a short Article on the Future-raft Adventure, Part 1

TOUR 21 (May-June 2002)

The German minister for the environment, Juergen Trittin, granted his patronage for a 300km waterway journey with youth crews for promoting the 2002 World Sustainability Summit in Johannesburg. On its arrival in Berlin, the "Swimming Future Classroom" was to serve as a public networking hub for civil society and schools.

Unfortunately, this vision, and 875 tires, fell victim to a criminal fire attack only two weeks before take-off. However, we built a downsized raft on the riverbanks and succesfully completed the tour!

Positive Nett-Works is building on many experiences gained from this project, and is transferring their experiences to internet environments also.

An article about the exciting Tour21 is to appear soon as Part2 of the Future-raft Adventure.

There is LOTS to SEE about the ACTION!

We undertook a Treasure Hunt for Positive Projects. It turned out so successful that we included it as a Good Practice Project in our magical projects for SCHOOL USE. We have two parts of it:

- the Description of Tour21 Treasure Mapping Adventure

- the Full Description and Guide to Preparing and Running it, and Follow-up Activities such as Local Positive News Editions, Radio- and TV-Shows. This is included in our Projects & Action Manual

DON'T MISS IT!

Since the year 2000, interdisciplinary Round Table Dialogues have played a central role in PNW events. Many inspiring people have met with youth from all over the world to discuss promising steps towards a common positive future.

Among them were Jakob von Uexkuell (founder of the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the Alternative Nobel Prize), Heiner Benking (independent futurist and curator of the Global Change Exposition), Farah Lenser (developer of avantgarde dialogue formats), Christian Ströbele (MOP Germany, civil liberty advocate), Merete Mattern (sustainable urbanism visionary), Jean Yves Nossin (EU culture manager), Bri Lörcher (Living Values educational project), Sudeesh Didi (BKWSU), and many more.

In 2003, PNW organized interdisciplinary Round Tables at the German Ecumenic Church Day (Education, Traditions and Ethics), German Week of Sustainability (Alternative Futures), European Forum for Education (New Worldviews and Sustainability Education), Netdays Europe (Co-Laboratories, LearnScapes, Netizenship, Online Democracy), Unifying Aspects of Cultures Congress in Vienna (Cultures and International Cooperation).

We are applying the the OpenForum/OpenSpace approach & Magic Round Table format (Farah Lenser and Heiner Benking). To learn more about it, follow the link to "Re-inventing democracy".

http://open-forum.de

On occasion of the expansion of the European Union, JOY designed a 10m carpet puzzle, involving the public in unifying the European Union. Many politicians and citizens were more than surprised of Europe's dimensions and a lot of 'unknown territories'.

Uniting Europe truly required cooperation, and often it was the children that offered the solutions! Everybody learned a lot and enjoyed it maybe even more. Thousands of families will remember this unique experience.

http://europateppich.de

The World Future School Online LearnScape is an approach to creating a global collective public space to visualise the worldwide sustainability movement, representing the broad scope of pacemaking sustainability networks and empowering youth for self-guided learning and participation in democratic changemaking.

There is a great wealth of sustainability good practice and sound strategies for responsible governance available around the world. Many are well documented on the internet, but how find it? For the vast majority of society, including youth, teachers and learners, they are impossible to find, understand or apply. And how bear with the databases, how remember, how form an orientation and contextual overview of the various interdependent issues involved in sustainability?

There exist some good teaching resources for sustainability education, but most are artificial, theme specific, theoretic, closed, "for school-use only" and offer no links and bridges to empowerment after classroom activities. To join in change-making, youth need an overview and orientation in globalisation and sustainability, a promising aim, an overview of pacemaking organisations, allies and actors, oppportunities for joining the tidal wave of change-making, know-how for initiating projecteering and for participation in effective democratic expression, - short: an overview of the Sustainability Movement.

The World Future School project is an approach for establishing this missing link. Instead of using confusing hierarchic database tables for arranging complex content and context, the WFS transfers our common orientation experience from the real world (remember your last hike in a LandScape), and uses illustrated LearnScapes. An example: imagine a camp full of real youth and sustainability organisations, with round table dialogues, an exposition ground for sustainability solutions and applications, a worldwide information cinema of online magazines, a net-(cit)izenship hub for online petitions, stages for youth leaders and recognized advocates for sustainability, seminars on ways of learning and healing in different cultures, a building site for new worldviews and future scenarios, - and everywhere, you can participatory, add your ideas and knowhow. Now transfer this to virtual space, like a virtual reality game, - this is the WFS. It is a fantasy virtual world, but all its actors, visitors and features do exist and operate in different locations involving real people all over the planet.

Now further imagine that this is arranged in education apllicable format, accompanied with a universe of best practice sustainability curricula, specific lesson plans, school and youth projects. And whenever students realize a project in their school, they can present it on the respective stage in the WFS. The effect of their work is multiplied, as it automatically serves as learning resource for their global peers. This way, the students become each others' teachers. Wouldn't this make a great leanring resource for school application?!

The WFS is now in its final groundbreaking stage. Organisations and individuals are invited top connect for sharing their knowhow with the young generation, for representation and integration in the WFS LearnScapes. Different forums will nurture networking for volunteerships, development cooperation, Fair Trade and Fair Travel. Especially for youth, there are many opportunities for participation: in working as online volunteers, editors and for effectively changing their schools by applying WFS features and projects.

http://www.worldfutureschool.org

PNYV Online Magazine for Youth Leadership & Changemaking is the first activated element of the World Future School project.

PNYV is a trans-national online magazine network, designed for nurturing youth leadership and changemaking.

PNYV gives Sustainability a Living Face, a Living Voice, and Living Hands. PNYV empowers youth to join the worldwide sustainability movement. PNYV makes tidal wave knowledge and knowhow on creating sustainable societies easily available, for and by youth.

PNYV is a unique solution for easily introducing and permanently installing full spectrum sustainability learning in schools.

PNYV is an outstanding participatory instrument that encourages youth and NGOs to start Positive News Boards, launch Local Editions, Radio or TV Shows! The PNYV server provides the necessary tools free for launching professional online magazines and global collaboration.

PNYV is an Official Project of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development 2005-2014 and is created in partnership with pacemaking organisations and institutions around the world.