Founders
- Michel BAUWENS
I am 47 (born 21/3/58), married to a Thai national in Chiang Mai, with 2 children in Paris, and 2 children here in Thailand.
After a career as a reference librarian/analyst (USIA, 1981-1990), business information manager (BP Nutrition, 1990-93), editor-in-chief of the digital magazine Wave in Belgium (1993-1994), creator of two dotcoms, respectively active in the field of intranet/extranets (eCom, sold to Alcatel, 1995-96), and interactive marketing (KyberCo, sold to Virtuality, 1997-1998), European Manager of Thought Leadership (USWeb/CKS / MarchFIRST, 1997-98), and eBusiness Strategy Director for Belgacom (Belgium's largest telco, 1999-2002), I started to have serious doubts about the sustainability of the neoliberal model for the political economy. I decided to take a two-year sabbatical for reflection, and eventually moved to the magical city of Chiang Mai,Thailand, to start a new life, with a more balanced pace of life, amidst my Thai wife's extended family. I try to sustain myself through teaching (Payap University, CMU) and to devote time to explore the new social paradigm which I call peer to peer, and holds promise for political and social change. I created the Foundation for P2P Alternatives in order to find similarly minded people worldwide, hoping to contribute to the change that I am trying to analyse and understand.
Creative endeavours: I should mention that I also taught "The Anthropology of Digital Society" at St. Louis/ICHEC in Brussels, co-editing two French-language volumes with the same title; and co-created (scenario, research and interviews) a 3-hour TV documentary with film maker Frank Theys, entitled TechnoCalyps, the metaphysics of technology and the end of man, which will be relaunched in a new version (with which I did not collaborate much this time) in May 2006 in Belgium. In my home country Belgium I am somewhat known as an 'internet guru'; here in my new life, I am again a 'great unknown'.
Spiritually and intellectually, I have moved from a radical materialist position in my youth, to an intense investigation and experimentation with eastern and western psycho-technologies from my mid-twenties to my mid-thirties (a search for enlightement and transcendence), through self-study of the western philosophical tradition later in life. After a crisis of confidence in the existing system during 1997-1998, associated with exhaustion through overwork in my business environment, I decided to reflect more deeply and to attempt to integrate the ideals of my youth (engagement with the left), with the spiritual knowledge gathered during my spiritual search, and my knowledge/experience with the current social and intellectual trends, as well as my engagement in the worlds of business and technology. It gradually dawned on me that the commonality behind the changes we were witnessing, was the peer to peer form, which I set out to study and understand, to the best of my abilities, in dialogue with others.
- Kris ROOSE Look to The Noosphere Website
I am 38 (born 23/09/67), single with one child. I'm based in Brussels Belgium. In (very tiny) Belgium I'm known as a serial entrepreneur, techno geek and media guru. More about me on my blog, photoblog, wiki, linkblog, Emakina and ContactOffice. I define myself better by what I did until today...
1989-1990 Freelance infographist in agencies Paparazzi, Twogether, Groupe G,... / 1991 founded Ex Machina S.P.R.L. Below-the-line studio. / 1992 first interactive kiosks with touch screen and video in belgium (Swatch) / 1993 first digital video TV-Show edited on a Mac broadcasted (Canal +, JAADTOLY) / 1994 first belgian CD-ROM consumer title (Le Mystere Magritte), win several awards / 1995 first ‘non-ISP’ websites online in belgium (SonyMusic, Dupuis, …) / 1996 start producing and presenting the weekly radio-show CyberCafe for Radio 21 / 1997 CyberCafe become a tv-show about technologies on La Deux (R.T.B.F.) / 1998 Split Ex Machina S.P.R.L. in 3 specialized companies. (Ex Machina Interactive Architects S.A., Web Agency - Ex Machina Graphic Design S.P.R.L., below-the-line studio - Ex Nihilo S.A., holding) / 1999 founded ContactOffice Group S.A., (web based groupware) / 2000 founded Ex Machina Television S.P.R.L. (TV and Radio Production) / 2001 Merge Ex Machina Interactive Architects S.A. with Emalaya S.A. to form Emakina S.A. / 2002 Founded Ex Tempore S.P.R.L. / 2003 Launched Emakina France / 2004 start producing and presenting the weekly radio show "Single" broadcasted on PureFM. / 2005 A new company is in its incubation phase. Can't say anything more now.
Today Emakina is the first Web Agency in Belgium. My goal : open more countries and get to European level. ContactOffice is leader in the education market. My goal: grab the global leadership in online groupware. CyberCafe is now over since june 2004. My goal : launch a tech-tv channel.
- James Burke JamesBurke brief description
James Burke (1971) I am based in amsterdam, although travel regularly. Right now i seem to spend most of my time developing software ideas and building communities online and off. My personal blog is Lifesized. I also run a regular geek dinner in Amsterdam called the PussyCatLounge with Tijs. We just started collaborating on some events with BlueAce and Katie of TreasuremyText.
- I studied a BA in Archaeology and International Relations at Boston University , USA. - Worked as a professional baker and chef in restaurants for 6 years. - Moved into digital design. 5 years interactive designer for advertising agencies.
It was amazing to find a like mind in Michel who through his initial writing was able to marry two until then separated parts of my interest: the Integral movement and technology. To mention these two is also a massive reduction of what are huge swathes of subjects. We also recently set up a new integral intiative openintegral.
I bill people under my street/company name, Lifesized.
Up and coming projects: - An online collaboration system (online/offline).(duh...another one) - A feedback system for a large art festival in 2007 (still pitching)
I love giving people a voice and profiling those voices in different ways to create new perspectives, either algorithmically or via elicitation.
I still do commercial clients although i don't really like to take on old school marketing assignments any more as they are: a) often only about "shouting" at people.
I am much more interested in organizations, governments and issue networks needing customized strategy and design solutions with listening and social media in mind. My general software focus is on developing social accounting technologies.