Open Knowledge Festival – Helsinki, 18-22 September 2012

There is another Open Knowledge event coming up — 18-22 September 2012 in Helsinki — and I’m a proud member of the advisory board and guest programme planner for a stream on Open Design / Hardware / Manufacturing & Making.

This stream covers Open Design in all its various facets (from design as a blueprint to design as process to design as an artefact) and applications (product design, graphic design, fashion design, service design, interior design, architecture, hardware …). Topics such as Open Hardware, Open Fabrication and Manufacturing, and Making in general are also covered by this stream.

The Open Design / Hardware / Manufacturing stream will showcase contemporary research and practice in this emerging field and address some of the greatest challenges in the area.

The four-day stream will bring together researchers and practitioners interested in open design, hardware and manufacturing under the auspices of the Open Knowledge Foundation’s “Open Design Working Group”.

The stream will include keynotes, presentations, panels and discussion, practical hands-on activities and topic-focused workshops, and an exhibition with open design / hardware / manufacturing artefacts.

We call for 500 word abstracts for contributions, accompanied by 1 visual element if appropriate.

Submissions are sought on (but not limited to) these topics
Practices of sharing designs and design experience
Practices of designing collaboratively/collectively
Codifying skills / methods / processes / products
Legal frameworks for open design / hardware / manufacturing
Structural elements/modules of a global making infrastructure
The design / hardware / manufacturing Commons
Creating and sustaining local communities in a global environment
New ecosystems of fabrication (Maker movement, Manufacturing 2.0, third industrial revolution, etc.)
Impact of open knowledge on industry
Open design / hardware / manufacturing and education
Women in open design / hardware / manufacturing

Types of contributions
Products and exhibits (we want to have an open design / hardware / manufacturing exhibition)
Hands-on workshops (as part of the stream we wish to offer a series of half-day opportunities to actually make stuff)
Analytical contributions (think of talks and presentations)
Opinions (we could imagine to have some controversial discussions once a day)
Working groups (we have some break out rooms for smaller groups to work on a question or topic)

Submission deadline is June 1st, 2012, notification of acceptance: June 20th, 2012.