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Pro-Social Hackers
Proactive, pro-social global citizens are
looking to disrupt political, social and capitalist
systems through grassroots initiatives that
focus on community-driven targets. Both
digital communication and localised action come
together, promoting alternative solutions and peer-
led civic values.
Hacking has become a widespread pursuit
used to catalyse agile solutions. A course in
Hacking the Urban Experience is now being
taught at Columbia University in New York, while
Certified Ethical Hacker courses in India are a
popular route to market for young graduates.
A raft of urban and social hacking initiatives are
causing ripples across society for their ingenuity
and gumption:
•
Rolling Jubilee: Launched late 2012, this US
debt relief initiative is an offshoot of Occupy
Wall Street – the 2011 protest that called
for an end to social and economic inequality.
Here, money from donations is used to
purchase distressed consumer debt from
lenders at a discounted price. The debt is then
cancelled. Liberated debtors will hopefully
contribute to the fund, “rolling” the
jubilee forward.
•
Softwalks: Designed by two graduates from
Parsons The New School for Design in
New York, Softwalks transforms scaffolding
– a pervasive feature of the New York
cityscape – into user-friendly public sites
through planters, chairs and counters. The
product, which won business media brand
FastCompany’s 2012 Innovation by Design
Award, transforms eyesores into ‘creative
placemaking’ opportunities that
nurture citizens.
•
Fixperts: Launched in September 2012, social
project Fixperts – created by British founders
James Carrigan (co-founder of self-setting
rubber Sugru) and Daniel Charny (curator
of the Victoria & Albert museum exhibition
Power of Making) – connects designers with
elderly or disabled citizens. Working to solve
their particular challenges, designers fix or
hack products to make them work better,
rather than replacing them. Success stories
– including a repaired wheelchair joystick and
the invention of a sock horn for an elderly
lady – are broadcast on Fixperts.org to inspire
further projects. “It’s interesting to think
what a big impact a designer can make in an
hour and a half on someone else’s life,”
says Carrigan.
•
Casserole: UK social innovation company
FutureGov has launched Casserole, a
community network that allows home cooks
in England to share leftover meals with needy
neighbours. Casserole members detail leftover
meals on the site, describing what the dish
is and how many servings are available, and
nearby residents can then request the food
through the website or by phone or text.
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Redefine
Consumer Lifestyle