Digital Backyards: Exploring Alternatives to Platform Capitalism

Are there any alternatives to increasingly monopolized data infrastructures as cultivated by Google and Facebook? It is hard to imagine, but there are. The resources for such alternatives lie dormant in Europe’s diversity itself: tinker garages, corporate hotbeds, grassroots hubs, institutional labs, hacker bedrooms, editorial outposts etc. In those digital backyards innovators have been silently pursuing their work. Now they come together from all over Europe to explore synergies and common interests.

The conference is partitioned into a semi-open „Networking Lounge“ and „Public Talks“ that are accessible to a broad audience.

„Networking Lounge“ | October 18th + 19th | with registration

The barcamp-style „Networking Lounge“ takes place on October 18th and 19th from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Journalists, activists, bloggers, researchers, entrepreneurs, cultural workers and programmers define their own issues and questions.

Have a look at the experts:

When you roll over the photo with your mouse, the name of the respective expert pops up. When you click on the photo, you see a larger version of the image and find the name linked up to the profile of the respective expert.

„Public Talks“ | October 20th | free admission

On October 20th a curated program of „Public Talks“ (9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.) sheds light on best practise cases of alternative network and data cultures: multilingual aggregator platforms, mesh networks and other seminal forms of decentralized networking and data governance. What is their potential for reforms in the sphere of digital publishing and the public sphere in general? This is one of the major issues of the lectures and panels. For the program, check out the right sidebar.

Now, have a look at the experts:

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When you roll over the photo with your mouse, the name of the respective expert pops up. When you click on the photo, you see a larger version of the image and find the name linked up to the profile of the respective expert.

The mission of the conference initiator

How can the internet be used to foster a thinking „outside of the box“? How can it bring people together across boundaries? Those questions lead Berliner Gazette to analyze groundbreaking features of the Internet and to test them in practice. Against this backdrop the nonprofit and nonpartisan association of journalists, researchers, artists and programmers weaves its social networks – offline and online, locally and globally.

In 1999 we began to publish berlinergazette.de in German under a Creative Commons-License – with more than 700 contributors from all over the world. For thrirteen years now we also organize conferences, seminars, workshops, edit books, etc. „Digital Backyards“ is a kick off event for a series of meetings. Ideas will be honed and tested for application.

Finally, have a look at the conference team:

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