Staying Connected: Sharing resources in a time of uncertainty
In just a short period of time the world feels like it turned upside down. Rapid and major changes in the way we live our lives have taken hold, at least for a while. It’s unnerving living in this moment as the globe faces the pandemic of Covid-19. Social distancing, remote work, and self-quarantine are dictating where, how, and with whom we spend our time. We must hold space for these emotions, but CoLab is inviting us to make some room in our hearts for a more hopeful reflection.
As with any considerable disruption, we have a choice on how to assess what is happening in the world. When the CoLab staff moved to working remotely recently we decided to host a daily check-in that we dubbed “Digital Tea Time.” It’s a simple concept: We gather as a team on Zoom, bring our morning drink of choice, and collectively create space for honest and open dialogue. It’s wonderful to see everyone’s faces on a daily basis, and the ideas and resources we’ve shared have been uplifting.
A common theme that has emerged among the chaos is that this is a good time for the world to take a collective breath. Our lives have been forced to become a little quieter, a bit more still. We see this in small ways, like with the waters of Venice or the skies of Los Angeles, which for the first time in possibly centuries, are clear, the pollution that generally clogs our view all but eradicated. We see it in reduced carbon emissions. We see it with the people of Spain and now New York, who each evening collectively applaud their medical and first responders, the delivery people and frontline workers who are keeping us alive and connected to the goods and services that we need. We see the good in people shine through --the volunteers at meals on wheels who feed the elderly, or the many collections that are working to help those in the hospitality and service industries during this time of need. In our daily digital sessions, we take the time to focus on positive moments in this time of great disruption and transformative change, to share books, podcasts, videos, poetry, and music. These forms of art and media serve to reinforce our common values in a time where we can’t see one another other day to day.
We’re pleased to share a selection of those resources we’ve collected with you:
Online:
Adrienne Maree Brown: http://adriennemareebrown.net/2020/03/14/on-rushing-toward-apocalypse-with-aja-taylor/?fbclid=IwAR2XAedVwXNXmq0ZO3mmnPb0pmoTvMidkVR1pi4KTuTY0xJL8GVO1EpPZDk
Coronavirus is our Future: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fqw-9yMV0sI
Presencing Institute: https://medium.com/presencing-institute-blog/eight-emerging-lessons-from-coronavirus-to-climate-action-683c39c10e8b
Algorithmic Justice League: https://www.ajlunited.org
Books:
How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Voung
Lo-TEK Design by Radical Indigenism by Julia Watson
Don’t Call Us Dead – Danez Smith
Design Justice: Community-Led Practices to Build the Worlds We Need - Sasha Costanza-Chock
Podcasts:
The Daily: Gov. Andrew Cuomo: ‘It’s Making Sure We Live Through This.’ on Apple Podcasts
The Daily: Michael Bloomberg’s Not-So-Secret Weapon on Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pierre-pressure-podcast/id1436876802?i=1000469030434
We hope you find the joy and hope that we have in these resources. Feel free to share them in your community. If you have a resource you’d like to share with us, please comment on this message or tag @MITCoLab. We hope during this moment you join us in being intentional in thinking about how the world was, is, and what it could be.
By Jill Kronberg-White