The Virtue of Sharing
How Important is Sharing to the Future?
This 'Future Tense' podcast 'The Virtue of Sharing' covered the remarkable nature of sharing, and it's critical importance to a thriving human culture, and our well-being.
Edwina Stott interviewed our friend Tom Llewellyn from Shareable.net, a non-profit "obsessed" with sharing.
So what does sharing have to offer us that is so valuable in this society?
- Faces Overconsumption -- most Americans have a lot of things we don't particularly use very often. This leads to clutter and a shortage of space, plus more time to find and maintain all your things. Sharing takes some of the burden off of you, as you don't have to hold onto everything "just in case."
- Environmental Impact -- all of this stuff has an environmental cost as well. Each item we own or that we use temporarily has an embodied energy from the raw materials, to manufacturing, to transport. If we were able to share items more easily, we wouldn't need as many new items, hence less impact.
- Global Criss of Loneliness -- people around the world are battling social isolation and a longing for connection. Sharing helps people to interact in a meaningful and pleasant way that builds community. In addition when you depend on and assist one another, it creates a real sense of belonging and teamwork.
Benefits of Sharing
The 'Virtue of Sharing' episode also explores open source technologies, and the benefits of collaboration and distributed development in the building of software. For example, OptiKey was developed as an open source project to create visual impairment software.
Another great example of sharing covered in this 'Virtue of Sharing' podcast is in the healthcare world, where when people share doctors notes, and share more about their conditions with their social group and through online blogs, more social support, peace and acceptance, and better treatment outcomes are possible.
The psychology of sharing is also applied to encourage pro-social behaviors, such as donating to and supporting worthwhile causes. Basically, we often want to be recognized by others if we are giving.
Let's Share Communities
For example, let's apply this theory! FIC will gladly share your name in a special blog post thanking everyone who contributes to the Planet Community Crowdfunding Campaign! Help us to create a web series that shares intentional communities who have innovated sharing methods and philosophies in all sorts of ways.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://www.ic.org/virtue-of-sharing/