Public Lab Wiki documentation


Barnraising

This is a revision from March 05, 2018 17:22. View all revisions
49 | 766 | | #3655

« Back to Events
Trello Board

About the Barnraising

Barnraisings are the closest thing we have to a Public Lab conference -- but with an emphasis on "doing stuff together." At these events, people come together to exchange field-tested technical knowledge, compare advocacy tactics, and share stories in person. On the first morning of the event, we make our own schedule using an "Open Space Technology" approach; this ensures that the agenda speaks directly to the interests of the people present. Our Code of Conduct applies here as in all other Public Lab spaces. At a Barnraising, people may:

  • Connect with people from other regions who are working on similar issues
  • Exchange advocacy strategies
  • Build and modify tools for collecting data
  • Learn about local environmental health concerns, perhaps through a field trip
  • Improve social ties through in-person collaboration
  • Learn how to collaborate with the broader Public Lab community

Each Fall since 2012 Public Lab has hosted a Gulf Coast Barnraising, also referred to as the Annual Barnraising.

The first Regional Barnraising was held in Summer 2014 in Plymouth, Massachusetts to focus on restoring wetlands on former farmland. Regional Barnraisings have happened every summer since then through partnerships with local groups working on place-specific issues such as monitoring the largest landfill in LA County, assessing petcoke pollution in Southeast Chicago, and timelapse imaging mountain top removal explosions in West Virginia.

Past Barnraisings:

The_Barnraiser_--_Regional_Special_Issue_2016.jpg

Share

Public Lab is open for anyone and will always be free. By signing up you'll join a diverse group of community researchers and tap into a lot of grassroots expertise.

Sign up