SHARE New York
The following is a guest post by Tripper Alba Seoane. She recently attended SHARE New York, a collaboration between Shareable Magazine and Parsons Desis Lab, focused on giving participants the tools, knowledge and connections to create a more affordable, sustainable future within a new economy that thrives on sharing.
These are turbulent times. As we see countries in every continent engulfed by social and economical turmoil, the answer to whether our modus operandi are becoming obsolete finds itself answered by the masses. Jobs are scarce, and the cost of education presses more and more young graduates to move back in with their folks, crushed by the shadow of the loans they'll be paying for the next two decades, thereby contributing to an increasingly stagnant financial system.But, what else can they do? Their options, in fact, are as abundant as their willingness to be imaginative. This is the lesson that Share NY tried to impart to the thriving community that gathered at the event - born from the collaboration of Shareable Magazine and Parsons Desis Lab - through a number of lectures, Q&A's, and group activities designed to illustrate how essential it has become to share and collaborate in the creation of new ideas geared to solve any and all current issues a community might be facing.
The key is thinking simple and sustainable. Why buy something that was made across the world for pennies at a final price inflated by ever-multiplying middle-men when you can get it locally, and put money back into the region's economy while you're at it? With tools and resources equally convenient and unprecedented at hand, it is our duty to reinvent the way we consume; bartering, lending, and swapping goods and services, or more simply put, collaborative consumption, is a growing trend boosted by social media and peer to peer sharing.
The event proved to be extremely informative and inspiring; with talks by funders of some exemplary start-ups, co-ops, and non-profits. It was an absolute success that is sure to spread to more cities, and eventually come back to the city that saw its start. For more information on upcoming events and links to informative articles, visit the Share NY resources page.
Thank you to our guest post contributor and Tripping international Board of Interns member, Alba Seoane. A big thank you to our friends at Shareable for putting on an amazing event!