The Open Book

THE CONTEXT // From makerspaces to data wrangling schools to archives, the digital is being remixed by the open – and it is changing society as we know it. The Open Book <http://theopenbook.org.uk> is an ambitious project to explore these emergent understandings, put together by The Finnish Institute in London as a part of the critical Reaktio series <http://bit.ly/ZvrLn8> with the help of the Open Knowledge Foundation <http://okfn.org> and a global team of contributors and mentors.

THE BOOK // Inspired by the world’s first Open Knowledge Festival <http://okfestival.org> this fall in Helsinki, The Open Book explores the social and technological manifestations of this movement for the first time, featuring over 25 in-depth thought pieces written by pioneers of openness around the world from London to São Paulo - many of whom were suggested by you! Also included is “The Evolution of Open Knowledge” <http://bit.ly/YGwj7N>, the world’s first crowdsourced timeline of openness from 1425 to the current day which we asked you to contribute to <http://bit.ly/122EuLV> earlier this year.

THE CONCLUSIONS // Due to the divisive nature of such an experimental publication, we do not attempt to present any single argument on what ‘open’ is. Instead, we hope The Open Book will serve as a platform for discussion and a launching pad for new ideas about the future of a global open knowledge movement in a time of rapid technological progress.

THE LAUNCH // As many of you already know, The Open Book was officially launched at FutureEverything in Manchester last month: <http://bit.ly/146xxwf> Many thanks to everyone who came and showed their support - it was a great event! Here's a summary by Antti Halonen, Head of Society at the Finnish Institute: <http://bit.ly/ZvqHjj>

GET YOUR COPY // Web: The Open Book is now available online for free as a PDF (CC-BY-SA license) at <http://theopenbook.org.uk>. Print: You can also grab a beautiful print copy at-cost via Amazon: <http://amzn.to/ZcZ2xn>. Please share with colleagues and friends!