Cowork the Vote: Share Your Election-Day Stories

It’s Election Day in these United States, and our more-than-five-dozen coworking spaces know it. Some have helped prepare, hosting and organizing open-source crowdsource election-monitoring tools. Others are hosting results-watching parties, offering incentives to visitors who have voted, or simply opening for business today.

Launchpad Coworking's mashup of the Obama campaign logo with Coworking

Williamsburg Coworking, in a Jelly session at the “Change You Want to See” gallery in Brooklyn, New York, hosted a coding party last month, as blogged here, to foster development of the “Vote Report” project mashing up Twitter and Google Maps and creating mobile and web applications to support community-based reporting of election-day problems. They invited other Coworking spaces to be part of a nationwide day of coding parties October 24th.
fervent coders at Williamsburg Coworking
BLANKSPACES in Los Angeles, California is not just hosting a party tonight to watch the returns come in (7-9 PM), it is offering “Free WiFi and a seat at the WorkBar” when you show your “I voted” sticker throughout the day.
The People’s Republic of Berkeley Coworking hosted a discussion of the myriad local and state ballot propositions on Sunday.
CubeSpace in Portland, Oregon is hosting regular “knitting night” as well as the Ruby Brigade this evening; either could be related to the election or to revolutions in coding, but the connection isn’t obvious.
Houston’s Caroline Collective hosted a book-signing Saturday for “One Nation Under Blog,” looking at the intersection of Web 2.0 and politics. The space was slated to host a viewing party for the final Presidential debate, but foul weather intervened.
Florida’s second Coworking community, CollabOrlando opened yesterday, in Orlando, Florida.
New Work City, which also just opened yesterday, is planning a results-viewing event, although not necessarily in the space (as of last report).
Julie Gomoll at Launchpad Coworking in Austin, Texas, while not yet open, has blogged about the connection between the citizen-driven democracy encapsulated in the Obama/Biden campaign and coworking. (she also invited President Obama to come by the space anytime he likes).
Seattleites can visit Office Nomads for an election-night viewing party tonight after hours, and bring a cupcake and candle if they like to celebrate the space’s recent first birthday.

As I help get out the vote around Philadelphia today, I’ll be stopping by Independents’ Hall to see if anything democracyesque is happening there. What’s your space doing (other than giving paid staff time off to vote, as required by law)? Are your members engaged in the political process? Please add your stories in the comments. Democracy Begins at Work.

Eclau: Opening a Coworking Space in Lausanne, Switzerland

I’m thrilled to announce that we are currently moving into our new coworking space, Eclau, in Lausanne, Switzerland. I’m Stephanie Booth, by the way. Here’s a post (in French) with some photos of today’s work. We have a wiki where I’m trying to get the other members to contribute too ;-).

The space will be opening next week (we’re getting the keys on Monday and then making a big hole in a wall, between two rooms).

We offer 3 types of membership:

Fixed: members have their own desk, 300 CHF/month (250 when paying six months in advance)
“Floating” (“Flying” in French, but it doesn’t translate well): members don’t have their own desk but use the common spaces, 150 CHF/month
“Nomad”: like “Floating”, but members can’t leave anything in the space, 100 CHF/month

There are currently 3 fixed members and 3 floating members signed up, plus myself, for a 112 m2 surface. We will be walling off part of the space in December to create a meeting room.

If ever you’re in Lausanne, please let us know (Twitter @eclau or just contact me) and drop in!

Coworking in Media PA!

Hello, I am Lisa Thompson.

A couple of you know me; I am starting a coworking facility in Media PA. Currently the stage is set with a location that I am applying for right near the courthouse. I don’t have it yet, but the landlord is very excited by the project so I expect some leeway there. With the proximity to the courthouse, I expect the majority of my clientèle to be lawyers needing either meeting space or those from out of town. The space is small to start out but there is room to grow. I will announce more as it happens!

Coworking call for help: Need your programming support on the 24th!

In the past week, I have been working with a group of highly motivated programmers and designers and activists that are looking to solve some of the connecting issues that surround Election Day – to ensure that the Democratic Process is not “overturned”. But, to make this happen – we need some programming help. And for that, we have an announcement.

Join web developers, designers, and activists this Friday, October 24th for a nationwide day-long Jam Session to build out a groundbreaking new project called Twitter Vote Report. Inspired by a blog post by techPresident writers Allison Fine and Nancy Scola, volunteers across the country are moving quickly to build a decentralized election monitoring system that will allow voters to use text messages to report incidents of voter suppression, long lines, broken machines, and other disruptions on election day. The Twitter Vote Report site will aggregate the reporting data, represent it in real-time on a dynamic web map, and notify voters, election monitoring groups, and the media, facilitating rapid response by poll workers and activists.

We’re partnering with the Election Protection Coalition, Rock the Vote, League of Young Voters, NPR, and a host of other groups to make this happen. You can help! Here’s how: 1. Host or attend a jam session on Friday – be sure to list it on the VoteReport wiki, or 2. Join us from the comfort of your home via IRC freenode channel #VoteReport, or 3. If you’re in NY, stop by The Change You Want To See Gallery from 11am to 6pm on Friday to work with the lead development team.

More info below!

Vote Report Project Uses Twitter to Monitor US Elections

Programmers, Designers, and Activists Team Up at Nationwide Parties Friday to Build System for Real-Time Reporting of Voter Suppression Incidents

WHAT: Volunteer programmers, designers and activists across the country will coordinate in online chat rooms and at real-world coding parties on Friday to build Twitter Vote Report, a groundbreaking web election monitoring system to fight voter suppression and disruption efforts. Anyone with a Twitter.com account will be able to use their cell phones or computers to send a message notifying voters, election monitors, and the media of problems around the country. A web map will display incidents in real-time. There are three ways to participate on Friday: 1. Join us at the coding jam session headquarters at The Change You Want To See Gallery in Brooklyn, NY, 2. Host your own coding jam session, 3. Join us in IRC freenode channel #VoteReport.

WHEN: Friday, November 24th, 11am – 6pm EST.

WHERE: Headquartered at “Brooklyn Coworking” in The Change You Want To See Gallery, 84 Havemeyer St, Brooklyn NY 11211. Additional locations across the country listed here: http://wiki.votereport.us/Votereport%20Jam%20Session

BACKGROUND INFO: On election day millions of Americans will go to over 200,000 distinct voting locations and using different systems and machinery to vote. Some voters will have a terrific experiences, and others will experience the same problems we have been hearing about for years – long lines, broken machines, inaccurate voting rolls, and some that we haven’t heard about before. Using Twitter.com and 1-866-Our-Vote Hotline, voters will have a new way to share these experiences with one another and ensure that the media and watchdog groups are aware of any problems.

From questions like “where do I vote” or “how do I make sure that my rights are being upheld,” Twitter Voter Report augments these efforts by providing a new way for voters to send text messages (aka tweets) via cellphones or computers which will be aggregated and mapped so that everyone can see the Nation’s voting problems in real-time.

A Nationwide web map will display pins identifying every zip code where Americans are waiting over 30 minutes to vote or indicating those election districts where the voting machines are not working. Collectively we will inform each other when the lines are too long and ensure that media and watchdog groups know when and where problems exist.

For more information:

Twitter Vote Report Wiki – http://wiki.votereport.us

Friday Jam Session info – http://wiki.votereport.us/Votereport%20Jam%20Session

Partners:
866-OUR-VOTE (The Election Protection Coalition)
Common Cause
Credo Mobile
Demos
League of Young Voters
Mobilize.org
National Public Radio
Network Redux
Not An Alternative
Open Resource Group
Rock the Vote
techPresident/Personal Democracy Forum
Voter Suppression Wiki
Women Donors Network

###

Coworking + Work at Jelly + Twitter = Saving US Democracy

well, here comes the magic! i hope you can join us this friday, Nov 24 We have an extra special Work at Jelly in store for you at Williamsburg Coworking @ The Change You Want to See Gallery in Brooklyn this Friday!

At the typical Jelly, everyone brings their own work to do. For this Jelly, however, we’re inviting you to participate in the first-ever Jelly Jam Session! Geeks, activists and designers from up and down the east coast will convene to build a distributive election monitoring system based on twitter for http://VoteReport.us, and we would love for you to chip in and help!

Press Release – http://bit.ly/1piqeY

So bring your laptop and something to do, or come by to help build VoteReport! And if you can’t make it to Jelly, please feel free to stop by Williamsburg Coworking’s Happier Hour where we will say good bye to our friend, coworker and fellow jellist, Joshua Heller.

Check out the details here: http://wiki.workatjelly.com/JellyBrooklyn2008-10-24

If you can’t make it to Brooklyn, feel free to host your own or join us in the IRC freenode channel #VoteReport.

Doors open at 9:30am, and the going away party begins at 6pmish. Bring a laptop and tell a friend!

== Location & Directions ==

* The Change You Want to See – 84 Havemeyer Street, storefront – Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY 11211
* Subway: -L- to Bedford, -J- to Marcy, or -G- to Metropolitan.

== RSVP ==

http://wiki.workatjelly.com/JellyBrooklyn2008-10-24
(password: j311y …That’s “j”, three, one, one “y”)

New Work City has a home!

Hey all! We’ve been very quiet for some time with a number of initiatives going on here and there – but one thing that I am happy to pass along has been the completion of a new coworking space for New York City.

Signed Letter of Agreement for NWC — NWC Signed Letter of Agreement

New Work City – a name created by the coworking community and efforts spearheaded by Tony – has finally signed for a space in New York at 200 Varick (right on top of the the Houston Street station on the 1 line).

Taking it straight from the horse’s mouth on the NWC tumblr blog:

That’s right! After a long year of figuring out the business model, building interest, and looking at space after space, we’ve finally arrived at 200 Varick Street!

We’ll be sharing the space with element^n, who have graciously given us a very flexible deal and a chance to get on our feet.

The building has lots of other young, creative companies in it, and will be a great environment. The entrance, hallways, and elevator have all been recently renovated and look great (there’s even an LCD screen in the elevator!).

The neighborhood is great, with tons of restaurants, cafes, bars, and little parks to explore. Adjacent to 200 Varick is SOB’s, a famous latin dance club. On the other side, Chipotle. The cafe downstairs, attached to the entrance, is Deb’s. It pumps in salsa music nonstop and has wifi.

We’ll be getting the first set of keys this week, and will be able to do tours in the next couple of days, but our official occupation date will be November 1st. There’s a whole lot to be done between now and then, including a trip to Ikea, signing up the first members, and, of course, a launch party.

Check out the rest of the post at the new blog: http://nwc.tumblr.com/

Smart Worker

I recently read an article about a man who was working from Indy Hall in Philadelphia for a company in Vancouver. Teleworking is not new these days and even working for a company located elsewhere on the globe isn’t that earth shattering with the technology for communicating 24/7. What was brilliant about this man’s story was that he had figured out how to get his corporation to pay the $275/month membership fee for him to work their full time. It’s a win-win for the corporation and the employee. Let’s do the math:

A corporation typically pays for about

200 sq. ft. for each employee – cubicle + hallway + breakroom + cafeteria + restroom + dead space like lobbies.
$4.00/sq. ft (minimum/month) – Rent + taxes + utilities
200 sq. ft. * $4.00 = $800/month per employee
$800/month per employee – $275/cost of employee working in coworking space = $525/month savings

Now a company that employs 1000 people, if they had just half of the space in corporate office and let their workforce telecommute 50% of the time they would save $262,500/month ($525 * 500 employees) and $3,150,000/year. $3 million per year is not small potatoes and a great way to cut back.

The employee also saves money on gas But more importantly this employee benefits in intangibles such as lack of commute stress, living where his spouse needs to for her career, the community created in a coworking environment, and as a result is happier and more productive for his company. We would all benefit from more people using coworking spaces (checkout a list of my favorites). Of course, as the owner of Cubes&Crayons that’s my favorite for coworkers with and without kids. I love it when everyone wins!

BizDevHouse: Oakland, CA

Open House tomorrow

grand opening in 2 weeks

Did the Mayor declare this coworking week in Oakland or something while I was outta town? East Bay spaces in general and Oakland spaces in particular seem to be proliferating all of a sudden.

There’s not just Derby Creek Coworking Cooperative on Telegraph Ave. in North Oakland at the Berkeley border fresh on the scene (where this past Monday’s orientation meeting featuring a Concord coworking space creator and a Berkeley Coworking founder is a topic for another post). It’s much more than the meeting last night at a co-creative incubator-esque social-venture shared space that’s been together since 2003 just two blocks from my home, NextNow Collaboratory. What popped up today on my radar is another new coworking space in Oaktown.

BizDevHouse is in the lower Oakland hills/Glenview area, in what looks like a house (a la Cambridge’s BetaHouse) a block off of the neighborhood’s community-oriented commercial strip (Park Street), close to the Montclair neighborhood and MacArthur bus corridor (with frequent 24-hour AC Transit trans-bay service to San Francisco) and 580/13 freeways, one exit up from Grand/Lakeshore business district and Lake Merritt/downtown, near Piedmont and the Parkway Speakeasy theatre with sofas, and also close to the Dimond District and upper Fruitvale neighborhoods. A couple of miles from the BART subway, with a little hill-climbing involved; a similar trek from Berkeley or the downtown Oakland/Oaksterdam, Piedmont, or Rockridge neighborhoods.

One of the BizDevHouse workspaces (photos on CL)

I first learned of BizDevHouse via a MeetUp alert this morning. It officially opens September 2 (please remove all playa dust before bringing in your laptop), and seems to feature iPhone app developers and seeks Mac developers and “creative tech folks” in general. Another listing adds marketing people to the list, promising a “great place for people who can work virtually but understand the value of creative collaboration.”

BizDevHouse sites

BizDevHouse WordPress blog featuring just the obligatory “Hello, World” post so far: http://www.bizdevhouse.com/

BizDevHouse MeetUp group (featuring tomorrow’s open house):
http://entrepreneur.meetup.com/2011/

Open House upcoming.org event listing:
http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/1024271/
Tomorrow (Thurs.), 4-8 PM

Craig’s List ad, including photos:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/off/802515133.html

I’m looking forward to seeing the space and meeting the people behind it. Based on certain clues embedded in the sites linked above, I think I already know some of ’em.

Raines Cohen, Coworking Coach
Planning for Sustainable Communities (Berkeley, CA)

Quick update from Cowo Milano, Italy.

Hi everybody! As summer steps in, coworkers seem to step out, here in Milano…

In fact, even if we are full booked at the moment (5 desks), we haven’t had much attendance in the office these past weeks, and I wonder if the season has something to do with it.

Furthermore, August is a month rather “slow” here in Italy (most companies/offices/stores close at least two weeks), so these days we are checking who’ll be around and who won’t for the rest of the summer.

To our pleasure, we have received a one-day visit from a blog-friend and are expecting someone from the US too (are you anywhere near here, Susan?).

Besides attendance and visits, we have improved the cowo site (blog, that is) with a list of coworking spaces in Europe and the rest of the world – thanks also to the excellent list provided in the cw wiki – along with few more “coworking resources” such as links to cw videos from Youtube and the wiki, cw photos from Flickr, cw blogs from Technorati… we are open to suggestions and of course ready to include your site, if you like. (Just leave a comment or write to me- max(at)monkeybusinessmilano.it).

Last but not least, we are doing a networking effort with a linkedin group we called “friends of cowo-coworking” which counts, at the moment, 43 members from many countries.

The feeling we have is that coworking is taking its course, and we try to go along with it – developing it but also understanding it… it’s good to see people settling down in your place and feeling good about it, we consider ourselves lucky to have such little community, what we mean to do right now is to keep providing such a service and aventually find ways of imrpoving it, but without any rush.

I’d like to get into deeper considerations about cw, but I don’t feel ready yet, cowo is only 3 mos. old…

So, thank you for reading this, and ciao from Milano!

Introducing GiraffeLabs, Seattle

We’re entering out second month at GiraffeLabs in the Pioneer Square neighborhood of Seattle. GiraffeLabs is a relaxed space where you can come to work, talk and play. We seek to encourage creativity by surrounding ourselves with creative people. We’re geeks, artists, engineers, makers, musicians, and computer scientists.

GiraffeLabs also plays host to Saturday House (on saturday’s of course) and next Thursday, June 5th we’ll be having a little bit of an open house to coincide with First Thursdays Open Art Studios in our building (well we are at 620 Alaskan, and the art studios are in 619 Western, but it is really one building with 2 entries.)

So come on down and visit with us on thursday evening. I’m sure well be there from around 6 to 8 at least.

FYI, we don’t have regular office hours yet.