Society consists of a web of interconnected communities. A large body of research and practice exists on how to make communities work. Still, the intersection and interaction of multiple communities - the development and use of their inter-communal commons - is ill-understood. Social innovation is the process in which relevant stakeholders jointly develop solutions to wicked problems that none of them can solve on their own. As such, it is a prime example of the need for multiple stakeholder communities collaborating. We propose a process for building a networked community-commons called knowledge weaving. This is a reflective sensemaking effort in which existing communal knowledge sharing practices, initiatives, and resources are tied together into coherent commons-based knowledge fabrics that support intercommunal collaboration, such as for social innovation. We illustrate the approach with the case of the European Social Innovation Week 2015 pre-events.

1. Knowledge Weaving for
Social Innovation
Laying the First Strand
Aldo de Moor
CommunitySense
WWW.COMMUNITYSENSE.NL
12th Prato CIRN Conference,
November 11, 2015

2. The commons
• Communities meet and mingle in “the commons”
• Commons:
– any collectively owned resource held in joint use or
possession to which anyone has access without obtaining
permission of anyone else (Nemeth, 2012).
– active process that is always emerging in a mode of being
and working together for the greater good of the community
(Wong, 2011)
• How to get networks of communities to co-create in
the commons?
2

3. The commons: networked communities
collaborating on social innovation
• Wicked problems: ill-structured, suffer from social
complexity, stakeholders have different views about
what the problem is and what constitutes acceptable
solutions (Conklin, 2006)
• Social innovation: the process in which relevant
stakeholders jointly develop solutions to wicked
problems that none of them can solve on their own
• Networked communities key stakeholders
• The commons is their workspace
• Social innovation catalysts facilitate the process
3

4. “The Tilburg Way”
Regional social innovation ecosystem

5. Tilburg regional network of
social innovation catalysts
Top Institute Social Innovation Government innovation
Excellent residential climate
Positioning the region
Open source knowledge & devt platform
SI stakeholders

6. Need for better knowledge sharing:
catalyzing & connecting conversations

7. Many social innovation catalysts…
7

8. But how to patch them together?
8

9. Knowledge weaving
• An intercommunal sensemaking process
• facilitated by social innovation catalysts
• in which existing community-owned knowledge
sharing practices, initiatives, and resources are tied
together
• into commons-based ‘knowledge fabrics’ that support
intercommunal collaboration
9

10. Example: ESIW pre-events
Pre-events Post-events
?
Cross-overs

11. Pre-event #1 (July 13, 2015)
Pre-events Post-events
?
Cross-overs
• KnowledgeCloud
• Thematic network
• Online platform x physical meetings
• “Connecting across themes” methodology
• Cross-over topics
• Cross-over events

12. ESIW pre-event #1 – generating cross-
overs

13. ESIW pre-event #1 – reflecting upon
cross-overs

14. Thematic cross-overs
14

15. Event-crossover: Water Debate
15
Environmental Café
Site-specific theatre
X
= “Water Debate”
“Artistic community”
“Environmental
community”

16. Pre-events: lessons learnt
Pre-events Post-events
?
Cross-overs
• Cross-over topics
• Cross-over events
• Pre-pre-event (June 1):
many tips for pre, during & post-knowledge sharing
• Pre-event #1 (July 13):
many topics & cross-over ideas
• Input for knowledge groups
• Pre-event #2 (August 26)
• Online dissemination & expansion• KnowledgeCloud
• Thematic network
• Online platform x physical meetings
• “Connecting across themes” methodology

17. Distilling collaboration patterns
• Pre-event long before drumbeat-event
• Generating & reflecting on cross-over topics & events
• Capture cross-over results in commons
• Ensure follow-up triggers from social innovation network
• Widen the circles by “meta-communication” (social media,
mailing lists, personal communication..)
Pre-events Post-events
Cross-overs
• Cross-over topics
• Cross-over events
“Drumbeat-event”
Local knowledge
network broker
Collaboration patterns: reusable socio-technical lessons learnt matching specific collaborative requirements (De Moor, 2013).
Collaboration pattern: pre-event for drumbeat-event

18. Discussion
• Cross-case analysis: scenario-based design and
claims analysis method (Carroll, 2012) plus
collaboration patterns (De Moor, 2013).
• Knowledge weaving: focusing on community
demarcation or jointly enlarging the pie?
• Knowledge weaving by networked communities:
- meso-level commons building/use
- reduction of local governance/legitimacy complexity
• Expanding the metaphor
18