Rebooting the Neighborhood

In the 1950s a local TV station was broadcasting a children's program that was very meaningful to their community... but not to advertisers.

Without funding, that program could not be produced, and families were going to be impacted, their children affected. The neighborhood came together to fundraise and ensure that program was not only produced, but broadcast its meaningful expression of care of children envisioned by its creator.

That TV station was WQED in Pittsburgh, and that program not only located in, but was also called, Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.

Due to growing community interest, production on other meaningful programs began, and as their needs grew, a Corporation for Public Broadcasting was formed.

As a result, WQED shifted its mission from serving advertisers, to serving the surrounding neighborhoods through the programs for, and chosen by, their community. They no longer accepted any advertiser money, but instead looked to fundraising and grants to produce and broadcast their programs. It's because of "Mr. Rogers Neighborhood" that WQED became the first community supported Public Broadcast Station.

PBS.org now has stations all over the US, including our local Rocky Mountain PBS station.

I wonder what "Mr. Rogers Neighborhood" would look like if it something more than a TV program? Can we cooperatively develop and broadcast meaningful programs in Boulder County that help our community become what it can.

Fred's vision for Children was executed as a Television program, but I wonder what our focus should will in our neighborhood, and what technology and infrastructure can support and broadcast the programs of today? What innovations, focused on cooperation in our neighborhood, would we develop?

I want to start a Cooperation for Public Innovation in Boulder that has parallels to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. In order to do so, I need to canvas our neighborhood to find our local helpers. Fred Rogers mother wisely said to him: "Always look for the Helpers". That's ii's next step!

I'd like to start interviewing our neighborhood helpers. Together we can define programs and innovations that provide meaningful expressions of care to our community, specifically for the needs of Boulder County. If we make these programs viral, with a built in ability to be adapted and "broadcast" by other neighborhoods, we'll not only benefit from wider cooperation, but we will create a network of innovation that will grow and empower our helpers in many neighborhoods, and I suspect many nations.

• Who are our Boulder helpers, what organizations are they serving?
• What are the need technical needs of these organizations?
• How can we help empower them and develop a cooperation with similar organizations in other neighborhoods (and other nations)?

If you want to help found this technical program cooperative, and are a helper in Boulder, please schedule some time to sit one on one, and have a cuppa with me on my Boulder Balcony on the Bricks. (It's the only balcony on Pearl Street Mall, right at the intersection of Broadway).

I'd love to hear how you are helping others, understand what's blocking you from providing meaningful services, and imagine how we can create meaningful cooperative programs so you don't have to do it alone.

Thank you for being you, being a helper, and spending your valuable time with me.

You can schedule some time with me at calendly.com/hippiehacker, in person is best, but I can also meet with you via zoom.

Let's reboot the Neighborhood.