From Danah Boyd's talk at Oreilly's Etech. Danah discusses the confluence of global ICT and local culture and the resulting Glocalization that ensues.
She emphasizes that while our networks are global, we still operate within our own cultural context. This makes designing social software difficult as diversity doesn't always promote neighborly relations. Danah suggests, among other things, that firms hire design ethnographers who can sort out the cultural practices of people who will be using their applications.
I think this is a smart idea as it will be difficult for a design shop in San Francisco or New York to manage and understand the social interactions of people who might be from Serbia, Kosovo, the Middle East, or even Northern Ireland. Not only are these interactions occurring between the firm and members from other countries, but between the minglings of the members themselves and this is what Danah is talking about.
She discusses culture and how to build it, online communities, and why social groups form. Other areas of her talk included embedded observation and its problems and limitations. She winds up with additional thoughts on language and balancing issues with economic implications. Her last section addresses how to design social software so that it is sensitive to Glocalization.
Note: This entry is prompted by a post from Fred Wilson, Blogger and VC from the Big Apple.
