I challenge you to do organizational Mashups

Transdisciplinarity connotes a research strategy that crosses many disciplinary boundaries to create a holistic approach. It applies to research efforts focused on problems that cross the boundaries of two or more disciplines, such as research on effective information systems for biomedical research (see bioinformatics), and can refer to concepts or methods that were originally developed by one discipline, but are now used by several others, such as ethnography, a field research method originally developed in anthropology but now widely used by other disciplines.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transdisciplinarity

A challenge from Ty Hallock

I challenge you...

to make an effort to connect.  To connect different groups in a way that allows an exchange of ideas, people and business.   Let me explain.  If you have 2 groups, both very well thought of, lets say a group of graphic designers and a group of scientists.  Let's say over 6 months you have the groups meet several times.  Facilitated correctly and a number of things could come out of this, new software being planned, info graphics being developed, marketing campaigns being hatched.  On one side of the spectrum is a group with members that only work together and don't intermingle, on the other side there are groups working together interrelated projects and true network effects.  My challenge is for you to move the needle on this spectrum.

Here is my thinking process. Currently I help the Asheville Makers as a strategic advisor.  TopFloor Coworking is the current home of Asheville Makers and I will occasionally attend a board meeting to make a couple of announcements.  Now just about everyone I know is interested in the Makers.  It's DIY, great for kids and anything that involves creating drones to fly over Asheville (props to Asheville Highschool's John Moody for doing this), and mining for bitcoin (imagine bitcoin farms or mines - thanks Dallas Taylor).  Cool right?  Everyone loves Making and working with the Makers allows you to do what you could only imagine before.  The possibility for all this kind of stuff deserves another blog post (Mojo Coworking 3d printing + Software + Manufacturing? Don't get me started).

Now take the Media Arts Project.  Ursulla Gullow has turned this groups events way up and the groups is rocking every collaboration they do, with multi-media, music, vjing and graphic arts.  Each event is like an art installment.  Media Arts Directory has thousands of Media Artists, web designers, geeks, nerds, meteorologist, etc. (See http://themap.org)

So you have Asheville Makers and you ask the Media Arts Project (whom also has board meetings in TopFloor Coworking) to come together and have an event.  What do you get?  2 communities with 2x people so you have a good amount of folks, a guarantee to meet new people, the organizers can work together and share the work load and it's interesting, you may find some people that haven't come out for a while will want to join.  This is also a bed for projects, ideas and potential economic development potential of combining complementary skill sets together,

I want to connect with you

Environmentalist and Scientist, Entrepreneurs and Game Developers, take any two and mix. And I want to help!  Consider collaborating my groups with your groups.  Four groups I'm active in are Asheville Makers, Startup Product  (see the post here), Creative Facilitators and AVL Unconference.  So let's do Startup Product  + your Group or Asheville Makers + your group, etc.  Let's have a mixer, network, jam on a project, brainstorm or solve the next big problems.  Let's come out of it with something cool; a better woven network.

Update: Startup Product Asheville will have our first event February 26th at Asheville Music Hall.  We are actively seeking other groups that wish to come and be a part of this event.  We've effectively partnered with Lean Startup Meetup and the Asheville Makers so far and look forward to more!