Walks on Air
A platform of discussion for social actions on the world
Mission
Movements are founded here. Small steps that start from a forum of discussion, then acted upon in the real world with great consequence. New communities rise up out of overlapping societies, we are brought together, we have become part of it.
“Walks on air” is a social experiment to shift from indifference and inaction, to societies that are aware, dynamic, and organized.
This platform is a creative space for taking your ideas, projects, and proposals featured on this online platform and turning it into something that happens between communities, between societies, between all of us.
The mission of this platform is to use the online space to brainstorm and connect, that comes first. Then we hope that new concepts for real social connection will materialize. The result is transformation, from theory into action. We see each other in the streets, in the parks, in neighborhoods, in town squares, anywhere in the outside world, anywhere but stuck on an online forum unfulfilled.
The aim is to establish original ways of grouping together into little movements, little “walks on air”. We build trust and form relationships with others. We identify problems that matter to us, goals to achieve, issues that need to be addressed, or simply a reason to celebrate who we are. We do it better together in groups, as members of all kinds of communities, we find each other here, we find ourselves, and that is what this platform creates space for.
I will say that this is an experiment. It is an experiment of taking what is online and putting it into practice in the real world. Let this be a forum about trying to go beyond forums and doing society rather than spectating.
This space is wide open for you to think through what matters most to you. If you have a good idea of how to bring people together to walk for a cause, for a purpose, or for fun, well then you are here for a good reason. I know you will find at least one other person who thinks your idea is stellar. Where there is two there is four, sixteen, 64, and the like.
I have no idea how creative you can be, but I have the utmost respect for you for having the courage to collaborate on something that is meaningful to you and that you are passionate about.
It is an online community we are going to create, and if we do not do that responsibly, we never will make it out our front door. We carry out little movements one at a time, on a scale that is appropriate.
Keep in mind the following recommendations that are meant to provide some guidance to an otherwise wide open platform where rules are meant to be broken. This space is for you to define.
We believe that relationships should precede issues — that efforts for change must begin by building trust, otherwise they will remain fragile and temporary.
We believe in stories, not ideology, to identify issues. The issues we work on come out of small-group gatherings called “Walks on air”, where people share their stories about issues they’d like to see changed and have energy to work on. We are driven by the testimony of concrete experience, not pre-conceived ideology.
We believe the best solutions to a problem come from the people affected by that problem. We are bottom-up, not top-down.
We believe in the potential of pre-existing civic organizations and religious associations. By organizing around the social ties that are already formed, we can mobilize quickly for new ways of connecting to each other, to our communities, and to our societies. These interconnections offer an extraordinary possibility to champion people’s development as leaders, and sustain and inspire followings of people already committed to action.
We believe it is not enough merely to raise awareness about a problem. We must identify solutions, which should be pragmatic and achievable.
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These forums will have to regulate themselves, with only a little nudge occasionally to get things back on track. Please keep our platform clean and productive, everyone who participates is a steward of this ecosytem. More importantly than the world wide web, is the quality of meeting others in outside spaces for actions of various kinds. Safety is paramount and must be ensured by every single person who participates here.
At its conception, there was a dream that the Internet could challenge injustice, establish equality, and allow democracy to thrive. The world wide web has proven to be disappointing in its positive social effects. We have another chance to unlock the potential of our vast intricate social networks. We have the possibility of getting people outside in the town square where democracy happens. We have the possibility again to use the Internet as an instrument for social good.
May you find solace in the dreams of others and join them in the real progress we are going to make together. When we protect our people with the strength of love, and we perfect our places with the building blocks of social hope, we can now see clearly that we have an opportunity to shape our world.
With that, I direct you below to a first round of places for ‘walks on air’.
All the best to you and yours,
Peter L Mangan
…For now, the forums for discussion are organized by country (“France walks on air…” “Mexico walks on air…”). It will become more and more specific as we imagine new societies to organize around, and that we will go on to realize.
…The link for each country listed below opens up into a space for discussion. You can post and respond with your own ideas for improving your communities. You are a part of something way bigger!
Walks on air by country:
The United States walks on air…
[Coming Soon: Many more sites/Many more places/Many more societies.]
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Appendix: How to search for the content of discussions on each page:
Click the three dots in the right upper part of the web browser, and go down till you see the option, “Find…” Click it or press “Ctrl+F”. Enter the text you want to search for with or without hashtags.
See the example below:
WalkTalkNow 