News: Michael Edson to Keynote Internet Librarian International

ILI2014-Email-TopWe’re delighted to announce that Smithsonian thought leader and digital strategist Michael Edson has agreed to give the opening keynote at Internet Librarian International in London this October.

The Dark Matter of the Internet

According to Michael, history is defined by periods in which we thought we had a pretty good idea of what was going on, punctuated by brief moments when we realised we really didn’t have a clue – we’re going through one of those moments right now, and it’s all wrapped up with the internet and scale. Like dark matter, the internet has a force, a mass, and a capability that is often unseen or undetected. For today’s organisations, success comes down to how well we harness the dark matter of the internet and the collaborative, social, peer-to-peer and read/write opportunities it presents. Join us to hear Michael’s thoughts on how the internet’s dark matter is the future of our libraries and information environments.

Michael-Edson_140x165At the forefront of digital transformation in the cultural sector, Michael Edson has worked on numerous award-winning projects and has been involved in practically every aspect of technology and New Media for museums. He helped create the Smithsonian’s first blog, Eye Level; the first alternative reality game to take place in a museum, Ghost of a Chance; and he leads the development of the Smithsonian’s first Web and New Media Strategy. Michael serves on the Open Knowledge Foundation’s OpenGLAM advisory board and was a member of the National Endowment for the Arts “Art Works” task force, which mapped the relationship between the arts and the quality of life in American communities. Michael is an O’Reilly Foo Camp veteran and was named a Tech Titan: Person to Watch by Washingtonian magazine.

Photo: Lars Lundqvist, CC-BY