Kevin Atkinson

Kevin Atkinson

Team Culturing Information

last updated: 28. August, 2011

WHO are you?

• Name - Kevin Atkinson

• Location (city, country) - Windsor, Ontario, Canada

• Contact Information (email, phone, Skype) - kevin (dot) atkinson (at) gmail (dot) com, (519) 256-0927

• Introductory Video -

• Resume/CV - Coming soon.... Overall picture: 15 years software development experience, heavy in computer vision, robotics, visual effects, 3D graphics, computational geometry. C++ and Python, mostly.

WHY are you motivated to support/develop this work?

• Do you endorse open source culture?

Absolutely.

• Why are you interested in collaborating with us?

I'm philosophically on board with the project's goals, and moreover I think I can really contribute. The mix of sky-high vision together with hard-nosed practicality is rare in such efforts, and very attractive.

• How do you think that the GVCS can address pressing world issues?

I see a lot of ideological sclerosis in governments and business when confronting society's problems -- problems of resource depletion, skyrocketing inequality, environmental degradation, alienation. A clean reboot seems to be worth a try. I love the ethos of sharing, the boldness of the vision, the radical simplicity and modularity of the technology, and the elegant systems-design approach, of GVCS/OSE.

• What should happen so that you become more involved with the project?

I just have to sort out what is next for me, and decide if OSE is what I'm doing next.

• What are you missing in the project?

Perhaps more attention to community building/volunteer management? It seems a bit chaotic right now, with lots of people full of good will showing up and bumping into the furniture. But I also have faith that things will sort themselves, and the committed people will find each other.

• What are your suggestions for improvement of the project?

Nothing to add to my previous remark.

WHAT

• List all of your skills in these areas: Communications - Organizational - Computer Support - Finances - Design - Natural Building - Electronics - Automation - Metallurgy - Engineering - Fabrication - Agriculture - Energy - Architecture - Video/Graphics/Art - PR/Marketing - Education - Construction - Industry - CNC - Chemistry - Product Design - Other

Software Engineering. Lots of experience in computer vision, robotics, 3D, computational geometry as well as general applications development.

• How have you already contributed to the project?

I'm a True Fan. I have done some advocacy with friends and family, and with colleagues at work.

HOW can you help?

• How are you interested in contributing to the work of GVCS development?

I'm very interested in developing a genuinely useful open source CAD/CAM application. There is an opportunity to create the "Blender of CAD", or better yet, the "Linux of CAD" -- a feature-rich offering, competitive with at least the low-end of mainstream CAD packages, and a robust design platform for the GVCS.

• Can you volunteer to work with us, and if so, how many hours per week?

Yes. Currently sorting what my level of commitment will be.

• Are you interested in working with us for pay? If so, what services can you offer, and what is your hourly or per-project rate?

Yes. Software engineering, applications development, for CAD/CAM. My last job paid around $160K/yr, though I work waaaay cheaper if I get to save the world while doing it.

• Are you interested in Dedicated Project Visit?

Certainly a possibility.

• Are you interested in purchasing equipment from us to help bootstrap development?

Not a option near-term, though down the road it's a possibility.

• Are you interested in bidding for consulting/design/prototyping work?

Not sure.

• Are you a True Fan? If not, why not?

Yes.

• Would you like to see yourself working with us on a full-time basis?

A definite possibility. Currently sorting what's next for me, and a full-time commitment to GVCS development is a contender.

• Are you interested in using the technologies that we are developing directly?

Yes. My wife and I have a long-term plan of starting a permaculture site, and doing some earth-building, and GVCS is the natural place to look for enabling/empowering technologies.

• Are you interested in being part of the world's first, open source, resilient community? The GVCS is the preparatory step for the OSE Village Experiment - a 2 year, immersion experiment (2013-2014) for testing whether a real, thriving, modern-day prototype community of 200 people can be built on 200 acres using local resources and open access to information? We are looking for approximately 200 people to fill a diverse array of roles, according to the Social Contract that is being developed. This may be the boldest social experiment on earth - a pioneering community whose goal is to extend the index of possibilities regarding harmonious existence of humans, ecology, and technology - as a beacon of light to benefit of all people on Earth.

My wife and I are trying this on, and it's a possibility. We're both Canadian citizens, though, which might present challenges in terms of being legally allowed to stay there. Perhaps we'll wait for the first Canadian replication site.