The Open Everything idea I’ve been talking about for a while has started to pick up steam. There is now a tiny web site up. And, there are events planned for London, Cape Town, Toronto, Singapore and a small, wonderful island off the coast of British Columbia.

Open Everything may be a bit of hyperbole. That’s okay. Big, crazy ideas are useful from time to time. Big ideas can provide connection points. They can inspire. And they can help us cross pollinate amongst the huge diversity of human activity around the world that has been sparked by the open, participatory values of the Internet.

Of course, these Open Everything events are meant to be an experiment. Right now, the web site says that this is …

… a series of conversations about the art, science and spirit of ‘open’. It gathers people using openness to create and improve software, education, media, philanthropy, neighbourhoods, workplaces and the society we live in: everything. It’s about thinking, doing and being open.

I am sure it will say something very different a month or a year from now. That’s the point of having the conversation.

No matter how the conversation goes, we will certainly have a better, more dynamic picture of ‘open’ by the time the first cycle of events is done. The idea is to record and podcast all of the talks, giving a concrete, under-the-hood look at some of the most interesting ‘open’ initiatives in the world. There is also a plan to build both a conceptual and geographic map of projects, people and businesses using openness and participation in their work.

At this stage, there are about a dozen people involved in bits and pieces of making this happen. We want more people to jump in, and we want critical feedback on the idea. If you’re intrigued, feel free to comment on this blog post or to get in touch with me. Also, I can give wiki access to anyone who wants it.