Why not add Puerto Rico to the standard U.S. map?
Rethinking the messages in our templates and defaults
Facilitators:
Lisa Waananen Jones (@lisawaananen)
Brandyn Friedly (@brandynfriedly)
First, a little quiz…
1. True or False: A person born in Puerto Rico is a United States citizen.
A. True
B. False
2. Australia is roughly what size compared to the continental United States?
A. 25% - a quarter of the size of the U.S.
B. 50% - half the size of the U.S.
C. 100% - the same size as the U.S.
D. 200% - twice the size of the U.S.
3. Where is the equator in relation to the continent of Africa? Draw a horizontal line.
4. True or False: A person born in American Samoa is a United States citizen.
A. True
B. False
5. The population of Puerto Rico is roughly the same as the population of:
A. Alaska
B. Iowa
C. Texas
D. North and South Dakota combined
6. True or False: Puerto Rico is a colony of the United States.
A. True
B. False
“Why?”
What is one default that bothers you, or an example of a default that doesn’t fit for you?
Because for 500 uninterrupted years, the role of Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans in the world economy has been to make other people rich, whether by extracting cheap labor or cheap resources or by being a captive market for imported food and fuel.
A colonial economy by definition is a dependent economy. A centralized lopsided and distorted economy. And as we have seen, an intensely vulnerable economy.
-Naomi Klein, �There’s Nothing Natural About Puerto Rico’s Disaster
Including Puerto Rico
Evaluate your example map: What would be the effects of adding Puerto Rico, both positive and negative? Would it change viewers’ perceptions?
How can we identify problematic defaults in our own spheres of power?
How can we foster mindfulness while we also need to just get stuff done?
What has worked well for you or your team?
What questions should we be asking?