Photocopy weakens innovation

Heard this sobering statement that somehow also tickled me in an Social Return of Investment workshop. From Dr. Jane Chang.

Photocopy machine never stop running in Malaysia. But in UK, they will ask to uphold copyright infringement. 

Copy copy copy then become too cair and become susu

When we photocopy, and disregard copyright infringement, there comes an attitude that also cheapens ideas. This attitude deadens the flow of innovative thought, as we perceive it as easier to adopt and adapt from others who have done the work for us— which in theory is a smart move, but this practice, without limitations, is a harbinger of a thought stopping epidemic where most everyone in our region will, for the sake of convenience, reach out to copy what is intuitively better from others rather than build anything that is local from scratch, even if the latter approach is fully relevant and organically ours.

We let go our ability and will to perform, and this loss of a basic understanding of our locality and values is also a surrender of the foundation needed before we even go towards social innovation to generate genuine social and community value, (though of course this copycat attitude and consequence applies beyond this field)

We need to be aware of this epidemic, resources should be available and accessible, yes, but like it or not, a free for all without structural respect and limits to copyright and ideas really dims the brain, and defunds neural pathways that should have been built for many of us in the public sphere.  

Going back to the context of developing social value, we don't have to copy paste what is done by the proponents of SVI in other continents. We need a sense of reservedness and resilience honed into our awareness of the Asian, Malaysian Sphere, to share and sharpen our skills and develop our USPs attuned to our local stakeholders. 

To think on how we can collaborate and make a movement stream where impact management can be structured, measured, and replicated. And then through this, we can finally claim that the step forward in an effort of social innovation is truly ours. 

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KOPI Kopi kopi menjadi susu (an opinion).

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Heard this sobering statement—one that somehow also tickled me—during a Social Return on Investment workshop by Dr Jane Chang:

> “Photocopy machine never stops running in Malaysia. But in UK, every photocopied piece of paper was accounted for, and they would ask you to uphold copyright.”

Ya itu copy, copy, copy—until it becomes too cair and become only susu.

When we photocopy without regard for copyright infringement, we also cultivate an attitude that cheapens ideas. This mindset deadens the flow of innovative thought, as we begin to see it as easier to adopt and adapt from others who have already done the work for us—which, in theory, can be a smart move. But without limits, this practice becomes a harbinger of a thought-stopping epidemic. For the sake of convenience, many people in our region will reach out to copy what is intuitively better from others, rather than build anything truly local from scratch, even when the latter is fully relevant and organically ours.

The result: We let go of our ability and will to create. 

This loss of a basic understanding of our locality and values is also a surrender of the foundation needed before we can even begin moving towards social innovation that generates genuine social and community value. (Of course, this copycat tendency and its consequences extend well beyond this field.)

We need to be aware of this epidemic. Yes, resources should be available and accessible—but like it or not, a free-for-all without structural respect and limits for copyright and ideas dims the brain. It weakens the neural pathways that should be strengthened for many of us in the public sphere.

This is especially relevant in the context of developing social value. We don’t have to copy-paste what proponents of SVI have done in other continents. Instead, we need a sense of reservedness and resilience, honed into our awareness of the Asian–Malaysian sphere, to share and sharpen our skills and develop USPs attuned to our local stakeholders.

We must think about how we can collaborate to create a movement stream where impact management can be structured, measured, and replicated. And when we do, we can finally claim that our step forward in social innovation is more authentically ours.

Just as the photocopy machine eventually runs out of toner, the constant reproduction of others’ ideas will fade in quality. To keep our work vivid, sharp, and truly ours, we must sometimes put the machine aside and start with a blank page.