39 episodes

The co-matter podcast is a series of conversations about the future of bringing people together. Hosted by Severin Matusek from co-matter, a global network exploring what makes communities thrive.

the co-matter podcast the co-matter podcast

    • Marketing

The co-matter podcast is a series of conversations about the future of bringing people together. Hosted by Severin Matusek from co-matter, a global network exploring what makes communities thrive.

    Sarah Drinkwater: What is the responsible tech movement?

    Sarah Drinkwater: What is the responsible tech movement?

    Sarah Drinkwater is the Director of Responsible Tech at Omidyar Network, a social change venture that works to bring about structural changes that will fundamentally shift the systems that govern our daily lives.

    Sarah is on a mission to make technology more ethical and responsible. In 2020 she and her team launched the Ethical Explorer, a collection of tools to help people building software and technology navigate its impact.

    In our conversation we talked about:


    The responsible tech movement and what it takes to build software more responsibly and ethically

    The future of community organizing on the internet, micro movements and decentralization

    Renaissance literature, business books and where to find inspiration to break out of our own bubbles

    Listen to the co-matter podcast anywhere by subscribing to iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting app (search for "co-matter").

    Follow Sarah at @sarahdrinkwater on Twitter and Medium. Thank you Omidyar Network for making this conversation possible. You can download the Ethical Explorer here.

    • 41 min
    Peter Sunde: What makes people become activists?

    Peter Sunde: What makes people become activists?

    Peter Sunde Kolmisoppi believes that content on the Internet should be free - a cause he famously went to jail for as a co-founder of the controversial file sharing service The Pirate Bay.
    Now, Peter has released a documentary called THE ACTIVIST; a 5 part series for Finnish television where Peter meets with Edward Snowden, Greenpeace captain Paul Watson and other activists to find out what makes them fight for their causes.

    Reasons enough for us to take a train to Malmo, Sweden, to catch up with Peter.  In our conversation we talk about:


    How Peter thinks about activism, internet freedom and changing the world today

    What Peter learned from activists around the world: how moral integrity drives people to become activists, engage in civil disobedience and break laws to fight for a more just world

    Why we can’t fix the system within the system, power is more centralized and activism as a tool is more accessible today than ever before; and what that means for our future

    Listen to the co-matter podcast anywhere by subscribing to iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting app (search for "co-matter").

    Follow Peter at @brokep and watch THE ACTIVIST wherever you can access it.

    More of this, please? Join our mailing list for our monthly digest about the future of community.

    • 42 min
    Andres Colmenares: The Everything Manifesto

    Andres Colmenares: The Everything Manifesto

    Andres Colmenares is the co-founder of IAM, the think tank, consultancy and conference that explore the futures of the internet(s).

    Together with Lucy Black-Swan, Andres published The Everything Manifesto in late 2019: a call for citizens and organizations to act collectively to address the climate crisis.

    We caught up with Andres to find out what it’s all about.

    Follow Andres on Twitter, read The Everything Manifesto and join us at IAM Weekend on March 19-21 2020 in Barcelona.

    More of this please? Subscribe to our mailing list for a monthly update about the future of bringing people together.

    • 14 min
    Philippa Wagner: The Hotel as a Community

    Philippa Wagner: The Hotel as a Community

    Philippa Wagner is the director of 23lab, Ennismore’s future innovation lab that researches the hotel experience of the future.

    Together with her team, she helps shape the future experience of The Hoxton, a series of open-house hotels based in London, Amsterdam, Paris, NYC, Portland and Chicago.

    In this pop-in call Philippa talks about:


    The  role of community in understanding future trends, cultural nuances,  customer behavior and shaping the hotel experience of tomorrow

    The Hoxton as a community for communities that connects travelers and local communities

    How the Hox Friends community and influencer platform Musings drive ROI, influence the hotel experience and help launch new  products such as "Working From", the Hoxton's new coworking space

    Listen to the co-matter podcast anywhere by subscribing to iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting app (search for "co-matter").

    Follow The Hoxton on Instagram and Twitter.

    More of that please? Join our mailing list for a monthly update on the future of community.

    • 10 min
    Julien de Smedt: The Architecture of Misuse

    Julien de Smedt: The Architecture of Misuse

    Julien de Smedt is an architect and the founder of JDS Architects, the award-winning architecture firm behind buildings such as Oslo’s Holmenkollen Ski Jump or Copenhagen’s Kalvebod Waves.

    We  met at JDS' headquarters in Copenhagen to talk* about how architecture influences the way we live and interact with each other as a community. We talk about:



    How JDS architects designs buildings and places with the intention to be misused and re-appropriated in unexpected ways
    Julien's youth as a skateboarder in Paris and how street culture shaped his approach to architecture and design
    The role of architecture to encourage social interactions and community engagement


    Here’s episode #31 of the co-matter podcast with Julien de Smedt.

    Listen to the co-matter podcast anywhere by subscribing to iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting app (search for "co-matter").

    Follow Julien at @juliendesmedt and JDS Architects at @jdsarchitects on Instagram.

    More of this yes please? Join our mailing list for a monthly update from the co-matter network covering new insights about the future of bringing people together.

    * Please note the following corrections from the audio introduction:
    -JDS didn't build projects in 45 countries. but designed projects in 45 countries.
    -JDS' offices are in Brussels and CPH.

    • 35 min
    Lea Korsgaard & Jakob Moll: Zetland, The Future Of Community Based Media

    Lea Korsgaard & Jakob Moll: Zetland, The Future Of Community Based Media

    Lea Korsgaard and Jakob Moll are two of the four journalists who founded Zetland: a Danish digital newspaper and media company that’s built on a community based membership model.

    Founded in 2012, the publication has over 10,000 paying subscribers in their community who read and listen to Zetland’s daily stories.

    If you’re not from Denmark you might not have heard of Zetland before. But Zetland is part of an international wave of new media companies along with The Netherland's De Correspondent and Germany’s Krautreporter that pioneer digital first, quality-driven journalism that’s based on community based member subscriptions rather than advertising.

    So how did Zetland get from 0 to a community of 10,000 paying subscribers? And what can we learn from journalism re-inventing itself through a community based membership model?

    I met with Lea and Jakob at Zetland’s headquarters in Copenhagen to find out. We talk about:


    How Zetland grew from 0 to 10,000 paying subscribers
    The role of journalism in today’s society
    Why it matters to collaborate with your community
    The benefits of a community based membership model

    Here is the episode #30 of the co-matter podcast with Lea Korsgaard and Jakob Moll.

    Listen to the co-matter podcast anywhere by subscribing to iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Stitcher or your favorite podcasting app (search for "co-matter").

    Follow Lea at @LeaKorsgaard and Jakob at @JakobMoll on Twitter.

    Hungry for more? Join our mailing list for a monthly update from the co-matter network covering new insights about the future of bringing people together.

    • 42 min