To mark Waag Futurelab's 30th anniversary year, an interview with internet pioneers Marleen Stikker, Caroline Nevejan and Geert Lovink appeared in national newspaper Het Parool last Saturday. In it, they look back at the early beginnings of Waag, amidst 90s hacker culture, DIY mentality, and the influence of government and capital.
‘In 1994, we were still talking about ‘cyberspace’, the term ‘worldwide web’ was just coming into vogue, and most people only knew about this novelty stuff from hearsay. But Waag founders Caroline Nevejan and Marleen Stikker saw the potential even then - and thus belonged to a very select club worldwide. They dreamed of a virtual village pump around which global citizens could gather. A digital public domain where creativity could flourish. Radical transparency that would make administrative backrooms disappear. Open, international communication to exchange knowledge and help each other move forward.’
Read the interview with Marleen Stikker, Caroline Nevejan and Geert Lovink (Dutch) on Het Parool's website.
