Philip James

North Bay Python

Running Resistance Tech on a Shoestring - Philip James - 2026

System Reliability and Error Handling: Comparing paradigms from C to Rust Result to build resilient cloud infrastructure.

Ethical Technology and Social Justice: Analyzing the intersection of AI, eugenics, and data labor to advocate for empathetic software design.

Practical Development Skills: Mastering web scraping, designing Python APIs for volatile data, and building civic tech on a budget.

Open Source and Community Building: Learning best practices for project scope management, contributing to large open-source projects, and technical communication.

Explore advanced topics in Python development, system reliability, ethical AI, and community-driven open source projects.

A deep dive into error handling paradigms (C, Exceptions, Rust Result) and the systemic failures that define modern cloud infrastructure. Learn how to build truly robust systems by understanding complex failure modes.

State of Exception(s)

A critical examination of the tech industry's ideological roots, connecting eugenics, data labor, and techno-optimism. Learn to build technology with social justice and empathy.

An Economy of Empathy

A practical framework for applying technology to local activism and civic engagement, focusing on maximizing impact with minimal resources.

Running Resistance Tech on a Shoestring

Learn to build robust Python scrapers and APIs for volatile open web data, focusing on handling silent failures and maintaining data contracts.

Designing Python APIs for Data You Don’t Control

Explore essential technical communication and crisis communication skills needed to navigate rapid technological change and social uncertainty.

Crisis (Technical) Communication: Teaching Survival Skills You Didn’t Know...

A personal journey detailing the growth of an open-source project, emphasizing community building, vulnerability, and technical contribution.

Bumbling into BeeWare: From typo-fix to core developer

A retrospective on web development, covering embedded systems, SSGs, and AI tools, showing the evolution of modern developer workflows.

While I've changed gears... I've managed to find my web development tribe

Applying feminist theory to network engineering, arguing that systemic problems (like latency) require intersectional, non-linear thinking.

What Feminist Theory & Praxis Says About Internet Networking

A case study on maintaining project scope in large open-source projects, crucial for sustainable software architecture.

No Project Scope Survives Contact with Users

North Bay Python 2026

Civic tech efforts should focus on two core goals: educating people (providing citable data) and activating people (driving behavioral change).

Data collection and presentation should follow a 'data iceberg' approach, prioritizing data existence, availability, and searchability over complex personalization.

Effective activation strategies range from indirect action (shares, signatures) to direct action (in-person organizing), and technology must support these human actions.

When building tools, prioritize longevity and maintainability by ensuring data ownership is public and the technology is simple enough for future, less-technical successors to manage.

Learn how to build impactful civic technology for activism and local change using minimal resources, focusing on data, education, and activation strategies.

The goal of using technology for social change (or 'resistance tech') is not perfection, but rather to educate people and activate them. Education must be grounded in citable data, and activation involves influencing decisions, which can range from choosing to recycle to organizing in person.

When gathering data for civic projects, consider a tiered approach: 1. **Existence:** Does the data even exist locally? 2. **Availability:** Can anyone outside the governing body access it? 3. **Searchability:** Is the data easily searchable? 4. **Localization:** Can the data be scoped down to a specific region, state, or block? Progressing down this list, even incrementally, represents significant improvement.

Activation is about getting people to *do* something. The speaker categorizes actions by energy level: 1. **Decision Influencing:** Changing minds or choices (e.g., choosing a different product). 2. **Indirect Action:** Sharing posts or signatures online. 3. **Direct Action (Remote):** Organizing via letters or phone calls. 4. **Direct Action (In-Person):** Protests or attending local meetings. The key is to build tools that support these human actions, not just digital ones.

For maximum impact with minimal budget, focus on simplicity and maintainability: * **Static Sites:** Use static site generators (like Jekyll or 11ty) as they are easier to maintain and archive than complex, generative backends. * **Embedded Backends:** Use services like Airtable with minimal JavaScript to create search functionality, rather than building and maintaining a full, complex search backend. * **Data Ownership:** Ensure data is public, exportable, and belongs to the community, not the project. * **Localization:** Design for mobile-first usage and consider multi-language support from the start, as language barriers can exclude large populations.

The most critical aspect of civic tech is ensuring the project survives the founding team. Key considerations include: * **Documentation:** Clear processes for content updates, social media ownership, and content approval. * **POSSE Model:** Adopt the

Local political parties and community organizations often have basic digital needs. Check for fundamental elements like an updated website, active social media presence, and a reliable newsletter. The goal is to provide simple, functional information so that anyone can quickly understand the organization's purpose and how to get involved.

Resistance Tech on a Shoestring: Building Civic Tools with Limited Resources

Running Resistance Tech on a Shoestring - 2026

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Philip James

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