Canadians are now combining politics and Twitter. A new website called TweetCommons, has been launched to connect Canadians with elected government representatives via Twitter.
Facilitating more multi-directional relationships between people and government,TweetCommons is is another important tool in breaking down the walls between governments and the people they represent – and is a perfect example of how social media is enabling the process.
Online participatory media practices like TweetCommons helps produce citizen-powered dialogue that includes, but is not driven by government officials, or the select spokespeople working for big media outlets.
TweetCommons is helpful tool for all Canadians. Besides being an entry point to contact government, it is a pathway for people to join in on conversations, chime in on issues important to them and to have their voice heard.
An Israel university student is using the popular social networking service, Twitter, to help people Tweet God.
Alon Nir, a resident of Tel Aviv, takes the prayers which are sent via direct link on Nir’s Twitter site, prints them out and drives to Jerusalem to put them into the crevices of the Western Wall. The Western Wall is a Jewish holy site that faithful believe provides a direct line to the Almighty.
Nir promises to deliver the prayers — each no longer than a tweet’s maximum 140 characters — on a regular basis.
Do Good
This awesome ipod/iphone app unites millions of users to do one random act of kindness a day.
The application is appropriately called “DoGood”. Each day the application displays the same “DoGood” to every user on a particular day. Once you’ve completed the DoGood, simply press done.
Social Media Integration
Facebook and Twitter integration allows you to easily tell your friends about each day’s DoGood. You can leave a story on each DoGood, or read the stories of others.
Tracking Social Change
DoGood collects statistics from the group anonymously, and presents them on a graphical dashboard allowing you to easily track each day’s activity. Moreover, you can view past DoGoods and their respective stories.
Are you a photographer, or just interested in photography? Are you an activist, or someone who likes to be aware of global situations that are often ignored by mainstream media? If so, I recommend you visit Socialdocumentary.net, a website featuring documentary photography from around the world. The site showcases beautiful, engaging, shocking and sometimes heartbreaking images exploring global human condition.
Nearly anyone is able to submit photos – professional and amateur photographers, journalists, NGOs and anyone with a story to tell are encouraged to showcase their photographs and share them with the world.
According to the site, the goal of this website is “to make our lives richer and more informed about issues affecting us and our world today. Powerful photographs can also lead to meaningful change in the lives of ordinary people. SocialDocumentary.net provides tools for photographer to inform viewers how to take action—either by supporting NGOs doing work on the issues, or by engaging in direct political action.”
I encourage you to take a look at this touching and educational website and if you can, submit. I hope it motivates us all to take a closer look at our surroundings, our communities and our world, and share what we find with others in order to educate, and inspire each other to make our world a better place to live.
Another reminder that low-budget social media can really make a difference. An idea first promoted on YouTube has worked it’s way to the Senate. The idea? Taxing sodas and other sugary drinks.
Last year, Richard F. Daines, M.D., New York State’s Health Commissioner showed up on YouTube with a very low-budget demo of how much sugared soda makes up of NYC’s resident’s diets. Then, in April the New England Journal of Medicine published a paper, stating that sugary drinks “may be the single largest driver of the obesity epidemic” and also argued that raising the price of the sugar packed drinks may actually lower consumption.
Currently the Senate is considering the soda tax but will the tax actually reduce consumption? If it is anything like the tobacco tax, it could have an impact on youth and lower income Americans, two groups greatly affected by obesity.
And if it does work, who will we have to thank? Well, Richard Daines certainly, but also the smarty who decided to promote this via YouTube.
The hard working folks at DigiActive have created this helpful presentation on digital activism. The short presentation touches on:
- The definition of digital activism
- Some examples of digital activism in various countries using different digital tools.
- The qualities of good digital activism
- Challenges to digital activism
And like all true digital activists, DigiActive has posted this presentation for us all to share and use. Created under a Creative Commons Attribution License, users are encouraged to download, use and remix (with that new Open Source Cinema tool I mentioned)! View, download and share here.
A project of EyeSteelFilm and supported by The Bell Fund and the Canadian Film Center, this collaborative website and application was designed to help filmmakers and audiences create together. To facilitate simple and powerful user and audience collaboration, the site provides:
Remixes, or re editing projects that users can reuse and remake their own unique versions of scenes produced through continual revision and collaboration.
A recycling tool that lets users and filmmakers share media and “create the building blocks for collaborative films.”
A blog for project admins to post updates on their projects, drive project members to calls to action, and keep collaborators up to date.
A listing of projects/collaborative films that are seeking user help.
Besides providing a free and cool resource for people interested in filmmaking, Open Source Cinema provides a forum for activists to utilize social media to create, display work , find the help and support they need from peers and spread the word about their cause.
Katie Reider was a singer/songwriter from Cincinnati, Ohio. She passed away from a rare tumor in July, 2008, leaving her partner and their two sons struggling with medical bills and broken hearts.
This past weekend, thousands of former fans across the country pulled together to show their support in what is being called “The World’s Largest Tweet-Up.”
The online effort, called The World’s Largest Tweet-Up, generated $1 per tweet from a local donor who wishes to remain anonymous. On Monday, that donation was upped to $3 per tweet.
The money goes into a fund for her family.
The Tweet-Up campaign has been extended to the end of Tuesday , said Raymond Buse III, one of the organizers. The goal is to raise $5,000 for the family, he said.
Social media makes it easy to promote a message or offer support for a cause. It takes only a matter of moments to tweet, and yet the gesture can be significant. In this case, not only is there the opportunity for more people to learn about Katie and her music, but also to help her family through the donations coming in. Lower the barriers for people to help promote or support you, and you will be amazed at the results.
If you wish to know more about Katie Reider and her life, you can also visit 500Kin265.org, a website established in May, 2008 to help share Katie’s story and music even after the tumor robbed her of her singing voice. If you tweet, please take a moment to visit http://tweetup.spotlets.com and tweet your support for Katie and her family.
I recently learned of an interesting ringtone campaign to promote condom use in India. Created by The BBC World Service Trust (and funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) “Condom Acapella” hopes to break down walls and shatter taboos about condoms which have lived in Indian culture for decades. Listen to “Condom Acapella.”
So, can ringtone social campaigns REALLY create healthy behavior change? Well, according to statistics, they sure have the capability to – if done the right way.
Ethan Zuckerman, author of “Why Cell Phones May Be the Most Important Technical Innovation of the Decade” points out that mobile phone penetration “vastly exceeds internet usage.”
According to him, in China – in 2005, there were 350 million mobile phone users, and 100 million internet users and by 2010 there will be an estimated 3.3 billion mobile phone users worldwide.
Think about it, in many parts of the world, the mobile phone isn’t simply replacing landlines, it is allowing people to have a personal communications channel for the first time in their lives. I guess that mobile phone sitting in my purse is whole heck of a lot more powerful than I ever imagined.
While searching the internet yesterday, I stumbled upon a video from Carrotmob about organizing consumer behavior to create change. After capturing my attention, I watched another video of the first Carrotmob event.
“What is a Carrotmob event,” you ask? A Carrotmob event practices organized consumer behavior as a catalyst to encourage socially responsible business. Each event begins by engaging local businesses in a bidding war of sorts to promote energy efficiency, environmental sustainability or any other type of socially responsible behavior. The business with the most attractive bid follows through and is compensated handsomely.
In this case, (the first ever event) the business that promised to convert their energy efficiency by the highest percent was then promised to be rewarded. And rewarded they were.
The winning business, an independent liquor store/bodega was the energy efficient winner. With one register and a minuscule staff, the lucky guys didn’t know what hit them. Droves of people lined up and patiently waited to patronize the store all day long and until supplies were scarce. The store had increased their daily sales nine times over. Success.
A business rewarded for doing a good deed! Ingenious right? Right!
Carrotmob has chosen to use the “carrot method” (as opposed to the whipping method) to get business horses to do what they want, in this case – be responsible business owners. And the method is working.
With thousands of members (and more growing everyday thanks to their facebook and Twitter pages) Carrotmob is taking over the country one business at a time, and I think it’s pretty amazing.
Check out Carrotmob and their latest conquests over “The Man,” at www.carrotmob.org. Want to be a Carrotmobber? Sign up there!
This blog is the work of the passionate folks at Worldways Social Marketing. Worldways Social Marketing is a full-service agency with global reach. We work for progressive, socially-responsible organizations with life-transforming ideas. Who's writing? View our bios.
