Personal Democracy Forum Superlative Roundup
by Kristin Ivie on 2 Jul 2009
Personal Democracy Forum (PDF), the largest conference covering the intersection of government and politics, drew about 1,000 people to New York this week for its sixth annual gathering. There were lots of highlights, so I'm just decided to award a few superlatives, but I encourage you to check out the techPresident blog and others for more highlights.
Most popular government representative: Vivek Kundra
With about 80% of the attendees identifying themselves as Democrats, it's no surprise that the many Obama campaign and administration representatives should be well-received, but the real rockstar was the White House CIO, who used his time at the podium for a demo of http://www.usaspending.gov/. The new dashboard displays how more than $70 billion tax dollars are being spent on IT projects by the major government agencies. Kundra, who received a standing ovation, said a blog will be up in the next couple of weeks, so users are invited to provide feedback as they continue to improve the beta site. What a cool example of how web 2.0 technology can be used to facilitate more transparency, accountability and collaborative problem-solving in the U.S. government. As Decker Ngongang of Generation Engage pointed out, it could be interesting to see nonprofits use this model to show how their donor dollars are being spent.
With about 80% of the attendees identifying themselves as Democrats, it's no surprise that the many Obama campaign and administration representatives should be well-received, but the real rockstar was the White House CIO, who used his time at the podium for a demo of http://www.usaspending.gov/. The new dashboard displays how more than $70 billion tax dollars are being spent on IT projects by the major government agencies. Kundra, who received a standing ovation, said a blog will be up in the next couple of weeks, so users are invited to provide feedback as they continue to improve the beta site. What a cool example of how web 2.0 technology can be used to facilitate more transparency, accountability and collaborative problem-solving in the U.S. government. As Decker Ngongang of Generation Engage pointed out, it could be interesting to see nonprofits use this model to show how their donor dollars are being spent.
Coolest technology demo: Apture
The Apture folks showed how their FREE tool can enhance blog posts and articles by allowing you to add background videos, articles, photos and the like, so readers can access more information without following links away from your site. See an example of how the World Wildlife Fund is using the tool.
Most likely to be flooded with new speaking requests: Michael Wesch
I heard him speak at the National Geographic Explorers Symposium a few weeks ago, so I knew the PDF crowd was in for a treat, but his standing ovation (the largest one, and the only one given besides that for Kundra) demonstrated his ability to speak to the larger cultural impacts of social media. A cultural anthropologist and media ecologist at Kansas State University, Wesch gave an amazing presentation entitled "The Machine is (Changing) Us: YouTube Culture and the Politics of Authenticity." He talked about what he and his students have discovered about vlogging, and people's attempts to connect without constraints via YouTube. I also particularly appreciated his analysis of the progression of "whatever" from a 1960s "I don't care. Whatever you think," to a 1990s "Whatever, I don't care what you think," and his call to move the meaning of the word to "I care. Let's do whatever it takes...by whatever means necessary."
I heard him speak at the National Geographic Explorers Symposium a few weeks ago, so I knew the PDF crowd was in for a treat, but his standing ovation (the largest one, and the only one given besides that for Kundra) demonstrated his ability to speak to the larger cultural impacts of social media. A cultural anthropologist and media ecologist at Kansas State University, Wesch gave an amazing presentation entitled "The Machine is (Changing) Us: YouTube Culture and the Politics of Authenticity." He talked about what he and his students have discovered about vlogging, and people's attempts to connect without constraints via YouTube. I also particularly appreciated his analysis of the progression of "whatever" from a 1960s "I don't care. Whatever you think," to a 1990s "Whatever, I don't care what you think," and his call to move the meaning of the word to "I care. Let's do whatever it takes...by whatever means necessary."
Best take-away for online organizing: Don't neglect the offline element
I was reminded a few times, that online organizing is not really an end in itself, it's a tool we should be using to get people connected and active offline. In the "Twitter as a Platform for #Organizing and #Fundraising" panel, Allison Fine and Amanda Rose gave examples of how Twitter was a powerful tool to mobilize people for offline events. Allison Fine discussed the Twitter Vote Report campaign during which voters could help others stay informed about how election day was going, what problems were cropping up, and what was happening on the ground. Amanda Rose explained how Twestival came about, and how 10,000 people gathered offline in 200 cities to raise $250,000. She also mentioned that registration opened this week for Twestival local, a second iteration of the fundraiser taking place on September 12 and allowing each city to designate their own local beneficiary. The idea that we can't neglect the offline piece of organizing was reiterated by Joe Rospars of the Obama Campaign. He said the widely celebrated new media components of the campaign were always linked to offline activities and were never seen as a replacement for traditional methods.
I was reminded a few times, that online organizing is not really an end in itself, it's a tool we should be using to get people connected and active offline. In the "Twitter as a Platform for #Organizing and #Fundraising" panel, Allison Fine and Amanda Rose gave examples of how Twitter was a powerful tool to mobilize people for offline events. Allison Fine discussed the Twitter Vote Report campaign during which voters could help others stay informed about how election day was going, what problems were cropping up, and what was happening on the ground. Amanda Rose explained how Twestival came about, and how 10,000 people gathered offline in 200 cities to raise $250,000. She also mentioned that registration opened this week for Twestival local, a second iteration of the fundraiser taking place on September 12 and allowing each city to designate their own local beneficiary. The idea that we can't neglect the offline piece of organizing was reiterated by Joe Rospars of the Obama Campaign. He said the widely celebrated new media components of the campaign were always linked to offline activities and were never seen as a replacement for traditional methods.
Most active tweeter: @abenamer
Thanks to Twitterslurp, the PDF participants were able to watch the twitterfeed in realtime as the speakers gave their presentations. It also created a bit of a competition as prolific tweeters climbed the "Most Tweets" sidebar, but in the end, @abenamer pulled far and away with more than 500 tweets over two days.
That just scratches the surface of some of the good stuff coming out of PDF this year. For more takeaways, videos and more than 19,000 tweets covering the two-day conference, visit the PDF Twitterslurp page and the media page.
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America's Giving Challenge and The Primetime Philanthropist
by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 25 Jun 2009
Coming off the heels of the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, I’m reminded about the power of individuals to recognize their potential not only as volunteers but also as philanthropists. It’s kind of serendipitous timing that just last night NBC aired its first episode of a new series, The Philanthropist.
While the Chronicle of Philanthropy invited readers to reflect on the show in an online forum during the series debut, the jury is still out on whether or not Philanthropist (the TV show) will impact philanthropy (the practice) in the real world. As Steve Gunderson analogizes in a statement to members of the Council on Foundations, “The Philanthropist is to philanthropy what The Pink Panther is to police work,” and there’s probably some truth to that. If nothing else however, perhaps it will help put the idea of philanthropy and selflessness in the minds of more people.
That’s exactly what we’d hoped to do at the Case Foundation with our online giving experiment, America’s Giving Challenge. Earlier this week we released a report on the Case Foundation site based largely on surveys and interviews of participants in the Challenge. The report provides an honest assessment of what worked well (and what didn't) during the online giving campaign.
What I appreciate about the report is that authors Allison Fine and Beth Kanter present readers with a series of recommendations on how to improve future giving challenges. As we see more and more of these online challenges popping up online – we hope that other organizations who are experimenting will benefit from the lessons we learned during the campaign.
The research has spurred a flurry of responses on blogs and via twitter, and I wanted to capture some of those stories below. For more information about America’s Giving Challenge and to download the report, please visit the Case Foundation. And, whether you were a participant in the Challenge or are a casual observer - we'd love to hear your assessment of what works well and what should be improved as online giving challenges continue to evolve.
Nathaniel Whittemore, Social Entrepreneurship blogger at Change.org: One of the interesting take aways in the "what would work better" section is that while it was the right idea to have a time restriction, the 50 day time period was too much of a burden and a shorter time period might have been better. This recommendation resonates with the notion that these contests are about getting people engaged, but shouldn't become a burden on the relationship between a nonprofit and its stakeholders.
Edith Asibey and David Brotherton write in the Chronicle of Philanthropy: "Other foundations are embracing the possibilities of online media to spur citizen involvement while deepening appreciation for the practice of philanthropy. The Case Foundation recently released a report on its “America’s Giving Challenge” competition, explaining that one of the campaign’s objectives was to “help people from all backgrounds realize their potential to be philanthropists.”
Katya Andresen on her Getting to the Point Marketing Blog: “The key findings are actually no secret at all. But we tend to forget their truth, which is why we need to mind them closely….Technology does not change the basic truth that we give for emotional reasons in a moment of generous impulse. It just makes this phenomenon happen more easily, faster, and on a larger scale. It also allows individual people or very small organizations to be catalysts for broader giving. Most of the top fundraisers were not from large organizations. One person can do much by reaching out to their inner circle, which then connects to a greater community.”
Rebecca Krause-Hardie on her blog: “Just my two cents from the sidelines, but I think a big part of the 'secret sauce' is the passion and motivation of each of the people who worked on the campaigns. Their personal belief and willingness to talk about it and express it to everyone provides the fuel for the engine.”
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Where Do Philanthropy and Service Meet?
by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 19 Jun 2009 5
As the National Conference on Volunteering and Service gets underway in San Francisco next week, 4,500 leaders from across the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors will pack the Moscone Center for workshops and plenary sessions aimed at strengthening the culture of service in our country. And, in a year when so many conferences have been forced to scale back, or have seen significant declines in attendance -- the energy (and turnout) surrounding this year’s service conference is a testament to what a hot issue service seems to be at this moment in time.
I’m not suggesting that service hasn’t always played a deep and intrinsic role in our history– because it has, and it will continue to. The needs are too great, and the resources from government, the private sector and philanthropy are too stretched.
On Wednesday I’m moderating a panel that includes some forward thinkers: Ben Rattray founder and CEO of Change.org; Jacob Harold Program Officer at the Hewlett Foundation; and Perla Ni founder and CEO of Great Nonprofits. In preparing for the panel, I’ve had several exchanges where people have been surprised when I talk of philanthropy and civic engagement as being so deeply connected. In my mind, this was never a question.
Giving or philanthropy is something that I have always felt has the potential to lead to deeper levels of civic engagement. It's true that increasing one’s civic engagement is not limited to philanthropic behavior, but it does include it. Volunteering, participating in community initiatives, and making donations are all part of building social capital.
There’s no question, philanthropy has traditionally been seen as a top-down, hierarchical practice – but there’s a movement afoot to delegate that process to a wider circle of decision makers, and in some cases to the general public. This is the idea that will tip off our panel on Wednesday - but it's also the same kind of movement I think we're seeing in the volunteering community. Self directed service programs seem to be growing in popularity -- and that's important because nonprofits don't have the bandwidth to be able to absorb all of these new volunteers.
But, getting back to the topic at hand. I’d love to pull from your thoughts on the subject to help inform our conversation. How are philanthropy and civic engament/volunteering related? Do you believe that one leads to the other? What happens when you democratize philanthropy and give the public a voice in how to direct funding? Does this lead to deeper engagement?
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Meet the New Echoing Green Fellows
by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 16 Jun 2009 1
From Mumbai to Massachusetts, the 2009 Class of Echoing Green Fellows announced today, represents a diverse group of 17 social entrepreneurs, many of whom are honing their skills as social citizens and leveraging technology for social change. With 1,000 applicants the competition was intense, but the fourteen projects announced today, represent some of the most innovative ideas in areas from civil and human rights to education and public service. That’s why we’ll be watching with great interest as these leaders carry their work forward.
We join in congratulating the newest members of Echoing Green’s network of social entrepreneurs who work each day to solve social, economic and environmental problems throughout the world. To see a complete list of the 2009 Fellows, and learn more about their projects, visit Echoing Green.
Also, we know there are plenty of Echoing Green Fellows in the making, and we’d like to feature some of these bright faces and ideas in our new series “Social Citizen Sightings.” Please fill out this quick form if you have a group or individual you'd like to nominate for the new series.
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