Community Mobilization

Washington Post Covers Frozen Pea Fund

I will say that I am very impressed with the article in yesterday's Washington Post about the Frozen Pea Fund (login is required but you can use bug-me-not with Fire Fox for access). The article looks at why the Twitter viral event for the Frozen Pea Fund worked and helps to shine some light onto the nature of technology mediated human connectivity. I particularly like the quote from Susan at the end of the article, it is telling about the importance of support throughout the cancer experience. Reality is that support is support no mater who gives it and in what form and this is a great study in support of that assertion. "There's nothing good about getting cancer," Reynolds wrote on her blog. "It helps [to] start conversations, though."

MMORG Philanthropy

There have been few articles I have read on MMORG and game development that really get me thinking about philanthropy and the possibilities of philanthropic activities. However I did get some inspiration from the Game Developer Magazine article 'Purchasing Power' by Taiyoung Ryu and Kyuhwan Oh. It was a very straightforward review of item based payment models in Korean games but the purpose of purchase intrigued me. What most people are not considering is the basic premise that high fashion virtual items are as relevant to gamers as as a coach purse is to a soccer mom. That being said there is a robust branding and product development industry solely to serve causes and virtual space is not being engaged the way it could be. finding the nexus between the cause missions and the gamers needs is where the real mutual payoff lies.

Frozen Peas Fun - Why It Is Working

The concepts surrounding the flash that is Frozen Peas Friday are rooted in the intricate interpersonal web of connectivity and communication. The question I have been asked a number of times in the last week is, "So why is it that this groups of people care so much about frozen peas and cancer?" The answer has many facets and I will try my best to break them down as I see them.

#1. They may 'care' about cancer but they do not CARE about cancer. They care about Susan Reynolds and her personal situation and want to help and support her. As a fund raiser we know the fundamental truth is that people give money to support the causes important to those they care about. I care deeply about cancer, but if my mother asked me to take up a fund raising drive for AIDS awareness I would do so quickly.
#2. The rapid adoption of the project is two fold - one the communication web between the first adopters is dense and fast. Communication today is multi layered via social network spaces blog posts, twitter feeds, profile updates, direct messages, instant messages ... chances are we all got at least three contacts about this project from the same person. Viral word of mouth information distribution followed.
#3. We like to try new things, and trying to raise money and awareness on a micro blogging site like Twitter is a challenge. We like Twitter, and this was a chance to show some real value in the system beyond letting the world know what I am doing right now.
#4. It is fun and it feels good. People spent real time photo-shopping their Pea-based avatars and it required a bit of creativity. It was fun coming up with an image and making it as good as the next guy's or girl's. And it feels good to do good things. Each donation to support the fund deals good to us and we are happy to give and participate.
#5. The American Cancer Society was sharp enough to pick up on the project and support it. Often technological memes such as these are overlooked by other organizations but in this case the positive energy had a place to be focused - the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer program.

So in the spirit of fun here is a frozen pea video from the Social Media Club in Florida here is a very nice video in support of the Frozen Pea Fund.

McKinley HS to run Teen Relay For Life

The Washington Post reports that Mckinley High School in Washington DC is getting ready t o run a Teen Grid Second  Life Relay For Life. They school is a unique learning institution that has specail science and technology focus. Students apply for admittance and spend 4 years in intensive classes in Computer Animation and Design, Biological Sciences, and Forensics. We have been working with them and their Assistant Principal Rick Kelsey for a while now that the kids are back in school it looks like they are ready to go!

Catastrophy and Fundraising Goals

A recent article in the Fresno Bee took a look at what happened to some social service organization's fund raising in the aftermath of the Southern California fires. The outpouring of support was directed at an isolated incident where there indeed was great need for everything from baby formula to clothing. However, the article asks the question, "What about the rest of the year?" It is a solid thought to consider.

We were all generous in a time of great need, but what about in everyday circumstances. Some agencies go days or weeks before they respond to a family burned out of a home, and they need steady income to maintain their daily operations. Do disasters actually put social service organizations in peril? If everyone gave a restricted gift, who would pay for the phone lines, or health insurance, or salary for the employees. It is a fact of life in this field of work and with new technology we can help support disaster relief from 1/2 way around the world.Critical to survival is helping the public understand that without the daily operating budget   there will be no way to administer those restricted gifts.

GlobalGiving - Tis Almost The Season

GlobalGiving is a site that allows you to participate in individual grassroots community based construction projects in the 3rd world. You too can be a sponsor and make a small impact by buying pieces of a bridge, or a community center, or even  just nails and a hammer. It is a fantastic example of surfing th elong tail of giving as it taps into the basic needs of a commuinty and asks individuals who may care to support in small ways.

Aids Research Alliance

I am in Santa Barbra speaking with he Aids Research Alliance about the use of digital community in role of philanthropy. I hope they we will be able to discuss the movement of a generation onto the net and how we can collectively leverage the new technology to advocate for policy change and awareness in a new generation that missed the AIDS Quilt project and all of the awareness that went on in the late 80's and 90's.

One Laptop Per-Child Promotion

The One Laptop Per Child program is running a two-for-one special ... kind -of. It is even better! Nicholas Negroponte has set up an opportunity where you can purchase two laptops and keep one and send one to a child who needs it overseas. On their web page you can sign up for a reminder e-mail and I have to insist that it is the best present you can give this 2007 holiday season.

On a community outreach program it is seems like an exceptional humanitarian outreach opportunity for communities to designate donor communities overseas. Small schools utilize the computers to educate and drive learning. The core purpose clearly to bring first world connectivity to the least connected areas. In conjunction with future wimax blankets the laptops could potentially be the backbone of learning network that could rapidly expose the most remote locations to the first world and vice versa.

E-Community Retreat

I a min Atlanta working with a bunch of the brightest and sharpest ACS staff we can find to flush out the concepts and ideas around how we work with online virtual communities. We spent this morning going into the depths of our own initial web experience. We shared our first internet experience, our first e-mail address and screen name, as well as our first exposure to scams. It is important for us all to understand how we became internet savvy and remember that the exposure and adoption curve exisis and we must consider the wide variety of experiences.

Individual Fundraising Pages

Individuals have been raising money for charitable organizations on the internet for years. Now it seems that when people need a bit of charity themselves they are using the internet to raise funds to help pay off unexpected medical bills, or back rent after a natural disaster. Realitycharity.com is a site that allows anyone to set up their own fund raising space and tell their story and why they need a little help. Some experts fear this is a new way to commit fraud, and some are worried it will take away from established charitable organizations. Any way you look at it the site is filling a void most charitable organizations do not fill - direct cash financial aid. I'm curious about the business model, if there is a percentage fee that goes to Realitycharity.com.