‘All That Twitters is Not Gold’

The New Farm Neighbourhood Centre’s next ‘Politics in the Pub at the Powerhouse’ is about the good and bad of online social networking. While online services like Twitter, Facebook, Bebo and Myspace are great tools for getting the message out they also have a dark side.

The New Farm Neighbourhood Centre runs ‘Politics in the Pub’ at the Brisbane Powerhouse (yes, not a pub, but life’s full of contradictions) every couple of months and our next on the evening of Thursday 22 July 2010 is about social networking, and in particular, on whether social networking tools enhance communication or flatten and depersonalize it.

“Nearly everyone is hooked into new social media online, to the point that many of us would find it hard to imagine life without them, but lately we’ve been hearing a lot about the down side of Web 2.0. Cyber-bullying, de-Facebooking, cyber-stalking and the inane micro-commentary of Twitter celebrities” said Nick Collyer.

“This Politics in the Pub will pull back the digital curtain and look at the big picture implications of new social media.”

“‘All That Twitters Is Not Gold’ will have 5 speakers – Ehon Chan, Peter Black, Alissa Phillips, Sarah Moran and Hamish Alcorn – passionate about and expert in this issue.”

When: 7 – 8.30 pm Thursday 22 July 2010
Where: on the Turbine Platform at the Brisbane Powerhouse

I agree with all the above just not quite the part on befriending my mum on Facebook and the internet filtering. Honestly, I don’t know how many teenagers would actually befriend their mothers on Facebook – I know, back when I was a teenager, I definitely wouldn’t. Now, there is a whole conversation going on about cyber-safety, and what anger me the most is the internet filtering.

My point of view is that cyber safety is not too far different than “real-life” safety. In the same way that you do not disclose personal information and engage yourself in unknown and unfamiliar relationships, put yourself in vulnerable situations or put yourself to places you don’t want to be in real life, its exactly the same online!

On the whole idea on privacy, there is no such thing as privacy online if you choose to put your information online. If you want your address and mobile number to be private, keep it to yourself – don’t post it anywhere online, nor share it with your family and friends “offline”. I think that is fundamentally what online safety should be about – we need to understand that the “real world” and the “digital world” in our current age is not a clear cut line anymore. The younger generations have both their lives online and offline converging more and more, so the conversation isn’t so much just about cyber-safety but “real-life” safety as well.

We need to rethink how we engage our children and youth online – the media that they’re using and how we could potentially support them in using these digital media in appropriate ways. Having conversations with children about their online activities isn’t the worse idea, except not quite what most people think. I am talking about having your children tell you about online safety. In yesterday’s Pew Internet & American Life Project report, “Reputation Management and Social Media“, young people actually have a better idea on cyber-safety than most adults.

44% of young adult Internet users say they take steps to limit the amount of information available about them, compared to 33% of users ages 30 to 49 and 25% of those ages 50 to 64.

71% of younger social networking site users actively change their privacy settings to limit what they share with others online, compared to 55% of those 50 to 64.

41% have removed their names from photos of them posted by others, compared to just 18% of those 50 to 64.

Having your kids show you the rope around the internet gives you a better view of their online activities and their digital and cyber literacy more than you can get if you ask them directly.

Teenagers turn to the internet as a respite from their everyday life. Internet also gives them the connections they don’t otherwise get access to in real life – this includes connection with peers and like-minded people. Whether this is for friendships or social action, Internet is a huge part of many teenagers’ life. It’s grown from a tool for young people to become a setting for connections, activities and education. In my limited experience as a middle school teacher, students with a healthy “offline” involvement such as volunteering, sports and family events are less likely to be digital natives and spend a lot less time online.

My suggestions to parents with adolescents and teenagers would be:

The Australian Joint Select Committee on Cyber-Safety is calling for submissions from individuals and organisations on privacy, online safety and abuse e.g. cyberbullying, inappropriate online behaviour, online environments young Australians are engaged in, etc.

To Mama With Love is a collaborative online art project that honors moms across the globe and raises funds to invest in one remarkable Mama who dreams of building a home for children in her village. Funds raised will be invested in support of Mama Lucy Kamptoni, a remarkable grassroots changemaker in Tanzania. Her next goal, which To Mama With Love seeks to fund, is to build a boarding facility on campus so that every child who attends her school has a place to call home.

Mama Lucy is an incredibly woman with extraordinary determination to change her community. On many levels, she is an inspiration to change makers worldwide. With a vision in mind, she sets out to change her community with whatever resources she has.

My village in Arusha, Tanzania did not have good schools. So, I started Shepherds Junior School in 2003 with money I raised from a small chicken farm. I began with only 10 students. With the help of Epic Change, now I serve more than 411 kids

Why is it worth investing?
To Mama With Love is more than a charity, its an investment. It’s an investment into the future of these kids and all the kids in generations to come who will have the opportunity to schooling.

The school, built in 2003 now serve more than 411 kids and in 2008, it was ranked #2 out of 118 area schools in the national exams. Giving access to education to these kids is not only changing their live, but changing their community and the nation. They have the determination, the inspiration and have put in the hardwork, its only fair that we give them our support.

We want to build a safe, and loving children’s home & boarding facility on the campus of Sheperds Junior School. A place where these courageous students can call home.

What can you do?
Those who reads this blogs probably are doing a lot of charities already, but I would be really happy if you’d come on board and help us make this movement a success. Make a heartspace for someone who has inspired you, who have played a mother figure at some points in your life, or even to your nephews and nieces as a gift to your mom.

This is not about charity, this is love. This is an investment. This is change and this is hope. This is about you and me, providing the resources to a group of inspired future leaders so they can bring about change. Make a heartspace and let me know how you go.

Out of curiosity, how did you get started with volunteering? I believe that’s a story I’m yet to hear.

And just yesterday, I came across @StaceyMonk’s story of his little brother, Joshua and her journey to becoming a social change leader, and I wept. So, I thought I would share my story.

In some ways, my story is not too far different from Stacey’s. I was your typical, slightly rebellious kid growing up. We were poor but I was incredibly resilient and stubborn in nature. Due to my families’ financial struggle, we were brought up in a modest and humble environment. Some of those values still stay with me until today – e.g. my best friends, like @SarahMoran, know that I cannot bear seeing food being wasted. When I was young, we have 3 meals and 3 meals only – there were never more or enough to spare.

My “journey” (for lack of better words, as wanky/uncool as that sounds) started about 7 years ago. I received a call after a 3-day vacation, to inform me that my closest mate died in a drowning accident. It tore my life apart and I wrote about it here. Even up until today, I can still remember those days rather vividly.

For 3 months, I was living in transition. Neither here nor there, neither alive nor dead. I was in a space where my perception of the world and life was displaced and I was questioning everything about life, including the essence of life and being alive.

Those much needed 3 months helped me to drill to the core of life.

Chinese character 'Wu' which translates to 'Nothingness' or 'Without'.

“Inability to accept the mystic experience is an intellectual handicap. Lack of awareness of the basic unity of organism and environment is a serious and dangerous hallucination. For in a civilisation equipped with immense technological power, the sense of alienation between man and nature leads to the use of technology in a hostile spirit – to the ‘conquest’ of nature instead of intelligent co-operation with nature.” – Allan Watts

Australian Red Cross – teaming up with other Red Cross and Red Crescent around the world to provide relief.

Oxfam Australia – responding with public health, water, and sanitation services to prevent the spread of disease.

Médecins Sans Frontières Australia – medical projects and are now helping to treat the injured.

Plan International – focus on water, sanitation, health, shelter and child protection.

Half a million people predicted dead. If there is a good time to open up your heart and empty your wallet, this is the time to do so.

* Pictures taken from Brisbane Times and information from SBS Word News

Wish Beth a happy birthday and help her make her wish come true – http://bit.ly/beth53

After my first glance at the paper, my enthusiasm immediately died down by 20%. There were 5 columns – First Name, Last Name, Mobile, Address and Email Address.

I know that there used to be a perception that the more details you get from someone, the more you can keep that person in because you can easily hunt them down. However, those are red tapes that first put people off.

We’re moving towards a 140 characters world, where every character counts and if you don’t need those information, don’t ask for it. Looking through your database, do you see any information of your stakeholders that you’ve never used? Such as address – what do you do with them? Those extra information, although comes in handy when you need it, but the chances of you needing them is not worth wasting your computer’s space, administration managing the database and the person filling in all these information that you don’t need.

It’s easy to be sucked into thinking that the more, the better but in a world where resources are limited, you want to be efficient and straight to the point. Managing extra things that will give you limited outcomes is only a waste of time and resources. In a non-profit settings, you cannot afford to waste any of those. As far as thinking ahead goes, its about narrowing it down to the niche and efficiency.

That also applies to organisation managing social media. A lot of time, organisation jumps on the bandwagon because everyone’s on it, but if social media does not have the audience that will benefit your organisation its just another waste of resource.

A few years ago, I got hold of a copy of the Good Giving Guide by Give Well. I was actually shocked at a number charities’ overhead ratios – which is basically the ratio or percentage of money used to cover the administrative and all other incurred costs. If you get a chance, I strongly recommend anyone whose interested in the area of non-profit to have a look, although bear in mind that overhead ratio does not tell you the meaningful work that the non-profit does.

Over the past few days, as the holiday season draws near, talk around giving also started to surfaced\ and being the geeky person that I am, I’m subscribed to a few blogs that’s been talking about it quite a bit. The ‘controversy’ lies around giving based on overhead ratio.

Tim Ogden over at Philanthropy Action raised a number of very important points and have been advocating for people to not give purely based on overhead ratio .

• It tells you nothing about the impact the charity has on people it’s trying to help
• The rules for determining overhead costs are vague and every charity interprets them differently
• Accounting experts estimate that 75% of charities calculate their overhead ratio incorrectly
• It discourages charities from investing in tools and expertise that would make them more effective

Allison Fine actually took a really strong stance on the issue, which criticised the organisations that introduced, advocated and promoted the use of overhead ratio to measure the efficiency of non-profit in the first place. Ken Berger in his blog also pointed out that beyond overhead ratio, we need to take into consideration the organisation’s:

1. Financial health – Is the nonprofit sustainable? Does it have robust financial strength to survive in good times and bad? Is the overhead not at the extreme end of the continuum?
2. Accountability – Does the organization have ethical practices, good governance and transparency? Is it accountable to its constituents?
3. Outcomes – Can the nonprofit supply information about meaningful and lasting change in the communities and lives of the people it serves? Can they show evidence that these changes are as a result of their efforts? Do they have systems and processes in place to effectively manage their performance?

I strongly agree with the three points that Ken raised. Having said that, I think this calls for organisations to actually take evaluations of their programs more seriously but more so, calls for more transparency and accountability. I know that this puts extra burden on organisations, but I think that in the long run, its a lot more beneficial for the organisation and the community. It allows the organisation to build trust, thus leading to satisfaction and engagement with its stakeholders – whether it be volunteers, staff or supporters.

The evaluation also allows the organisation take a reality check on its progress – the level of meaningful engagement its doing, the effectiveness and also it allows the organisation to understand its audience. This information is useful for the organisation to ensure its impact, but used wisely, it could also benefit in its fundraising effort. For example, understanding your audience can help you target the groups directly related to the audience that you are impacting on. Although your audience gains the most benefits from your service, often, its the groups that is directly related to you audience that sees the impact and ‘give back’ to your organisation.

Back to my opinion of giving, I’ve never considered overhead ratio as an influence on my giving. Afterall, I disagree with cutting down costs just because you’re non-profit. Thinking like a ‘non-profit’ will not do any organisation good (limited resources, unlimited work to do). The first step to thinking non-profit like a business/enterprise. Compelling equity is one of the keys to engaging your stakeholders and ensure dedication from them.

I often look at the work that the organisation is doing – the direct outcome, the accountability and sustainability of the organisation. It makes me feel good, and I think that is the number one factor that influence giving. But perhaps, this Christmas, as donors, we need to think more about our giving. It seems like we don’t matter but the way we give ultimately sets a culture that promotes accountability from non-profits.

I think Ken’s final paragraph would be a nice conclusion to this long post:

We believe like many others that this is a critical battle for the very soul of the nonprofit sector. We MUST get past the notion of doing the “good work” with no accountability. We MUST get past the idea that nonprofits are too complex or unique to be measured. I have seen it close up for years and it is not a pretty picture. The nonprofit sector must get its act together and make sure it is really helping provide meaningful change in communities and peoples lives. It is life or death for many of those we serve whether we are effective or not. So let’s work together to measure, manage and deliver what is really important to make our world a better place.

Do you care about an organisation / service’s performance before you give? Love to hear your thoughts.

After his own experience with his cousin’s suicide and acknowledging that youth suicide was and still is the leading cause of death amongst young people, and mental health issues remain a stigma and public health concern that has not received much public attention, Jack set out to do something about it.

So with an idea in mind and a trust in technology, Jack sets out what he wanted to do – come up with a website that to reduce the escalating youth suicide rate.

Balance Between Evidence-Based and Innovation
I am one of the lucky few who can testify that meeting Jack and having a coffee with him is an inspiring event.

Jack was smart, right from the start – he knew that there needs to be a balance between evidence-based and being innovative, and a leader in the field. He set up the Inspire Foundation, a non-profit that utilises information communication technology to improve the mental health and wellbeing of young people. It runs two programs – ActNow and Reach Out.

Reach Out became the first online program that addresses youth suicide and is probably one of the first that uses a youth advisory board to ensure that the program remains relevant for young people.

Reach Out also came out with the first, award-winning serious game, Reach Out Central, that combines gaming and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help young people develop skills for life.

Recognising Internet as a Setting
Recognising the internet as a setting where young people converge, exchange ideas, develop resources and have conversation, and acknowledging the potential of young people, Inspire made a move towards user generated content, inviting young people in the organisation’s work in social change.

Inspire's Program Model

ActNow raises the awareness of social issues and connects young people with opportunities in their community, and develop resources to help young people take action they are interested in.

Between the Lines is a community for young people aged 18 – 25 that enables them to make informed decisions and reduce problematic drug & alcohol use.

Inspire has since grown to America and Ireland. Inspire has also launched a Teacher’s Network, providing resources to help teachers use Reach Out in their classroom and Reach Out Pro, providing access and advice for health care professionals on a range of technologies and online resources that can be used to enhance the effectiveness of psychosocial support and mental health care provided to young people.

Inspire’s Success
Inspire’s main factor of success is recognising the potential of technology. We are at the Intelligent or some say, Connected Age where we are more connected than ever before. Technology is becoming smaller, cheaper, more mobile and easier to access. It has help us to reach even the hardest to reach communities, the challenge is now to think outside the box and combining the knowledge of community development and technology to address social needs.

Ashoka: Innovators for the Public are hosting Tech 4 Society, a conference exploring technology, invention and social change, in Hyderabad, India, in February 2009. Find out more about the conference here. This blog post is an entry in their competition to find the official blogger to travel to and cover the event.