Hey folks, I just wanted to diary about something cool and interesting that I ran across when working on the Netroots Platform. It’s OneWebDay, an event taking place live and online all around the world on Sept 22. This is the 3rd OneWebDay, which always takes place on 9/22(an echo of April 22, Earth Day).
I’ll let the mission speak for itself. Because of the focus on participation in democracy this year, mixedink and the Netroots Platform were invited serve as ambassadors to OneWebDay. I have to say when I look at the ambassador's lists and postings (you can learn about them by scrolling through the main page blogposts), I feel honored and excited that Netroots Platform is among them.
Touted as the Web’s "Earth Day" OneWebDay was launched to focus attention on a key internet value (this year, online participation in democracy), focus attention on local internet concerns (connectivity, censorship, individual skills), and create a global constituency that cares about protecting and defending the internet. It’s a platform for people to educate and activate others about issues that are important for the Internet’s future. During the run up to One Web Day, people post about projects that are relevant to the theme and on September 22 there are on and offline events taking place all across the globe. The object is not just to talk to techies but to get everyone involved as they see this medium as not distant from them, but critical to a democratic future.
OneWebDay is developing a banner list of participants:
In the US, where OneWebDay was founded, participation is stronger than ever. Key figures involved include Tim Westergren (Pandora) and Larry Lessig, speaking in NYC; the Future of Music campaign and Rock the Net, in Chicago; the Berkman Center at Harvard; a host of public interest groups in Washington; the City of San Francisco (using OWD to install tech centers in low-income housing using refurbished City computers); Doc Searls, Craig Newmark, David Weinberger, Mary Hodder,
Craig Newmark[catch the funny youtube of Craig taking a break at DNC], Jimmy Wales, Joichi Ito, Jerry Michalski, Deb Schultz, and a huge host of volunteers.
Susan Crawford, one of the founders of OneWebDay spoke about the reasons behind this initiative at 2008 National Conference for Media Reform She emphasized the key points behind OneWebDay—there are serious threats as we know to this highly democratizing medium, and we need to be prepared to defend it against command and control models, and to raise awareness of the issues.
- This year, the overarching theme of OneWebDay is the way that the internet makes possible participation in democracy, not just in elections, but in governance long term and our ability to see into and have an impact on policy making. We can use the "event" to raise consciousness about the importance of an open internet to the democratic function. On that front here is the Netroots Platform posting to OneWebDay.
- It’s a truly global event: Theme 2 is to focus on areas of concern to local communities : inadequate connectivity, censorship, digital divide, skills divide, and to use the events scheduled to educate others.
- The overarching goal: to create a global constituency, beyond the usual suspects (such as ourselves) that cares about and understands the issues and will rise up when stupid policies come down the pike backed by powerful people.
Ambassadors to OneWebDay are bringing attention to events taking place all around the world, which in turn will help make the issues and concerns that often seem invisible, visible from space. Those that want to, may wish to get involved. As Craig Newmark put it--OneWebDay celebrates the idea that the internet really does bring people together and breaks barriers all around the world and reminds us that we have more in common than that which divides us.
Here are some of the events taking place around the globe:
New York
http://www.onewebday.org/...
Milwaukee
http://www.onewebday.org/...
Sofia Bulgaria
http://www.onewebday.org/...
Israel
http://www.onewebday.org/...
Melbourne
http://www.onewebday.org/...