Digital Bridge Institute organises ICT and NGO Forum

I was invited to participate yesterday in a forum organised by the Digital Bridge Institute in conjunction with Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Georgia Tech University and the MacArthur Foundation.

The meeting started on Tuesday, but the first two days were limited to MacArthur grantees and some close colleagues of Harvard and Georgia Tech. On Thursday, the forum was opened up to heads of up to 100 Nigerian NGOs.

It was my first time at the Institute and I was impressed by how smoothly the registration process proceeded (unlike a certain IT regulatory body's meeting, which I attended recently). And also unlike many other meetings, it started (almost) on time.

The objective of the day's meeting was to explore the ways in which NGOs can employ ICTs to work more efficiently. Colin Maclay of the Berkman Center kicked off the day with a review of the Information & Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D) field. He outlined that he found this area interesting because:
- ICTs are a catalyst for change;
- ICTs offer innovative approaches to change;
- ICTs distribute and decentralise power

As a result, people become the drivers of change because they are the experts on their local issues. This means that it is important for NGOs to learn to engage with the technology available, rather than defer to 'experts' and 'consultants.'

His recommendations for NGOs seeking to use ICTs included:
- Adopting a wider mindset i.e. rethinking how we do our work
- Collaboration between and within sectors, because problems can be tacked from different angles
- Meetings of leadership and working towards consensus. This includes not being afraid to step-up to leadership positions.
- Dialogue and experimentation to see what tools work and to learn from past failures
- looking at how ICTs can be adapted to local needs

Ethan Zukerman (also of Berkman) gave a rousing and engaging presentation on web 2.0 tools and how they were designed to enable non-techies contribute content to the Internet. While this means, that a lot of the content will be fun and light-hearted or 'silly' stuff, that is no indictment on the tools. The user-friendliness of these tools means that can be as easily appropriated for more serious change-making. Examples are the use of Google Earth to track the movements of the Tunisian presidential jet as it carried the First Lady around the world on shopping expeditions; Fixmystreet.com; Ushahidi; Vote Report India.

Key questions to think about for NGOs are:
- How do NGOs get everyone paying attention and watching? (especially using new technologies like blogs, social networking sites; Twitter; bridge blogs)
- How can NGOs filter (to identify what voices should be heard) and amplify (to ensure people hear about it) content?
- How do NGOs use the technology to talk to different audiences? (think online vs. offline audiences; using local languages; using personal stories)

Next up, came the presentations by the Nigerian IT Development Agency (NITDA) and Galaxy Backbone reps. I probably shouldn't slag either of these off too much, as I might want to seek funding from them at some point (see my Twitter feed for more info).

Next, Eric Osiakwan (of africanelections.org), Juliana Rotich (of Ushahidi) and Ethan Zukerman spoke about various uses of new technologies in promoting political participation.

Things got a bit hot when Wale Goodluck (Corporate Services Executive of MTN Nigeria) took the floor. He raced through a presentation on MTN Foundation's community service projects and took questions afterwards. These ranged from angry diatribes about the network's poor service to complaints about unsuccessful grant applications. Others lobbed accusations of Goodluck's inaccessibility to NGOs outside of forums such as these. All through, Goodluck's face was immobile, but I have to say that he responded to these questions and criticisms with good humour.

Fantusam Foundation, the Kafanchan-based NGO which started operations in 1996 in response to the local needs of financial empowerment and has since grown into a thriving organisation was held up as a model for other NGOs seeking to do development work. Although Fantsuam started off with 1 laptop, it has now adopted an integrated approach to development by offering ICT training, ISP services, micro-finance, health awareness and education programmes.

Gbenga Sesan (of Paradigm Initiative Nigeria and Ajegunle.org) and Y.Z. Yau (of the Centre for IT and Development - CITAD) talked about applications of IT to education and health.

The day was capped off with guidance on finding donor funding. This was led by Adam Thompson of the University of California - Santa Cruz and John Bracken of MacArthur Foundation. MacArthur does have a presence in Nigeria, though their programme focus is on Reproductive Health and Human Rights.

Hard truth #1: They turn down 90% of the applications they receive.
Hard truth #2: Most of the NGOs in the room are too small to qualify for funding from the big foundations like Ford
Hard truth #3: There will unlikely be that one big funder who takes care of all your expenses. More likely, you will have to develop multiple income streams and seek ways to offer products or services for a fee.

A member of the audience shared that he ran his organisation for 8 years out of his pocket before being approached by a funder. Bottomline in his opinion: other NGOs need to be willing to do this too.

Ethan Zukerman has detailed posts on his blog and maybe I should just have linked to those instead of writing this lengthy epistle: Post 1; Post 2; Post 3:.

This & That. Plus Chimamanda Adichie Events

I have woefully neglected this blog. I really cannot believe that it's been close to a month since I last posted. And I am not really sure that I could tell you what I was doing in that time that prevented me from blogging. Well, I can, but it just doesn't sound very impressive to tell it.

There were countless arts events that I wanted to announce and blog about, but many have passed. Alas!
So, looking forward....

This Saturday (July 11) at 4PM, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie will be reading from her latest book the Thing Around Your Neck at the Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island, Lagos. I read it a few months ago and it was a tight collection of stories, which deftly wove the immigrant experience with tales of being on the outside. I have also attended a book reading with Ms. Adichie in January 2007 when Half of a Yellow Sun came out and it was a rich and enlightening afternoon for me.

If you are a budding writer, then perhaps you will want to apply for the Farafina Trust Creative Writing Workshop to be held in September 17 - 16, 2009. The workshop will feature Chimamanda along with fellow writers Binyananga Wainaina, Nathan Englander, Jackie Kay and Zoe Heller.

To apply, send an e-mail to udonandu2009@gmail.com (subject should read 'workshop Application'). The body of the e-mail should contain:
- Applicant's Name
- Applicant's Address
- A few sentences about applicant
- A writing sample of between 200 to 800 words (fiction or non-fiction)

Deadline: July 30, 2009

See nbplc.com/newsdetails3.php?action=viewnews&n=35 for more info.

Rediscovering Music: Lenny Williams

I just got a new stereo and haven't been able to connect my iPod to it yet, because it uses a different cable from the last one.

So, instead of having the luxury of listening to my favourite songs from my iPod, I have been forced to listen to entire albums. I don't do this anymore, except for in the car and when I buy a new album (but then I quickly transfer my favourite songs to my iPod).

The surprising thing is that I have been discovering songs on my albums that I somehow overlooked.

First case in point: I have had Lenny Williams' Spark of Love album for at least 6 years and somehow never managed to make it past 'Cause I Love You and Changes.

Now, I've gotten to really listen to and like Half Past Love, I Still Reach Out, Midnight Girl, Think What We Have, You Got Me Running, Freefall (Into Love) and Shoo Doo Fu Fu Ooh!

This I am embarrassed to say is almost the entire album. That is the thing about the best song being the first song. Sometimes you just don't get to the rest of the album.

The Coil Review

A natural hair resource, which I just discovered: the Coil Review.

The Coil Review is your smart and trusted resource for natural coily and
curly textured hair. It offers access to information and inspiration while
putting the spotlight on natural beauty. All this love - for you natural beauties, with natural hair.

Blogging: A Tougher Job Than We Think?

The intro blurb to this article about blogging asked why blogs have a higher failure rate than restaurants. Hmmm, interesting question, I thought. The article explores the challenges of blogging - including how you deal with blogging even when you think no one is reading i.e. "If no one reads your blog, does it really exist?"

This is a problem that many bloggers will face at some point, or more realistically, will continue to deal with as long as they blog.

Many of us, if we are completely honest with ourselves, start to blog filled with the highest aspirations for our blog and the type of followership we expect to nurture, as well as the ways in which we hope to influence the world. What we don't often bargain with is that almost every other blog starts with the same degree of ambition and setting our blog aside takes a great amount of work. In fact to run a really engaging blog could be tantamount to a full-time job what with time to think of topics to blog about, time to live a little so that you have new experiences to share, time to do some research to make your posts sound a bit more informed, time to actually write these posts, and let's not forget the time to respond to commenters on your blog as well as going round other blogs to drop comments there (the online equivalent of networking).

Let's face it: it's incredibly hard work! I shared my own challenges in this earlier post in Nov 2007.

Many of bloggers start out with enthusiasm, but relatively few bloggers find that they can sustain this effort (a 2008 survey by Technorati, which runs a search engine for blogs revealed a whooping 95 percent of abandoned blogs).

Some bloggers who hang in there for the long haul might find their writing style evolving over time (this will almost certainly happen) and maybe choose to reveal less about themselves (I blogged about this in Dec 2006 when I started to be aware of my changing blog personality).

I love how the article ends with the blogger confessing to her continued high expectations from her blog. Frankly, I don't see how you can blog without having bucket-loads of optimism and hope.

Twittering: An Update

I started Twittering close to a year ago and reported at the time that that I didn't really see what the point was. I sensed it might make more sense doing it from a mobile device, rather than having to go online via my computer.

Then this February, I signed up for twe2.com, which allowed me to received direct messages on my mobile phone from my twitter friends. This brought the whole experience a little bit closer to me, although I was slightly frustrated at not being able to sent 'tweets' from my phone. Although there is a UK number listed on the Twitter website that users in Africa can apparently send their tweets to, this has so far not worked for me. Maybe, Nigerians are not welcome for this service ......

Then, finally yesterday I downloaded TwitterBerry, which is a BlackBerry application that enables users to sent tweets from their BlackBerry. At last, this seems like it might start to work for me.

To help make more sense of the micro-blogging tool and especially to understand how it can be used for activism and advocacy, check out DigiActive's Guide to Twitter for Activists.

Then to top things off, we have our own Nigerian version, NaijaPulse, which is great because you get to connect with Nigerian twitterers?/tweeters? In addition you can update your Twitter and Facebook profiles from NaijaPulse.

A Different Path to Love

In a twist on the popular concept of "First comes love, then comes marriage.....", this is an essay on an arranged marriage in the New York Times.

Photo credit: Christopher Silas Neal

Rebecca Walker: How my mother's fanatical views tore us apart

The women's rights movement and feminism has brought many positive changes over the last 100 years in varying degrees around the world, however it's had its fair share of criticsm.

Here, Rebecca Walker, daughter of acclaimed writer and women's rights activist Alice Walker shares her story of growing up with a 'rabid feminist' as a mother.

Exhibiting You

Do you want to share something special about yourself with the world? If you do, then perhaps you'll consider submitting something for the International Museum of Women (IMOW)'s Exhibiting You online exhibition.

Read more:

From January to September 2009, I.M.O.W. is Exhibiting You! As the museum prepares to debut a new online exhibition in October 2009, the I.M.O.W. Web site is showcasing the talents of our global online community.

We're looking for submissions that relate to I.M.O.W.'s mission to value the lives of women around the world.

Submit your work for consideration and share your art, creative writing, journalism, music, audio, photography, video and animation with a global audience.

We'll post new stories on a regular basis and announce Museum Picks in our email newsletter. Submissions that receive the highest star ratings and the most views will also be listed as the most popular stories.

Check the IMOW website for more info.

Job Opportunity: Co-ordinator, Nigerian Feminist Forum

The Nigerian Feminist Forum is looking to hire a capable Co-ordinator Intern to work in the NFF secretariat. Read below for more info:

The co-ordinator will begin the process of chasing up all the things we are supposed to do but have fallen by the wayside, also begin our preparation for the 2010 conference. Must be able to WRITE.

Interested candidates, please send CV's to me. Pass this to your networks. Must be willing to learn, laugh and work all at the same time and very willing to mentor a young one. Must live in Lagos. No issues please. Okay.

Cheers

Iheoma Obibi
Executive Director (Alliance for Africa) & ASHOKA Fellow
iheomaobibi@yahoo.com