[Coral-List] Effective communications tools?

Christine Beggs christinenbeggs at gmail.com
Wed Jan 9 08:44:53 EST 2013


Hello Milton,

Yes, IdealWare, similar to Convio <http://www.convio.com/>, is an effective
software package for providing centralized outreach and fundraising
solutions for nonprofits. NTEN, while not a software, is a wonderful
resource for how to utilize technology for causes. They provide a number of
free webinars and learning materials on how to increase engagement and
measure social change.

As new media platforms evolve, I wonder at the need for such software
packages and solutions, especially for smaller organizations and of course,
individuals. There seems to be a widening gap in the availability of and
access to new communication tools, such as social media, and the knowledge
of how to use them to their fullest capabilities.

Given the right educational resources and training, I think individuals and
organizations can harness the power of social media for social change (or
at the very least, for effective communications) without the need to
outsource the tasks to a centralized solution package.

For fundraising, there are a number of scientists and labs successfully
funding their research projects directly online (circumventing the ever
shrinking pool of governmental and private sector grants). RocketHub's
#SciFund campaigns are a great example and a number of the coral reef
projects have been successfully funded - ex.
http://www.rockethub.com/projects/11908-have-tobago-s-corals-survived-mass-bleaching.
There are also some niche science crowdfunding sites, like
PetriDish<http://www.petridish.org/>and
IAmScientist <http://www.iamscientist.com/>. Of course, such crowdfunding
campaigns hinge on both the size and interactivity (or engagement) of your
online following.

For effective social media communications, there are a few valuable free
resources:

   - Christie Wilcox's <http://socialmediaforscientists.wikispaces.com>Social
   Networking for
Scientists<http://socialnetworkingforscientists.wikispaces.com/>and
Social
   Media for Scientists <http://socialmediaforscientists.wikispaces.com>wikis
   - Social Media for Scientists: A
lecture<http://scienceofblogging.com/social-media-for-scientists-a-lecture/>
   - And the annual ScienceOnline <http://scienceonline.com/> conference
   boasts tons of useful workshops and lectures (though fills up incredibly
   fast)


I definitely hope to see more resources and guides becoming available for
scientists and conservationists regarding effective online communications
and outreach campaigns.


Cheers,


Twitter <http://twitter.com/projectbluehope><http://twitter.com/projectbluehope><http://twitter.com/projectbluehope>
Facebook<http://www.facebook.com/#%21/pages/Project-Blue-Hope/169630666405217>
Youtube <http://www.youtube.com/ProjectBlueHope>

*Christine Beggs*
Founder, Project Blue Hope
www.ProjectBlueHope.com <http://www.projectbluehope.com/>

*"The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason to
hope."  **~ Pierre Chardin*



On Wed, Jan 2, 2013 at 10:44 AM, RainbowWarriorsInternational <
southern_caribbean at yahoo.com> wrote:

> There are at least two influential outfits in the USA dealing with ICT
> tools, IdealWare and NTEN. They provide regular reports on how ICT is used
> by non-profits.
>
> You have stumbled upon an issue which is better covered in the European
> Union (EU) than in the USA, primarily because more structured funding
> exists in the European Union to promote open science, ICT for development
> in both the EU and the rest of the world.
>
>
> Milton Ponson, President
> Rainbow Warriors Core Foundation
> (Rainbow Warriors International)
> Tel. +297 568 5908
> PO Box 1154, Oranjestad
> Aruba, Dutch Caribbean
> Email: southern_caribbean at yahoo.com
> http://www.rainbowwarriors.net
>
> *To unite humanity in a global society dedicated to a sustainable way of
> life*
>
>   ------------------------------
> *From:* Christine Beggs <christinenbeggs at gmail.com>
> *To:* coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> *Sent:* Wednesday, December 26, 2012 1:41 PM
>
> *Subject:* Re: [Coral-List] Effective communications tools?
>
> Hello Katie,
>
> I'm a Master's student in Marine Affairs and Policy at the University of
> Miami's Rosenstiel School for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences conducting my
> internship with the Isabela Oceanographic Institute, a nonprofit
> organization dedicated to conservation through education. We've seen some
> initial communication successes through development of an online outreach
> campaign - consisting primarily of a Facebook fan page, online newsletter
> and short video series. We've been able to extend our daily interactions
> with the local community online, utilizing a Facebook fan page to recognize
> and thank local supporters and volunteers and sharing pictures of our work
> at http://facebook.com/ioigalapagos.
>
> There are so many social media tools out there today, it can be difficult
> to decide how to get started and which platforms to concentrate your
> efforts on. I've just finished writing an ebook entitled "Social Media for
> Science & Conservation: A Guide to Making an Impact in the Digital
> Age<
> http://projectbluehope.com/product/social-media-for-science-and-conservation/
> >"
>
> that may be of interest. The ebook is approximately 90 pages long
> addressing
> * *the “who, what, where, when, why and how” of social media usage for
>
> science and environmental communications. Its full of social media
> strategies currently being employed by scientists, individual and
> non-profits and includes step-by-step instructions on how to get started
> using various social media platforms professionally. I've highlighted some
> great examples of scientists, students and organizations who are
> effectivelyusing social media to
>
> communicate science and conservation messages to a wider audience.
>
> Feel free to contact me directly if you wanted to talk over some online
> outreach ideas. Videos and a Facebook page could be a really great option
> for establishing a two way communication. You can engage in discussions
> over local issues and I've found people are generally willing to contribute
> quite a bit when they know they are being heard. But certainly depends on
> the community's access to and usage of new technologies. Perhaps the
> biggest questions to investigate first are: How is your community
> communicating? What (if any) online tools do they use? Whether its Twitter
> or email or cell phones, find out what they use to communicate with the
> most and be sure you're reaching them via those same platforms.
>
> Also, in 2008, Conservation Magazine published an article entitled, '10
> Solutions to Save the
> Ocean<
> http://www.conservationmagazine.org/2008/07/10-solutions-to-save-the-ocean/
> >.'
>
> There's a great section about using text messaging for marine conservation.
> A quick, inexpensive method of communicating, some conservation
> organizations were effectively mobilizing action, obtaining information and
> eliciting support by having stakeholders send them text messages.
>
> The author writes:
>
> 'In the central Philippines, my colleagues and I have fostered an alliance
> of nearly 900 fishing families who send text messages to coordinate
> conservation efforts across a 150-kilometer arc of isolated reef atolls.
> Using cell phones donated by various Filipino sources, these fishers can
> alert the provincial environmental management office and local police when
> they observe illegal dynamite and trawl fishing, which have helped push
> many of their coastal ecosystems to the brink of collapse. The alliance
> leaders have also reported rampant violations and bureaucratic inertia to
> the national media through text messages and have given interviews by
> return text.'
>
> Good luck and hope this helps!
>
>
>
> Best,
>
> Twitter <http://twitter.com/projectbluehope><
> http://twitter.com/projectbluehope><http://twitter.com/projectbluehope>
> Facebook<
> http://www.facebook.com/#%21/pages/Project-Blue-Hope/169630666405217>
> Youtube <http://www.youtube.com/ProjectBlueHope>
>
> *Christine Beggs*
> Founder, Project Blue Hope
> www.ProjectBlueHope.com <http://www.projectbluehope.com/> <
> http://www.projectbluehope.com/>
>
> *"The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason to
> hope."  **~ Pierre Chardin
>
>
>
> *On Wed, Dec 19, 2012 at 12:00 PM,
>
> <coral-list-request at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>wrote:
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Wed, 19 Dec 2012 11:25:53 -0400
> From: Katherine McLean <kmclean at lakeheadu.ca>
> Subject: [Coral-List] Effective communications tools?
> To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> Message-ID:
>         <CAGZfut8XVtoh7UJf83SgH9fT+n0VqZA5fAVkZe+
> ccC0ZdaDC0g at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252
>
> I work with a small eNGO that operates in the Caribbean. One of the major
> challenges I am currently facing is the development of effective outreach
> and education campaigns to support our various projects. These projects
> generally deal with coastal resource management issues (fishing, coastal
> development? the usual for a small Caribbean Island). I am hoping that
> there are some of you out there who have recommendations of particularly
> effective communications tools that have been successful in community
> outreach efforts.
>
>
>
> I am not sure that our pamphlets and other papers are very well received by
> fisherfolk, and community meetings are often expensive and poorly attended.
> We are starting to try out hand at videos/documentaries.
>
>
>
> Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Please contact me at
> kmclean at lakeheadu.ca.
>
> Thanks and happy holidays!
>
>
>
> Katie McLean
> _______________________________________________
> Coral-List mailing list
> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>
>
>


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