Archive for October, 2008

So much happened during the three days of MobileActive08 it is difficult to do justice reporting on all of the connections participants made with each other as a result of attending the conference. The list-serve established for conference participants to communicate with each other is still ringing with energy and affirmations that the “conference was life changing”.

The format of the conference seems to have had a great deal to do with this. The second half of day 2 and the morning of day 3 were dedicated to providing space for participants to identify topics or possible initiatives they wanted to explore further with others. The schedule board established for assisting with this process quickly filled up and once again participants faced difficult choices regarding which sessions to attend.

I had a very interesting discussion the day before with Nithya Ramanathan, one of the speakers from my workshop exploring state of the art mobile applications in the field of environmental sustainability, regarding possible future mobile applications that could build on the work of the UCLA Center for Embedded Networked Sensing (CENS) where she does her research. We decided to host one of these spontaneous sessions on day 3 to explore the topic of large scale information gathering using mobiles for advocacy. It ended up being well attended by representatives from environmental organizations such as Greenpeace; civil society organizations for ending poverty and injustice; as well as those working to challenge current practises of extractive industries. We discussed the merits of gathering information via mobiles for anecdotal evidence versus scientific data.

The one challenge facing the collection of scientific data via mobiles is its defensibility it term of accuracy and the reliability of its source. The merits of facing such challenges with overwhelming and compelling volumes of data was explored. Ultimately an approach of engaging a user base to strengthen our understanding of facts already established with the aim of using data or information they can provide to make the case they support more compelling or convincing to decision makers was thought the most realistic and worthwhile goal to pursue.

Examples to support this that were explored included having asthmatics citywide regularly reporting on difficultly they were having with their condition and correlating this with air pollution readings. The connection between the two is already well established scientifically but having such data collected via mobiles and presented real time on a website could help put pressure on decision makers to take action against air pollution in our cities.

Like the other participants at MobileActive08 I was quite happy with all of the connections I was able to make there. I will not list them all here but one of particular interest worth mentioning is Greenpeace China. Until this conference I was not aware that Greenpeace had a chapter active in China. It is apparently listed as a corporation instead of an NGO to avoid government restrictions placed on NGO activities there.

They are exploring how to use ICT applications to build cases for and organize challenges against the unsustainable practices of many industries operating in China while working within the constraints that an organization such as Greenpeace faces in China. At the conference they were reaching out to other organizations expressing interest in partnerships and possibilities for having their experiences with this documented and compared with those elsewhere around to globe. MobileActive08 can claim credit for having helped create an invaluable space for Greenpeace China and many other organizations looking to explore how mobile applications can help them achieve their goals of social change.

Through its involvement in global processes aiming to leverage ICTs for achieving development goals IISD has noted a lack of interaction between stakeholders of the global connectivity system primarily concerned with the economic development potential of ICTs, and sustainable development stakeholders focused on grassroots social development and environmental issues (http://www.iisd.org/infosoc/issd/).

For me MobileActive08 has been a real-time demonstration of what is possible when the ICT experts and grassroots social development communities effectively work together. The collaborative sessions of the first two days of the conference brought together many beginner users of mobile tools from the NGO community, experienced designers and “hackers” of these technologies. How they met on common ground was the power of this conference for many participants.

I was fortunate to have organized a workshop exploring state of the art mobile applications in the field of environmental sustainability where such dialogue flourished. Hernán Nadal of Greenpeace Argentina shared his experiences using SMS for organizing their campaign to change forestry laws. The details he shared regarding his experiences with service providers and how their pricing models, biased towards cooperate use, pose particular challenges for NGOs attempting to scale their use of SMS services was of particular interest for many participants.

Barry Coetzee shared a homegrown strategy for delivering a bulk SMS capability equivalent to such corporate services that iVeri Payment Technologies developed for their NGO partner the Southern African Sustainable Seafood Initiative (SASSI). It is these kind of partnerships and sharing of best practices between NGO project staff and technology experts that is really going to move forward the effective use of the institutions and ICT tools for achieving sustainable development objectives.

I have been fortunate to have witnessed firsthand countless examples at MobileActive08 of how this happening in the emerging field of mobile applications for social change.

MobileActive08, “Unlocking the Potential of Mobile Technology for Social Impact” (http://www.mobileactive08.org/) is a conference bursting at the seams. Or as the organizer Katrin Verclas would say, it is a field in its own right, one that did not even exist three years ago. As a sign of the level of activity associated with this emerging field, registration numbers, which were intentionally capped at 300, could have easily swelled to more than 450 according to Katrin. Apparently people have been Twittering each other trying to find people willing to scalp their passes to the event.

Why the popularity? If the informal gathering I joined Sunday evening at the Wish Cafe in the heart of Melville is any indication I would say it has to do with the optimism people feel regarding the potential for mobile technology to be a successful tool for achieving social impact. With the ITU projecting global mobile subscriptions to surpass 4 billion by the end of this year it is clear that mobiles are being adopted in developing regions, including those inhabited by the majority of the world’s poor, at unprecedented rates.

With this access technology already in the hands of many of the intended beneficiaries of NGO led social development initiatives, some of the energy spent in the past to overcome the challenges of technology adoption can be increasingly directed towards the development of innovative applications for achieving social impact that builds on uses of this access technology already evolving in these settings. The participants that I have met so far are keen to share and exchange their experiences working on leading edge applications in this field which is sure to further add to the energy of this event.

One person I talked with characterized the participants set to convene at MobileActive08 as “geeks on a mission.” Given the range of exciting and innovative applications people shared with me at the informal gathering their missions seem very well thought out embodying many well learnt lessons from ICT4D initiatives of the past. I look forward to reporting on more details as the conference unfolds.

Day 3: Tuesday October 7, 2008

Today we attended two Youth Forums. The first was regarding Intergenerational Partnerships fostering Ethical Leadership for a Just, Sustainable and Peaceful World. This event was about bringing the IUCN family together: the Secretariat, The Commissions. And the Members together to discuss how to better integrate intergenerational issues as it was recommended in Bangkok, at the previous IUCN Congress in 2004 and inline with the Earth Charter principles.

The Second Youth Forum dealt with shaping the European Youth Perspective for Sustaining the Future. A European Youth Group called AEGEE, who are made up of different European University Students from all over Europe, organized this session. This forum discussed how these students are integrating sustainability issues facing Europe into their work plans. They stated that they are doing this in two ways: first, by creating Environmental Working groups within their local universities, the second aspect is that they are involved in two-year projects regarding sustainable issues.

Day 4: Wednesday October 8, 2008

Today we attended two other Youth Events. First we attended a session organized by The Pacific Youth Forum, made up of students from the different Islands in the South Pacific such as Fuji and the Cook Islands. This event focused on bringing awareness to the Sustainable issues facing the islands and how the Youth can better get involved in finding solutions together with traditional elders and political leaders on their respective Islands. These Youth work to bring change in their region through the use of song and dance. We were luckily enough to be able to watch several traditional performances which they gave.

The second session we attended was one that highlighted the wonderful achievements of Youth around the world as they work to improve the current state of conservation of natural resources and wildlife on Earth. These Youth, who were from Nepal, Canada, Russia and Rwanda, shared with us their experiences. One of the Youth participants of this event from Rwanda, Edwin Sabuhoro, had won the WCPA scholarship for his accomplishments in protecting and conserving Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda, which were highly endangered.

The Sustainable Leaders workshop is tomorrow. We have been preparing for it, working hard to get the word out at other events to increase youth and other interested participant numbers.

Day 5: Thursday October 9, 2008

The Workshop went superb. We had an amazing turn out. It was an alliance workshop sponsored by IISD along with IUCN:WWCP, IUCN:CEC, World Wildlife Fund, LEAD International, RAMSAR, IIED and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. A key highlight was the signing of the MOU. This was signed between IUCN, LEAD International, WWF, and IISD. This is an agreement that signifies that collaborative work that will be done together between these organizations in training the New Generation of Sustainable Leaders. The signing of this agreement will hopefully move the process forward at a faster pace. Julia Morten-Lefevre, the Secretary-General of IUCN, pledged her commitment to this agreement and expressed her enthusiasm.

The high number of interest participants who attended was an overwhelming response. We did not have enough seats for everyone, so we had many participants who were standing in the back and seating on the floor. We were so happy to see that so many people had so much interest in the workshop and for working towards creating training opportunities for the New Generation of Sustainable Leaders. We thank Carolee Buckler, Heather Creech, Elise Rusingizandekwe, Kristy Faccer, Laura de Kreji, Bernard Coetzee, Edward Kellow, Catherine Mutambirwa, Moia Hartop, Robert Soutter, Dominic Stucker, Gillian Martin Mehers, Djinn Pourkiani, Marion Oliver, Laura Normand, to everyone else for all their hard work and involvement in putting together this event and a special thanks to Julia Morten-Lefevre.

The closing ceremony was insightful and entertaining. There was a presentation given on Biomimicry: Innovations Inspired by Nature, a representative for the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and a beautiful performance from musicians from around the world.

Now the congress is over. It has been an exciting time for many of us. This congress has taught us a great deal and has given many of us an insight to what and where we would like to go from here. We have had many networking opportunities and chances to develop and build our capacities.

We look forward to the Next IUCN Congress.

Faiza Farah

An exciting event will be taking place today at the IUCN Congress. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, The International Institute for Sustainable Development, Leadership for Environment and Development, and WWF International – the World Wide Fund For Nature, will establish a consortium to coordinate next generation leadership training across the IUCN Secretariat, Membership, Commissions and beyond.

The memorandum of understanding provides a general framework and a guiding tool in identifying and carrying out specific collaborative projects and activities to accelerate efforts to train the next generation of sustainable development leaders.

The world is on the cusp of dramatic global change and we will need strong leadership to help us adapt and mitigate the effects of such things as climate change over the next 10 to 20 years, according to the International Institute for Sustainable Development.

“The goal of the consortium is to ensure sustainable development work being done today is continued into the future,” says Heather Creech, IISD Director of the Knowledge Communications.

This will require a new generation of leaders prepared in fundamentally new ways to think and act in a way that matches the scale of the challenge. The consortium will focus on equipping young professionals with the knowledge, skills and values necessary to lead for success in an era of unprecedented challenges.

The joint initiative is being officially launched on Thursday, October 9, 2008, with the signing of the MOU by Julia Marton-Lefevre Director General of IUCN, Heather Creech, Director of Knowledge Communications IISD, Edward Kellow, Director of Training, and WWF Gordon Shepherd, Director of International Policy Thursday at the World Conservation Forum.

Where:

Supporting the Next Generation of Sustainable Development Leadership Workshop

Fourth IUCN World Conservation Congress; Barcelona, Spain

• When: Thursday, October 9, 2008
• Time: 14:30-16:00h
• Location: CCIB 127

Hello Readers,

I wanted to let everyone know that you can now access the presentation, event recording and proceedings of the 28^th CSIN Learning Event, Measuring Success – Indicators for Strategic Approaches to Sustainable Community Planning, which took place on September 30^th 2008 with Alaya Boisvert, Sarah Cheevers and Karen Stroebel on the CSIN website http://www.csin-rcid.ca/learning_events.aspx.

Cheers,

Christa