Web Thinking: The Manifesto

Our field is maturing rapidly. The next generation of movement leaders is overcoming its fetish with technology and expertise as secrets to online success. Indeed, now faced with existential challenges from a fast shifting landscape, the time has come for us all to rethink our most deeply held tenets in this struggle to remain relevant. Thankfully, a brave few are trying – and they're finding answers. Looking beyond traditional online strategy, they're fundamentally transforming how they and their organizations work – shifting their entire perspective towards what we call "Web Thinking" – to better reflect the reality of our time. And they're winning. They're charting a path forward for us all.

The teams at EchoDitto and Biro Creative have been tracking and studying this shift for more than six years through their work with a wide range of leading social change organizations. After a decade of obsessive technology consumption, the sector is ready for a new chapter. This manifesto reveals new tenets for success. It is a call to arms for our next generation of leaders.

1. We Will Position Ourselves as Movement Leaders
We will be more concerned with our cause, our broader mission in the world than with building a brand or institution. And we will reflect this reality in all of our work. We seek to work across traditional boundaries of race, class, gender identification and religion to build alliances that truly represent the people impacted by our issues. We can't be afraid to talk about other efforts in our space, to link generously and be genuinely proud of the successes of our friends and allies. Their success drives our success and drives the change that makes our existence worthwhile.

2. We Will Engage Web Thinkers in Leadership
We will make it mandatory for the people in charge of Internet and digital strategies to be in senior staff meetings – and be sure they serve at the highest level of the organization. Planning a new campaign or initiative without "new media" at the table is as foolish as holding that same meeting without Communications or Membership Directors.

3. We Will Engage Everyone in Web Thinking
We will understand the difference between IT and the Internet and ensure all staff share responsibility for leveraging the web in their daily work. Not everyone will understand the latest tools and tricks, but collectively, we will appreciate the web's value and the critical role it plays in the lives of our audiences.

4. We Will Hire Digital Natives
We will embrace millennials because we understand the difference between learning about technology and growing up digital – between speaking Internet as a foreign language and speaking web natively. Internet culture is radically changing the way people engage not only with one other but also with organizations. Transparency, collaboration, and open dialog – millennials can show us how to develop these cultural norms and values. We will listen and learn with them.

5. We Will Look Outward
We will value the opinions of users, members and volunteers as highly (or more) than we value our own. Developing a deep understanding of our constituents gives us the information we need to establish strong and trusted relationships. We will talk with our constituents, listen, ask for feedback, and find out what matters most to them.

6. We Will Let Go of Control
We will try to be open and ego-free, and to give our campaigns away. We will trust our supporters with important work – as important as that performed by staff. We will prioritize building systems that enable our audience to carry out our mission, over building departments for doing that work on our own. We will consider it a sign of success to see our brand or message distributed far and wide in ways we could never anticipate. We will add value by providing frameworks, clear theories of change, and even leadership training and empowerment, rather than detailed recipes. The movement adds value by iterating, improving, and innovating on that framework.

7 We Will Tap Our Movements To Get Smarter
We will seek out the collective intelligence of our audience – recognizing it is greater than any number of us sitting around a conference table. By transparently asking for help and ideas when we need them most and by collaborating with partners, we will gain priceless insights and assistance. We will use new tools for facilitating dialogue, enabling the best ideas to rise to the top.

8. We Will Connect People Directly
We want movements – not foot-soldiers. People respond to people, not to brands or figureheads, which is why we will seek ways to connect people with shared passions, both online and in person. We've seen that great things happen when we get out of the way. We will provide connections, support, leadership, direction and venues, but ultimately look to empower people to build strong relationships that don't depend on us.

9. We Will Emulate and Innovate
We will watch intently, study and learn from others in the online space. We will share and track successes and failures. And we will shamelessly incorporate ideas that work. That said, the web is unchartered territory and we will also not be afraid to fail with new ideas. In fact, we will plan to fail. And we will rely on others to tell us where we're off so we can respond. The open source mantra, "release early and often," presents a useful model for organizations prepared to iterate rather than launch fully baked programs.

10. We Will Be Nimble
We will move at the speed of the Internet – and the instantaneous news cycle. We will set up structures that eschew bureaucracy and allow us to move both quickly and strategically. Organizations that are positioned to respond rapidly are rewarded. We will redefine what it means to be proactive on issues. We will create and distribute news directly and we will hijack, adapt, and redirect the traditional news cycle to fit our campaigns and issues.

What does 'satire' mean?

Egypt: Reading about Mounir Said Hanna Marzuq and his sentencing in which he was found guilty of 'satire' after a colleague reported him and his poem to the Egyptian authorities has made me wonder to when will we be living in such authoritarian regimes... He has been sentenced to three years and was fined L.E. 100,000 for insulting president Hosni Mubarak. It seems also that the Orthodox Church leaders of Egypt are working hard to raise 90,000 L.E. to avoid Marzuq's jailing.
What does satire really mean? To when will we accept misinterpretations of laws, constitutions, human rights, etc. and definitely the 'Godly' profile of leaders around this region? What kills me is who told them they were Godlike? Haven't they looked into the mirror? Don't they shit, swear, lie, fart, yearn, desire, etc. like anyone else?
Enough.

Spread the words of Marzuq:
زغلل
ونورد فيما يلي إحدى قصائد منير حنا:
زغلل
زغلل زغلل زغللنى ياللى حبك جننى
زغلل زغلل زغللهم ياللى شكلك جننهم
كورال
زغلل زغلل يا مزغلل زغلل ع الكل خليت الدنيا حلوى وفل الفل
١- المرايا بتزغلل على واحد بس ولكن انت يا مزغلل زغللت الكل
٢- فلاش الكاميرا بيزغلل قبل الصورة ولكن انت يا مزغلل صوت وصورة
٣- زغلل زغلل يا مزغلل منين ماتروح بتخلى الدنيا حلوة وفيها روح
٤- زغلل زغلل يا مزغلل زغلل وقول مش أى حد ينفع يبقى زغلول
٥- اوعى تبطل تزغلل يا واد يا زغلول خليت الدنيا حلوة والفرح يطول
٦- زغلل زغلل ع الليلة وع الحاضرين خليت الناس فى حيرة وكمان تايهين
٧- زغلل زغلل ع الحفلة وع الحاضرين خليت الناس فى غفلة وكمان تايهين
٨- زغلل زغلل ع الفرح وع الحاضرين خليت الناس فى مرح وكمان تايهين

(for further readings check this link)

Kuwait's Salafis call voting for women a sin

KUWAIT: After a long civil rights battle in 2005, Kuwaiti women finally could practice their right to vote. Since then, women had to struggle to put that right into concrete action. Much still needs to be done for women seeking a political role in this oil-rich emirate to prevail over religious conservatives.

Although women have been granted full rights to take part in Kuwait’s general elections, as long as they adhere to Islamic law, their participation in political life is still very modest. According to a report by Freedom House released last year, 27 women ran as candidates in the 2006 and 2008 parliamentary elections. But none of the female candidates have won a seat in the country’s National Assembly so far. The international pro-democracy group also noted that only 35% of Kuwaiti women voted in the 2008 elections.

On Monday, the Salafi movement, which believes in a strict fundamental interpretation of Islam, called for the boycott of female candidates in parliamentary elections scheduled for later this month. Fuhaid Hailam, a Salafi politician, told Al-Arabiya Channel that voting for women was a “sin” in Islam. He based his judgment on a saying by the prophet Muhammad, who reportedly asserted that a nation will not prosper if it is led by women.

The group’s statements were condemned by civil rights groups in Kuwait, which boasts one of the most democratic systems among neighboring kingdoms.

A Short Brief of 2009 Elections:

A total of 108 candidates including five women filed nominations papers for the May 16 general elections on the first day of registration as many hopefuls expected a more-than-normal change in the elections.Twenty-one candidates filed in each of the first and second constituencies, 28 in the third, 26 in the fourth and only 12 in the fifth district.

The May 16 polls will be the second in a year and the third in as many years in this oil-rich Gulf state which has been rocked by a series of political crises. The outgoing parliament was dissolved after Islamist MPs filed three requests to summon the prime minister for public questioning over allegations of misuse of public funds and mismanagement. Since 2006, five governments have resigned and three parliaments have been dissolved in OPEC's fourth largest producer which has amassed a huge surplus but where many development projects have been stalled by political bickering.

Elections in Kuwait is usually an individual process (with the absence of any formal political parties). Citizens base their electoral decisions based on family, clans/tribes and religious sects. With a patriarchal family structure, women have been voting according to what their husbands, brothers and sons have dictated on them. Also another element that was evident in previous elections, is the absence of women trusting other women's abilities.

Mubarak, who became the first women minister in Kuwait in 2005 after women received full political rights, said she was optimistic that she will enter the history books for a second time. "I was the first woman to become a minister. I am looking forward to become the first female to reach the national assembly" she told reporters after registering to contest the polls from the first district. Mubarak resigned after two years in the cabinet after Islamist MPs threatened to grill her over a fire that killed two people in Jahra Hospital in 2007.

Dashti filed to contest her third election and said that chances of women this time look promising since Kuwaiti people are now more aware of women rights and are ready to vote for them. Women, who won the right to vote in 2005, are taking part for the third time as both voters and candidates. They constitute 54.3 percent of the total eligible voters of 385,000. In the past two elections, a total of 54 women candidates have stood but without success.

(For further information check this out)

Kuwait emir calls fresh election once again!

KUWAIT: Kuwait's ruler has dissolved parliament amid a political crisis that has prompted the entire cabinet to tender its resignation. Fresh elections in the oil-rich state are to be held on 17 May. With this in mind, candidates have started their campaigns amidst economical unrest. The submissions have dropped by 20% this year.

Kuwait's parliament has been involved in a series of disputes with ministers, which came to a head with the cabinet's resignation on Monday. MPs had been demanding a further pay rise for state employees - something the cabinet was against. Correspondents say constant political clashes between the cabinet and parliament have delayed planned economic reforms. Sheikh Sabah made the announcement in an address to the nation on state television. Under Kuwaiti law, elections must be held within 60 days of dissolution of parliament.

But in the past, parliament has been suspended for much longer - five years between 1976-81, and six years between 1986-92. The elections in 2006 resulted in a loose alliance of reformists and Islamists securing nearly two-thirds of the seats in parliament. MPs have accused the ruling Sabah family of trying to lay all blame for the impasse on parliament and some have called for changes in the executive branch dominated by Sabah family members.

Above is one candidate 'Wasmi Khaled Al Wasmi', a lawyer running in the 1st area of voting. His campaign doesn't shy off from using Barrack Obama's slogan 'Yes We Can'. Along with the usual passport picture and the slogan, a brief resume of the candidate and an open letter to Kuwaiti citizens make up the second page of his electronic electoral campaign.

72hrs: The Project

BEIRUT: With two professional cameras, a webcam recording every movement and live feeds all over Gemmayzeh’s main street and also a handy cam capturing the audience’s feedback, Kiki Bokassa locked herself in a glass room gallery on Saint Nicholas Stairs and painted continuously for 72 hours non-stop (Friday, April 24, 2009, 10 am until Monday, April 27, 2009, 10 am).
Bokassa wanted to offer a chance to watch a painter in action where the artistic progress and journey on canvas was played live on screen. People were also given the chance to stand outside the gallery’s window and witness hours in the artist’s life in a living space designed for the event.
After the event, Kiki Bokassa will pay tribute to a 1964 Yoko Ono performance. In one of the city theaters, she will wear a painted dress, and ask spectators, each in turn, to cut a piece of this dress (made during the 72-hour performance). The cutting of the painted dress is intended as a pacific protest against all forms of violence anywhere in the world. Half the dress will represent human life, the other half, our environment.

Just a brief profile of Kiki Bokassa:
Born in Paris in 1975, Marie-Ange J.B. Bokassa (alias Kiki) is an autodidact artist of Lebanese and Central-African backgrounds. Kiki has over the past years participated in several exhibitions in Lebanon and overseas. Her paintings are displayed in private collections from the Arabian Gulf to the American Midwest, through metropoles such as New York.
She is also a writer and an active member in society, directly involved in a wide-range of humanitarian causes to which she devotes much of her time. In 2005 she started engaging in several humanitarian efforts, including the creation of non lucrative children’s books and activities such as “Let Me Tell You A Story” publication and “Paint for Peace” workshop. She also holds reading sessions under the umbrella of the Ministry of Culture, and works as an art educator periodically, by training children and volunteers in public schools and public spaces all over the country.

(For further info check this out)

Sois Belle et Vote = Be Beautiful and Vote

Photo copyright Menassat

BEIRUT: With the election season getting hotter as the long awaited day approaches, election campaigns are certainly becoming more and more controversial. The new campaign 'Be Beautiful and Vote' (I first saw it on Beirut/NTSC blog) has become the latest billboard campaign to hit a nerve esp. with the Beirut-based Feminist Collective who have created a spoof version of the campaign (Be Intelligent and Vote Blank in addition to a hand written heading saying 'because no one cares about your rights) and listed 12 reasons on their blog for why they consider this campaign offensive to women.
The campaign initiated by General Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) plays on a famous French saying: "Sois Belle et tais-toi" (Be Beautiful and Shut up) by changing the second part into 'Vote' as part of their campaign to target women voters. But it has certainly raised some eyebrows particularly with the Feminist Activist Camp that denounced the whole attempt as a direct offense to women.

Personally, I don't know what FPM's initial intention was from such a campaign, but what I know is that they certainly haven't studied their target group, in this case women voters. Instead of creating a horizontal communication with those women they have resorted to a rather vertical one in which women have ended up on the lower end of that discourse. So please, stop thinking that you know how women think and instead start concretely involving them in every level of the democratic processes!

The Bicilavadora a pedal powered washing machine

Machine could produce clean clothes and local jobs

In places where electricity is scarce and you don’t want to spend your day by the river doing laundry, how about settling for the Bicilavadora pedal powered washing machine instead? Taking four years worth of development so far by an MIT team, the Bicilavadora is composed of an oil drum and bicycle running gear for its main components. As for the machine’s outer housing, the standard oil drum is cut apart and welded back together for a shorter barrel in order to allow even puny humans to pedal it, so that mom and dad can have a little quality time together while the kids learn to help with the housework. We guess it will use rainwater to rinse the clothes inside and at the same time could be built locally and thereby create jobs.

The Bicilavadora, combining the Spanish words for bicycle and washing machine -- got its most rigorous workout last month when a team of MIT students took the latest prototype to an orphanage in the slums called Ventanilla outside Lima, Peru. With 670 resident children, the home generates enough laundry to keep the washer perpetually busy.

This is another example of how simple creative ideas can certainly help make lives better esp. in developing countries. This is designing like you give a damn! Get inspired people and start with your own communities instead of roaming the shopping malls for the next collection of D&G, Channel, etc. and moving from one Starbucks cafe to the other...

Check this YouTube video out