Dates: May 14 – June 8, 2012
Summary: Movements seeking to harness the collaborative potential of rapidly advancing technology require an understanding of established organizing principles, the capabilities of tools, and the context in which they will be applied. This four-week online professional development certificate course will evaluate case studies where new technologies have been employed for effective change and what factors and contexts are most influential on outcomes.
The final project for this course will instruct participants to collaboratively construct an integrated online web presence that includes tools for social media, fundraising, contact management, blog, RSS, and analytics.
Weekly Breakdown:
- Week 1 – Individual messaging: Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube case studies and best practices
- Week 2 – Civil society organizing: Online petitions, donations, contact management
- Week 3 – Political mobilizing: Citizen journalism information safety, election observation
- Week 4 – Open government partnerships: Crowdsourcing oversight, participatory budgeting
Case Studies (and Speakers):
- Civil Society and Open Government: A New Partnership? (Wayne Burke of Open Forum Foundation)
- Effective Social Media: Discussing the #StopKony Campaign (Michael Poffenberger of Resolve)
- How Not To Die: Citizen Journalism in a Dictatorship (Brian Conley of Small World News)
- Bridging Democratic Theory and Practice (Barak Hoffman of Georgetown University)
- Democracy 2.0: The Promotion of Democracy through the Use of New Technologies (Darko Brkan of National Endowment for Democracy)
Featured Guest Experts:
Classes will feature interactive video discussions with the following speakers:
SEAN CARROLL, Chief Operating Officer, USAID (Bio)
Prior to becoming COO Sean served as Chief of Staff from March 2010 until November 2010. Before joining the Obama Administration in 2010 he was Director of Programs at the Club of Madrid for Democratic Transition and Consolidation (2004-2010), a Spain-based NGO whose 75 members are former Heads of State and Government from 55 countries around the world.
KATHRYN STRIFFOLINO, Science for Human Rights Project Coordinator at Amnesty International USA (Bio)
Kathryn has worked on initiatives including US-Latin America/Caribbean relations, utilizing new technologies to document human rights violations, and building the capacity of partners throughout the global human rights movement to use new tools for their human rights work.
BILL SIEMERING, President of Developing Radio Partners and the first Director of Programming of National Public Radio (Bio)
William “Bill” Siemering was the first Director of Programming of National Public Radio and the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation genius grant. He invented the first signature program of public radio, All Things Considered.
Teaching Method/Class Format: The entire course is delivered online. The total time commitment is a minimum of 7-9 hours a week. While the course is designed to be highly interactive and social, we also work hard to ensure that the majority of content can experienced in a self-paced manner. Participants can also access all course content up to three months after course completion.
Lead Facilitator: CHRISTOPHER NEU, TechChange (Bio)
Course Objectives: The course is designed for working professionals to assist them in understanding the roles of technology in organizing. Participants should have an interest in the role that technology plays in the democracy, development, and human rights. No specific technical skills are required for the course. There are no prerequisites for this course.
Your Classmates: We’ve already received dozens of applications from over 30 countries, all coming from prominent organizations including the U.S. Department of State and Plan UK. Join us today!
Cost:
- $495 (11 spots left!)