activefreemedia

January 2009 Archives

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January 19, 2009

48 hours + 172 Names + 1,192 votes = Next Steps

Thank you to all of those who participated in the 48 hour Namethis.com session to name a new crowdfunding social marketing venture.

With 172 names suggested and 1,192 votes cast over the 48 hour session, it was an amazing experience that put vastly more energy towards launching this venture than I could have ever put in alone.

When I first received word about the three winners, I was a little shocked (Loud Sauce and seedjar seemed completely random). But after writing some draft proposals using the name LoudSauce, and hearing back from some of you in my larger community, I am starting to seriously consider it.

Not only is it a great first story to begin a venture rooted in trust in the participation of the crowd (and a name submitted by one of my current Nokia clients), but it may be a name that designers may find interesting potential in exploring a brand identity (more on that in later emails). Let me know if you feel strongly that it works or doesn't work.

Lastly, please join me online for feedback and discussion, as I will continue posting refined versions of the vision and plan for the venture: for starters at the Global Social Benefit Incubator and the Changemakers.net Power of Us Competition.

I hope you will continue to spread the word and share your thoughts via email or the comments below. Enjoy this amazing week for the world honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the new leadership in the United States.

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January 12, 2009

Where does our garbage go? - Letter to London City Council

For a potential project I am exploring, I searched online to try to find out where the garbage that I throw out in city garbage/rubbish bins goes.  The best information I could find was article in the Guardian called "Following the rubbish trail," but it was from 2004.  I wrote an email to the author Leo Hickman, but so far, no response (I'm sure he busy on new articles).

So I asked my housemate, a proper Londoner where she would look, and she pointed me to the city councils.  After a quick google search, I found the newly organized London Waste & Recycling Board, and sent the following letter to the contact person listed.  I'll let you know how it goes.

--
Hi,



Thanks for the work you do for the city of London.  I used to live in
New York City, and London is definitely a much cleaner city.  As
someone interested in environmental issues, I have become interested in
finding out more about the impact (positive and negative) that I make
with my daily life and choices.



One specific piece of information I haven't been able to find online is
where the rubbish is taken that I put into the public bins around the
city.  Do you know where I would be able to find out?  While I'm
intersted to know where it all goes, the buroughs I am more interested
in are my home burough of Hackney, as well as Islington, Camden and
City of London. 


Any information or contact information for the right person to contact would be very much appreciated. 



Cheers,

Colin

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January 11, 2009

Help name activefreemedia 2.0 in 48 hours

Hello and Happy 2009!

After a year of hard work that wasn't totally aligned with my personal and social mission, I am beginning an exploration to consider whether to launch a new venture in 2009.  I invite you will join me in the journey and spread the word.

The first step is to come up with a market ready name for the venture in the next 48 hours (the best 3 names win up to $44). 

Suggest a name or follow progress (4 names already) at:
http://tinyurl.com/axjnkw

Crowdfunding Marketing Service for Social & Eco Innovation


An online crowdfunding marketing service for social enterprises and green businesses.

Using their own money or credits through viewing partner ads, crowds vote with their dollars to fund strategic ads that promote products, companies, and causes that they believe in. Users collaborate to push video and banner campaigns through dynamic Ad serving networks to the front pages of major media outlets online (and eventually offline). Media is only bought if the money is raised, and users see the difference they've made through analytics, with an incentive to invest in more campaigns to help build a sustainable culture and economy.

Important themes: open innovation, crowdfunding, radical transparency, measuring social and eco progress.

Useful metaphors: (1) Youtube + Kiva + Google Adwords. (2) like CarrotMob for Advertising. (3) A MoveOn.org Ad platform for everyone.

Suggest a name or follow progress at:
http://tinyurl.com/axjnkw

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January 10, 2009

The History of the Internet

While I had heard of DARPA inventing the internet somewhat, this is a pretty good animation of how the actual evolution happened from computer to internal network to international standard that we now take for granted.

History of the Internet from PICOL on Vimeo.

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