Organizers' Collaborative Community Site - Organizational Strategies

Repairing Your Computer Consultant

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:37:22 -0700

Presenter: Adam Frost, Computer Care and Learning

This clinic-style workshop discusses real problems that nonprofits experience in
getting good computer care from computer professionals. Working together, we
will develop solutions to these problems, drawing on our collective experience and
expertise.

Outcomes Mgmt. & Case Mgmt. for Human Service Organizations: Build, Buy, or Lease?

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:36:28 -0700

Scott Smith, Community TechKnowledge

Scott will guide participants through the Total-Cost-of-Ownership (TCO) framework in considering the merits of "build, buy, or lease". Participants will receive a grid to help them understand the prospective benefits and challenges of each approach. Two competing ASP solutions will also be briefly presented to illustrate the capabilities of mature options in that category.

NPOs are moving from give us your money, trust us to output oriented, Number of whales saved, etc, to outcomes oriented, focusing on the larger outcomes.

Innovative Technology for Labor Unions

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:36:20 -0700

Tanya Renne, Orchid Suites, Claire McDonough, SEIU Headquarters, Wayne
Langley, SEIU Local 615; moderated by Steve Dondley, Pioneer Valley AFL-CIO

The current political climate both left and right has real implications on the labor
movement. With membership dwindling and aggressive reforms in the offing,
what can labor do to streamline, utilize more effective strategies in organizing, and
modernize its grassroots infrastructure? What is the role of technology in the future
of labor? What role has technology played in where labor is today?

Unlocking the Doors to Political Power: Low Cost Tools for Activist Outreach and Civic Engagement

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:34:36 -0700

(Gregory Heller of NY State Senate Minority Leaders office, Bob LeLievre of Lelievre
Information Services, Raj Singh of MIT Dept. of Urban Studies & Planning)

As open source tools are maturing, voter registration and mobilization
organizations with no in-house technical staff are beginning to reap the benefits.
Low cost technology solutions are now becoming available to advance your
(electoral or advocacy) campaign’s goals. Gregory Heller will moderate a discussion
on these tools including AdvoKit, an open source Contact Management
application developed through a collaboration in 2004 of progressive web
technologists, political activists, and funders. Bob LeLievre will discuss his work
with VBase, a voter contact management application, and Raj Singh will discuss
advances in open source Geographic Information Systems (Mapping).

Alinsky's Pre-Internet Organizing Principles: How do They Apply Today?

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:34:10 -0700

(roundtable discussion facilitated by Brian Reich, Mindshare Internet Campaigns,
L.L.C., with Mark Brunswick, Jesse Gordon, Christine Williams, Jennifer Doe)

Saul Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals (1971) revolutionized activism. Alinsky offered a
method for pursuing social change that remains relevant today. Now, technology is
revolutionizing how community politics are pursued. Will Alinsky’s rules translate
to online engagement? How will traditional organizers integrate online tools? Two
“online” organizers and up to two “offline” organizers will lead the discussion.

Distributed Activism: Using the Internet to Foster Sucessful Decentralized Campaigns

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:33:06 -0700

Presenter: Justin Ruben, MoveOn PAC, Andrew Stocking, care2.com, Lynn Benander,
OnLineCommunities Project at Cooperative Life

The Internet has proven itself as a tool that can mobilize millions, as well as bring
together activists in disparate communities. It has also shown phenomenal success
in engaging people who were previously non-participants. The workshop will
showcase how several organizations and campaigns have distributed techniques,
providing insight on what works.
Justin Ruben will talk about the experience of MoveOn during the 2004 campaign,
with a focus on using the Internet to encourage people to take offline action.

Adopting Open Source Software in a Non-Profit Environment

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:32:15 -0700

Al Essa, Sloan School of Management, Carolyn Meeks, Aristoi

Does open source have a role in the technology strategy for grassroots
organizations? We will consider the business, legal, and technology aspects of open
source with the aim of developing a technology and risk strategy. We will also
provide a hands-on demonstration of .LRN, a powerful but easy-to-use open
source application developed at MIT for managing online communities.

Do More With Less: Affordable Options for Web Content Mgmt., Online Fundraising, and Conference Mgmt.

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:30:13 -0700

(Emily Thorson of EchoDitto, Sarah Bennett of Database Designs, Harold Jordan of
the National Coalition for Education Activists. Moderated by Liat Wexler, OC Staff)

The number of vendors offering “soup to nuts” web-based solutions to handle
online donations and web content management is growing every day. However the
price of these solutions is often out of reach for many small and medium sized
nonprofits. This panel will introduce nonprofit decision makers and techies to a
range of affordable content mangement, donation processing, and donor
management solutions. Emily Thorson from EchoDitto will discuss EchoDitto’s

Using a Blog to Get Your Group's Message Out

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:29:32 -0700

Aldon Hynes, Blogger.

Blogs produce high quality websites that quickly get a message out for a small campaign or not-for-profit. This workshow shows how groups with little technological experience can easily start blogging and address the issues that they will need to face.

Ask the Experts: Bring Your Group's Technology Issues to the Specialists

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:28:51 -0700

After a brief introduction by all of the “specialists”, you will be able to meet in one
of seven different small groups. Each group will focus on a different aspect of
using technology. Limit: 28 people. The following specialists will be present:
• Developing a strategy to engage your constituency – Martin Kearns, Green Media
Toolshed
• Using the Internet as a PR tool? Sue Dorfman, Media Consultant
• Basic Computer care and feeding – Adam Frost, Computer Care Consultant
• Databases for Fundraising – Steve Backman, Database Design Associates
• Setting up a content management system – Randal Divinski, Web and Database

Podcasting for Non-Profits

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:27:13 -0700

(Chalu Kim, consultant, NY City)

Podcast sounds new but it is quite old. You record your voice or interview
someone, and mix with other audio. The advent of MP3s and RSS feeds enables
decentralized global sharing, thus there are new applications for NGOs. This
workship will introduce podcasting and its impact for humanitarian purposes. The
theme of the workshop is to learn and to explore. We welcome people with
podcast equipment and we can make some podcasts from the workshop.

From Zero to Sixty: Bringing Online Advocacy Techniques Into Your Organization

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:26:42 -0700

The freedom to marry movement came of age in the internet era. The Freedom to Marry Coalition and MassEquility used the internet and databases to effectively to build their organizations, fundraise, lobby, educate and organize. This program will focus on how marriage equality organizations developed online strategies to accomplish multiple goals and minimize competing busines/organizatinoal needs, best practicies, and strategies for retention and increasing participation of online members, including how to encourage cyber-activeists to become "traditional" activists. This workshopwill also b

Online Tools to Engage Your Constituents and Obtain Media Coverage: An Introduction

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:26:04 -0700

Presenter :Deborah Elizabeth Finn, Cyber-Yenta and Sue Dorfman, WorldViewsMedia

This workshop will present strategies for using online tools to build relationships
with your constituents and with the media. It is designed for organizers and
nonprofit workers with little or no background in information and communication
technology. Deborah Finn will make sense of the myriad of online communications
options available. She will present first-rate free or low-cost resources, and provide
some very practical tips for getting started. Sue Dorfman will cover a number of
specific strategies and tools that can be used for more effective communication

Content Management Systems are Chocolate Bars: Making Them Dessert Not Disaster

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:25:20 -0700

The who, what, where, when, why, and how of content management systems. We
will cover background information, software packages, downfalls, and strategies
before addressing your individual issues. Dean for America and Democracy for
America will be used as prime examples. Decadent and varied chocolate bars
provided for examples and consumption.

Presenter: Alison
Attendees:

Presentation: [PowerPoint]

Links from Presenter and Attendees

Content Management Systems

Grassroots Technology and the Emerging Progressive Infrastructure

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:23:51 -0700

(Levana Layendecker of @dvocacy, Inc., Zack Rosen of Civicspace Labs, Adrianna
Alty of GregPalast.com, Jo Lee of CitizenSpeak.org, and Bob Fertik, Democrats.com)
Moderated by Mark Brunswick, Delaware A Philip Randolph Institute

The rise of the right began not so much with ideas or candidates or popular
support as with infrastructure. Some 30 years ago the right began putting in place
policy, media, and training infrastructure that is proving to be increasingly
influential across the political spectrum. As Democrats and Progressives start to
build (or rebuild) their intellectual, media/communications, and training