debelzie

Jesse Oguntimehin (@JesseOguns) and I are hosting the next #mbGeeks Sat. Oct 7, 6pm GMT

There are so many changes happening in relation to social networks these past few months with the release of Google + and now Facebook's major makeover announced at f8.
http://mashable.com/2011/09/22/facebook-f8-live-video/

What is really happening, should we really start to worry about sharing too much personal data via social networks? Have we spent enough time thinking about who owns our data and how it is being used? Are these new changes good
and beneficial? Or should we be more wary of the way corporations want to use our data? Being informed will affect the way we use Facebook going on from now.

A recent report,  Standard Bank’s 'Africa Macro Insight and Strategy,' notes that social media are being eagerly adopted by Africans, wih Africa being one of Facebook’s fastest growing markets. "There are currently around 32-million Facebook users in Africa, meaning that about 27% of
African Internet users have Facebook profiles, compared to 18% of Internet users in Asia."
http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/africa-embraces-ict-telecoms-to-enhance-socioeconomic-prosperity-report-2011-09-26

So for the next #mbgeeks, we thought it would be a good idea to see just what the new Facebook changes may mean to us. Are we discussing these issues enough? Are we well informed?

Here are the questions we would be looking into in tomorrows chat;

Q1 When sharing information what should we worry about sharing too much personal data via social networks?

Q2 Can sharing our personal data make us empowered consumers?
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/10/are_you_ready_for_consumers_to.html

Q3 Are we willing to share our personal data with marketers, if yes in exchange for what?

Q4 A recent SA study said SMS and Facebook are preferred channels for marketers. What are your thoughts?

http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/347/59006.html

Q5 Who's the customer and what's the product? (especially as we don't pay to use Facebook, Twitter, Google+)

http://blog.curry.com/stories/2011/10/06/occupyFacebook.html

 Q6a Have you tried the new Facebook timeline and ticker?

Q6b Does Facebook's new features such as the Timeline and Ticker over share?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44677285/#.To5n45xmKDo

Q7 How can we become more empowered consumers, especially in regards to social media?

Join us Tomorrow Saturday, October 7th, 2011, 6pm GMT to discuss and share knowledge together. Jesse Oguntimehin and I will be moderating while you have a chance at commenting on the questions and sharing with others.

You can use tweetchat.com, tweetdeck, hootsuite or any chat client that allows you to filter hashtag. Tweet with the hashtag #mbGeeks. See you on the inside tomorrow 6pm GMT.

I've spent the week with a wonderful group of allied health staff at the Kigali Health Institute here in Rwanda. We explored concepts related to learning and technology and spent considerable time looking at ways to use social media for opening up our teaching and learning practices. As the week progressed, I think we would all say we gained more insight into how tech tools intersect and enable our personal learning networks. I came away even more convinced of the power of dialogue as I listened to stories of teaching and learning. Three themes particularly stuck with me.

Youth and Tech

Over the course of the week I heard stories from two different individuals about how young primary children are experiencing social media, laptops, and the Internet. In each story, a dad related how attached his young child was to a laptop. One child has only experienced the computer in the family home, but yet at 6 years old, knows all about how Facebook works and seems quite attached to the family computer. The other child at 7 uses a laptop at school and at home and finds it hard to put the laptop down many times. These two stories make me consider whether these young children are grasping the power of information and networks represented by the tool or are they attracted to the tools themselves? From listening to the full conversations, I would say that the young students have some concept of the power of the network and the information that the tool contains. I wonder about what implications this will have on classrooms that limit access to tech.

Access to the Tool

In my Twitter feed today, I noted a link to an anonymous post from a high school website that explores the education possibilities that await a student with a laptop compared with a student using only pencil and paper. It is helpful to read the whole post, but two observations particularly stuck with me. 

I will take my learning as far as I want – you must wait for the rest of the class.

I will access the most dynamic information – yours will be printed and photocopied.

During the week we had much discussion about ways to make sure that all students and staff have access to laptops and the Internet. While access to tools alone will not solve all of the problems we find in education, life without access is surely limiting. We exchanged stories about ways of connecting and strategies for expanding existing connections. While I've worked in the region for several years now and have experienced lack of access at various times, it is still not a daily challenge for me. During this trip however, I only had access to the Net via my mobile for the course of several days. And while I was very grateful for having that access, not having access to the Net on my laptop really limited some of the work that I wanted to do. If you're thinking about designing programs for others who have limited access to the tools you are using, I would suggest limiting your access as well. That said, in order to make progress in education, we have to find creative ways to make sure that educators and students have access to open global knowledge.

Diaglogue Data

Working in the area of teaching and learning for quite some time now, I've come to value the power of learning conversations. While we all have a certain amount of data that we collect to evaluate teaching and learning, the experienced educator will quickly tell you that it is through informal dialogue that you collect the best insight into what your students are ready to learn as well as what they have learned. This is especially true if you are introducing trainings that require individuals to make dramatic behavior shifts. It is in such conversations that you find out who is comfortable with trying out new approaches, who has apprehensions and why, and it is often in such conversations that you can develop personalized strategies for embracing change. And it is of course critical to have time built in to cultivate the relationships necessary to carry out such diaglouge. Relationship building takes time and sustained interactions. I've been priviledged to be engaged with many of the participants for two years now, and our learning conversations continue to be enriching.

RT @debelzie: Q1: It's hard to imagine life w/o the inter-web for the work I do. @thekuyuproject team was born via connections via Twitter

Today's #mbgeeks chat served to further convince me of the power of the network. I recently had the opportunity to meet @JesseOguns via Twitter. Jesse Oguntimehin is a fellow connector. 

His Twitter description: "a Digital Maniac & Incurable connector | Brand Evangelist showing individuals and businesses how to Market with Web & Mobile".

Jesse invited me to be his guest on the launch of his new network #mbgeeks. You can read the full story here. Jesse is based in Nigeria, and most of the participants today at #mbgeeks were also from Nigeria, but we also had a few folks drop by from other parts of the globe.

I connected with Jesse as we have similar interests in the mobile tech space. And this past weekend I watched as Jesse and his team at Flippii competed in the Garage48 competition. 

The chat gave me the opportunity to share about my work with The Kuyu Project and our StorySpaces team. Jesse had a list of questions prepared which he shared ahead of time. The most critical discussion to me centered around how a group of people can form a team without ever meeting "in real life". I don't really conceder the virtual to be not in real life, it's just another dimension of our real lives. We talked about starting from a vision and crowdsourcing a team, and some of the details about how The Kuyu Project team was really born on Twitter.

I found the interaction to be quite engaging. We talked about how our virtual project team leverages such tools as Facebook, Twitter, Skype and Google Docs to do our work. Social media tools are especially important to our team as they allow us to do our work while mobile and to be in pretty constant communication. Of course working with a virtual team is not without its challenges. We've seen a few of those, and yet we continue to persist because we have a vision of what we're building.

So thanks Jesse for the kind invite, I was honored to be your first guest. It was indeed a pleasure to meet more mobile geeks. I even met some new twerps interested in healthcare and mobiles.

Here are just some of my new connections:

• Ovie Albert - @dfewgoodmen  - "One of a few good Men. A Tech Lover. Healthcare, Good Governance and Fixing lives. Just trying 2 Make the World a Better Place!"
• Ayo - @tjwizkid - "Classic tech-enthusiast!"
• 'Nola tee-i Chris… - @Chrisolar  - "Igure Temitope Arinola... Google Student Ambassador for Benson Idahosa University, 2011!"
• Zainab O.A. - @Baniyaz "That techy naija gal."

Read more about the #mbgeeks story here.

eLearning Africa is being held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 25-27 May 2011. I am making plans to attend if all works out as anticipated.

The conference in its 6th year and this year there is a very timely theme: focusing on youth, skills and employability. The entire Conference Program is Online at http://www.elearning-africa.com/programme_table.php

Wednesday is a pre-conference day and the bulk of the conference is Thursday and Friday. Most of the conference sessions will be in English, but there will a good many held in French/English simultaneously.

I think one of the most interesting presentations will be from Cheryl Brown from the University of Cape Town, South Africa. She is presenting the results of a seven-year study on South African university students. She will talk about the concepts of digital natives and  ‘digital strangers’. Mobile learning will be a big theme at the conference this year also.

Visit http://elearning-africa.com to register.

eLearning Africa also has a brand new News Portal that highlights some of the upcoming presentations. The portal is organized around the following themes:

ICT4D, Schools & Teachers, Higher Ed, Corporate Training, Infrastructure, and French.

It looks like it will be an engaging experience.

My husband loves pancakes and when we have time for a leisurely brunch on the weekend, I like to make sure pancakes are on the menu. But lately when I think of pancakes my mind moves on to a dailogue that keeps popping up in my Twitter timeline.

RT @alykhansatchu: The World in the c21st is as Flat as a Pancake @vicmiclovich @debelzie and Facebook is an Uber Platform // more to follow

@alykhansatchu @vicmiclovich - a few new platforms floating about African design #mindspace to challenge Uber Platforms

Yes, @alykhansatchu, I must agree with you. We are living in a new time in which one can engage presidents, coders, citizen journalists and yes even busy stock brokers in deeply engaging conversations. Conversations that sometimes shape decisions, some that continue on over a period of time, and some that lead to real collaborations.   

It seems the more time I spend on Twitter, the more interesting people and projects I find. Just today, someone on Twitter was conducting a survey asking if anyone has developed important friendships via social media. I would have to answer yes. I have developed real friendships, some of which are still "virtual" in the sense that I've not yet met the friends in person - but I consider the friendships just as real as any other friendships that I have. In addition to making friends with others via my social network, I've also been able to form real partnerships. One by one connections have been made and a group of us have joined together to seek positive social good by creating an organization and a mobile application for teens around the globe. There are several other projects that I'm involved with due to connections that I've made on Twitter. (More details to follow)

For me Twitter is my platform of choice for networking. To me the power of Twitter lies in the idea that conversations aren't limited to friends. With Twitter one can engage just about anyone - across the globe or in the office down the hall. It is a true global conversation tool. Of course @alykhansatchu has been talking about pancakes for a while now. He is one of the visionaries in understanding the value of the "Universe of Multiple Information Streams".  It turns out that our social connections may be the most valuable of those information streams. 

Hope you enjoy some pancakes this weekend.

Deb

Today, I had one of those experiences with a tech company that just really rubs one the wrong way. I'm sure if you follow me on Twitter you saw a bit of my frustration. And while I still plan to contact the company about the situation, I realize that the experience is more than about this one company. The truth is the experience reminds me that any business that deserves our respect needs to act respectfully to their customers and to their employees.

I've been thinking about this off and on throughout the day and tonight while reading my Twitter timeline I saw a post on Harvard Business Review from Umair Haque @umairh, Director of the Havas Media Lab. The post is a few months old, but it resonates with me.

"That just isn't good enough anymore. Not for shareholders, and not for people, communities, or society. Cultures shape and determine our broader economic choices in surprisingly powerful ways. They constrain how we allocate and utilize resources, of course. But, more subtly, they mold how much we value the really big stuff. Like, for example, one another. Strength as subordination says: I only value for what you can produce for me, buy from me, or sell to me. I am in control, see my power. But strength as the power to evoke says: I value you for who you are, and what you can become. You are in control — see your power?" (Read the full article here).

The thing is, I am upset that I will likely not get my mini notebook repaired, yes I admit it. Who has $250 to throw away in this economy. But that is not what bothered me the most today with my interactions with the tech company. I am most bothered by the way the company trains their employees. I spoke with three different case management supervisors about the issue. My original case manager, then I got a 2nd opinion and a 3rd opinion. Each time I asked if I could speak to a supervisor at a higher level because I felt that there was a misunderstanding about the nature of the problem. And each time I was told that this was against the policies of the powerful tech company. Each case manager explained that the supervisors were busy "doing the business of the company" and would not engage the customer. And each case manager told me that they "were fully empowered by the company". And one even told me that I should not speak to the corporate office because they were unlikely to be of help. 

The sad fact is that the company lost me as a customer today, and they lost my respect. Not because of the $250 mini notebook. They lost my respect because they have not respected their employees. They have not empowered their employees at all. They have given their employees a script and set them in a cage. Haque makes a valuable point:

"A real recovery demands evolving, improving, and innovating our deeper, enduring values. It's going to demand shifting how much we value each other. And that means updating our very idea of strength to go beyond simplistic conceptions like dominance, control, and subordination."

Businesses today must not only value their customers, they must value their employees and give them real power to work through reasonable resolutions. The way of dominance must give way to respect. In the age of social media, a business must face issues of transparency and engagement if they are to maintain customer loyalty. Thankfully there are others that I've engaged online that understand the "capacity to evoke" instead of dominate.

I'm working late this evening. I have a task that I'm determined to get out the door tonight. It's my deadline - not set by others. It is just that I'm on a roll and I want to harness that energy while it is here. I love employers who allow you some flexibility in your working and reporting times. That hasn't always been the case with my employers. I know that the logistics of working that out can be complex, but I think that it is worth the effort. I tend to work best at night - I've always been a night owl. This is particularly helpful to me now as many of my co-workers and peers work in different time zones - so when I'm just going to bed, they are just waking up. Sometimes I like that time the best - it's great for seeing what's happening around the world. Of course, it can be problematic at times - sometimes I get to thinking about all those tweets and then I can't sleep so well. But, if I really get insomnia, I know that I can get up, connect via Twitter, and even get some work done in the middle of the night. 

Thinking out loud - I do wonder though how much creativity companies are missing out by requiring that all workers work the same hours everyday. I think if I worked from 2 pm till 6 pm and then again late at night I would have even more bursts of creativity. Ok, back to my task.

Africa is a rich mixture of countries and ethnicities and its women are equally diverse in their leadership. I found it interesting to take a look at some of the women who were noted in 2010 in tech and media. Just reading through Afrinnovator’s 2 part (part 1) (part 2) year-end review highlighted many women, but there were a few others that came to mind as well. While most of the stories of innovation are happening in Nairobi, I’m sure there will be more stories shared in 2011 as other innovation hubs take off. 

In February, Afrinnovator published an interview with Kenyan blogger Njeri Wangari (@KenyanPoet). While blogging may be waning in popularity for some, I found her answers about blogging creating citizen journalists to be encouraging.

In March, Afrinnovator interviewed one of my favorites digital media artists – Jepchumba (@digitalafrican). She is the founder of the African Digital Art community. Each visit to the site's African Weekly Inspiration is a real treat. And “The District”, an online community for Africa’s creatives, is a great source of contacts. 

Innovation hubs seem to be popping up all over the continent with iHub officially launching in March in Nairobi. You’ve probably all read about the work that Jessica Colaço (@jessicacolaco) has been doing as the iHub Manager. Check out this BBC video interview.

In April, Ethiopian Bruktawit Tigabu (@brukty) was named one of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise: Young Laureates Programme winners for her Whiz Kids Workshop which produces the "Tsehai Loves Learning" animated children's television show. The show helps young children learn good personal hygiene.  

May was a busy month, as Shikoh Gitau and Sinini Ncube were both named recipients of the Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship Award. Shikoh (@shikohtwit), a native Kenyan, now a PhD student in South Africa is developing m-Ganga, a mobile healer app. South African Sinini Ncube’s tech work involves visualizing outbreaks of zoonotic diseases.

In June, Elizabeth Mukasa (@Elizabethmukasa) from Uganda, was named as the winner of the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT) “2010 Give Challenge a Change” for her work with a localized e-learning platform. She is Director of Opra Learning Centre for Inclusion.

In July, Zoopy hired South African media expert Juanita Williams (@juanitaw) to manage “I’ve Got News”. 

In August, Business Daily interviewed Linnet Kwamboka (@g33kmate) about her myriad of tech projects and the AkiraChix's launch of the AkiShika project.

In November, AkiraChix again made the news as an AkiraChix team wins the IPO48 competition for their m-Farm app. The team of four participants included: Linda Kwamboka,  Catherine Kiguru. Susan Eve, and Jamila Abass. Watch the Video Pitch of IPO48 Winner m-Farm. Read more of the story on iHub.

In November, the Mobisoko mobile applications marketplace was launched by Juliana Rotich (@afromusing). Read more at Timbuktu Chronicles.

Nmachi Jidenma (@nmachijidenma) launched Celebrating Progress Africa (@cpafrica) as a blog. http://www.cp-africa.com Now Celebrating Progress Africa is making great inroads in publishing upbeat content about the continent. Read an in-depth interview conducted in November by Bella Naija's Editorial Assistant, Gbenga Awomodu.  

December was also a busy month with Nelly Ndonye winning in Stage 1 with Samsung (@nellyndonye) for her Mobile App Nelly Data. Nelly Data is a mobile application for providing real time data from the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE).

There are many young women emerging in the tech and citizen journalism space. One of my favorite women involved is Maureen Agena (@maureenagena). Maureen works with Women of Uganda Network WOGNET's and was a recent regional winner of the ARYDIS Youth Essay Contest.

And if you somehow missed the news over the holiday break, Ushahidi Co-Founder Ory Okolloh (@kenyanpundit) is now Google’s New Policy Manager for Africa.

I’m sure there are many women that I missed reading about in 2010, I’d love to hear more about their stories. And the question is who will be the women tech and media innovators to watch in 2011?

One innovator that has my attention is Gladys Muhunyo (@muhunyogn) for her work related to combating e-waste. She is currently the Director of Africa Programmes at Computer Aid International and member of Linux Chix. Kenya. 

This week we have been having some back and forth on Twitter about aid, development and conversations. David Week @davidweek posted this statement on twitter: “In my ideal world, aid is a conversation between cultures, on the subject of human development in both cultures.” A few of us joined in the conversation @BonnieKoenig @meowtree @Ethnicsupplies @warisara @idealistnyc. Ida Horner (@Ethnicsupplies) and I were carrying on a parallel conversation on her blog and via Twitter.

It is great to see this conversation evolving. David has started a blog page "Aid as a Conversation between Cultures" to help us expand the conversation.

Ida and I both participated in Villages In Action Conference 2010 (http://villagesinaction.com). I participated via uStream and Twitter, Ida was able to make it in person. The project started by Teddy Ruge (@tmsruge) of Project Diaspora and was held in Kikuube Village Grounds, Masindi, Uganda on 27 November 2010. Ida has created a series of blog posts dealing with the idea that the voice of villages like Kikuube was missing in conversations about development. You can read her first post here. "The Day the Poor Had their Say:Villages in Action Conference 2010"

We will have much more to say on this topic so join in the conversation. I do agree with David - "development is a two-way learning between cultures". No one culture has figured it all out yet. One of the things that I've learned meeting individuals online via Twitter is that listening is a first step to understanding another's perspective. As a matter of fact, for anyone wishing to learn about another culture, I would suggest spending some time following those on Twitter who are sharing their ideas about their local culture. Hopefully meaningful conversations will evolve from this listening and positive two-way relationships will form.

I've been thinking a good deal about the Villiages in Action 2010 - (http://villagesinaction.com) that Teddy Ruge of Project Diaspora organized in Kikuube Village Grounds, Masindi, Uganda.  I was able to listen in via the UStream Video Channel and be engaged in the Twitter conversations. The voices were powerful and as Ida Horner blogged, giving individuals the microphone proved to be quite powerful.

Project Diaspora handed the Microphone to some in the village and encouraged them to introduce themselves to world, tell world how intelligent they are and insist that they need to bring change they need to ask the Villagers how they would improve this Village In Action. This single act put the village on world map as the world sat and listened via Social media platforms, such as UStream Video Channel, Twitter and Facebook made possible by WIFI provided by
Orange™ Uganda

I was particularly struck by Milly Businge's keynote speech. She spoke about the fact that she as the village’s LC1 chairwoman had never heard of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGS). I can't imagine that we would have goals set for towns here in the U.S. and not involve those directly in line to benefit from those goals. The concept of placing a microphone in the hands of those whom we aim to help seems obvious - but it is a step we often fail to take. Yet, how can one design or plan a program without first listening - listening in the beginning, but also throughout the process.

Ida shares more about the 3 entrepreneurs in the village that she spoke with - make sure to read their stories on her blog:

Yossam- the sugarcane grower

James – the grain miller and local bicycle repairer

Pamela- the Hardware shop owner

While I did not get to attend in person, it is interesting to think that some of the individuals who spoke at VIA 2010 I have met either virtually or face-to-face. Some I have never met face-to-face, but I know via Twitter and other social media. Others I've met first online and then in person and we have networked globally to begin creating solutions to some issues that aren't defined by geography. And the solutions have started with conversations with people - I think that is one of the most valuable lessons one can learn from VIA2010 - hopefully we are all listening. It was also good to hear from the tech panel @vicmiclovich , @jssozi, and @solomonking.

Thanks everyone for making this a global event - one that allowed us to listen in and hopefully better understand villages, the citizens who live in them, and the actions they are taking.

Some other links about the project that you might be interested in:

Day 1 at VIA 2010 - video

Victor, our lead developer at The Kuyu Project recounts his experiences at  VIA2010.

Photos from VIA 2010 by solomonking on Flickr

VIA Press Release

Sponsors for VIA 2010:

Business Fights Poverty

Orange™ Uganda