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Obama Wins.

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December 2, 2008 in Africa, Web 2.0, Blogging, Politics, Create Peace, Democracy, Kenya and youtube. 0 Comments

Ok, yes we all know this by now but I wanted to take this opportunity to take down the campaign banner from my blog as I also peel off the bumper stickers and throw out the yard signs. It’s a great pleasure and source of pride to me that Obama is president-elect, no denying that, but it’s now time to move on. Part of that will be joining MoveOn, Avaaz, SaveDarfur and others to help Obama move this lumbering country to a human rights based relationship with the world.

But first, let me also share my Obama theme song, available through YouTube. This song gave me encouragement throughout the year and helped me to keep going.

I first learned about Coco Tea’s Obama song in a post on the overthinkingit.com blog, which made me nostalgic about Kenya and brought home to me the significance of Obama’s candidacy for Africa and the world:

Last week, I was sitting in a bar in the village of Ngare Ndare in northern Kenya, nursing a Krest Bitter Lemon, and listening to the radio. The radio was tuned to Metro FM, “Kenya’s House of Reggae.” Amidst the chain of nondescript contemporary reggae hits, the refrain of one song in particular caught my attention: “Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama, woi wooooi” As soon as I got back to my computer, I learned that the song is by Jamaican reggae artist Cocoa Tea, whose substantial back catalogue is only probably familiar to reggae and dancehall enthusiasts. Despite Cocoa Tea’s relative obscurity in the US, the song is already becoming massively popular in Kenya, even though it was only released sometime last week.

The lyrics are so great, I looked them up and found them in full at Cocoa Tea - Barack Obama Reggae Song, Video, Lyrics. Reposted below for your pleasure:

Barack Obama Lyrics, Music by Cocoa Tea

Woy woy why why why woy why whyyyy lord
Be bungi yungi dengi yungi denga denga denga deng
diggadiggadiggadiggadeng

Well, this is not about class,
nor color, race, nor creed.
Make no mistake it’s the changes
whey all the people dem need
Dem a shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

Now you can hear it in the morning (Obama!),
And you can hear it inna the evening (Obama!),
Black man and white ‘oman shouting (Obama!),
Dem inna the groove and dem is moving (Obama!).
And you can hear them saying…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

The momentum is hot (hot)
And no one can’t stop that (that)
Well some of dem a dress back
And some ah take back dem chat
All some of dem who was racist
jumping and dancing in the street
and a shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

It is not Hillary Clinton (Obama!)
and it is not John McCain (Obama!)
It is not Chuck Norris (Obama!),
And I know it’s not John Wayne (Obama!),
It is not the one Rambo (Obama!),
And it is not the Terminator (Obama!),
But a new trendsetter (Obama!),
Him hottin’ up the whole America
and dem a shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

African-American rise…
and keep your eyes on the prize (Obama!),
Cause now nuff of dem a realize,
the black man is in their eyes. (Obama!)

Well it’s no joke it’s a fact,
we’re gonna paint all the white house black (Obama!),
And nuff cyan believe a true
black house fe run the red, white and blue…
Dem a shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

Me callin’ all liberal Indians (Obama!),
whey live up on the reservation (Obama!),
the Japanese and all the Chinee-man (Obama!),
the Indian and all the Mexicans (Obama!),
Arabs and Jews and Palestinians (Obama!),
all time fe we join up as one,
and a shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

Cause this is not about class (Obama!),
nor color, race, nor creed (Obama!),
but it’s about the changes (Obama!),
what the Americans need (Obama!).

So, whether you come from California (Obama!),
Or you live in Nort’ Dakota (Obama!)
You could have come from Texas (Obama!),
Or you’re living inna Florida
I want ya join disya line ya (Obama!)
And let me hear you start shout,
Just shout out…

Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy
Dem say
Barack Obama, Barack Obama, Barack Obama
Woyy woyy

MoveOn.org brings on the Web 2.0 fun and games to encourage Tobias Eigen to vote

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October 23, 2008 in Web 2.0, Politics and Democracy. 0 Comments

I thought this was an enjoyable Web 2.0 gimmick from MoveOn.org to motivate me (and presumably thousands of others) to vote. In it, a fake news program shows talking heads explaining that Tobias Eigen is the single voter responsible for Obama’s defeat in the upcoming election.

This reminded me of an excellent spoof on The Onion about the guy who took down the Internet by doing too much stuff at the same time - but this time it was ME the spoof is targeting!

Good thing I already voted by mail in ballot!

Dear MoveOn member,

Oversleeping. Getting the car fixed. Having to pick up the second-cousin’s stepkids on the other side of town. These are just a few of the reasons millions of Americans won’t vote on November 4th.

It’s not like they hate voting. They want to do it. They know they should. And mostly, they intend to. But some of your friends won’t get around to actually voting because they haven’t been reminded vividly enough.

That’s why we developed this funny, scary video. It shows people what it might look like if we lose the election by a single vote: theirs.

Here’s a version we prepared for you. You’re in it—seriously, you. Check it out—and if you like it, send it to your friends:

Watch it: http://www.moveon.org/r?r=31274&nid=RBtIiRY7BXiD6LQJVhUW4zc0MjM5OA–&id=14592-1111187-GhNqfqx&t=3

Thanks for all you do.

–Peter, Joan, Carrie, Daniel and the rest of the team

I, Tobias Eigen, am blogging about Africa at Kabissa.org

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August 20, 2008 in Africa, Civil Society, Kabissa, Bainbridge Island, Web 2.0, Social Networking, WordPress, Blogging, Free/Libre Open Source Software, ICT4D, Drupal, web2fordev and freecycle. 0 Comments

Visitors to saidia.org may be wondering what is happening here - not much it seems. I set up this blog some time ago as an experiment, to learn about the ins and outs of blogging and to learn about the free and open source WordPress blogging tool that makes this particular blog possible. My reasons for carrying out the experiment were personal but also related to Kabissa, the organization I started 9 years ago to enable me to be a reliable technology partner for African civil society. The Kabissa team was exploring the participatory web, also known as Web 2.0, and the blogosphere was - and remains - an important part of that, so having some of us blogging was an important part of our research. Outcomes from that along the way have been a research paper available on the Kabissa wiki, a “wikified” version of Kabissa’s Time To Get Online training manual in English, French and Arabic, and of course various articles, interviews and presentations we gave at Netsquared and Web2fordev. These are floating in the blogosphere and hopefully useful to folks seeking to explore the power of Web 2.0 in civil society no matter where in the world.

In February 2008, Kabissa watchers will have noted the launch of our new online community website at http://www.kabissa.org including blogs for staff of all 1200+ member organizations. This includes me! I am now blogging there very regularly, along with Sokari Ekine, Kabissa’s in-house blogger and community coordinator, and a range of very idealistic and courageous people working in African civil society. Check out the blog at http://www.kabissa.org/blog

Thanks to the Drupal open source content management system we are using, the site has some very powerful functionality we are exploring that is relevant and useful for African organizations. This includes a granular notification system allowing registered site users to subscribe to posts by specific bloggers or containing specific tags or a range of other combinable filtering methods. We also are able to do special mailings containing opportunities and timely announcements addressed to a subset of our membership (eg in a specific city or region, or working in a specific thematic area) and then to generate reports on the effectiveness of the mailings. Our monthly member newsletter contains a selection of our best content from the past month along with a member spotlight and “Dear Mimi” Internet advice column. One of the niftiest new tools we are playing with is a blog-by-email gizmo, allowing our members to send email to a specific email address to be posted (by them) on the blog, or to reply to notifications to add comments to blog posts.

So this is the long way for me to tell you quite simply - looking for posts by Tobias Eigen about tech in Africa? Go to http://www.kabissa.org/blog/1 to see them! While you are there, please go ahead and sign up and join the Kabissa community, and if you have something to say please start blogging yourself and participate in blog discussions with others that share your passion about African civil society and the role technology can play.

And as for saidia.org - I like having my own personal blog where I can speak out on my own recognizance without concern for the bylaws of Kabissa or any other organization, and also talk about any topic that spurs me to post.

For example, I have been mulling over a decision to leave freecycle Bainbridge Island, a really neat Yahoo group community I have been part of for three years now. This would be a big decision for me but if I take it I don’t want to do so alone - thanks to my blog I wouldn’t have to. If I do leave, then I would post my explanation on the blog to try to start a discussion in my community about it so I can understand better how best I personally and we as an island community can keep items out of the landfill that others might still be able to use.

Run, don’t walk to vote for Pambazuka News in Top 10 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics

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September 20, 2007 in Africa, Civil Society, nptech, Kabissa, Web 2.0, Politics, Create Peace, Democracy and Poverty. 0 Comments

If you haven’t done so already, go now to vote for Pambazuka News!

It’s easy to do. No login required, just go to http://tinyurl.com/2yo3vy, look for PAMBAZUKA NEWS on the list and click the “Vote” button.

Vote for Pambazuka News!

For the third year running, Pambazuka News has been selected as one of 25 finalists for the Top 10 Who Are Changing the World of Internet and Politics.

Pambazuka News is produced by a pan-African community of some 300 citizens and organisations - academics, policy makers, social activists, women’s organisations, civil society organisations, writers, artists, poets, bloggers, and commentators.

Winning this award would be a tribute to all the many contributors who have made Pambazuka News essential reading for all concerned with the cause of justice and freedom in Africa.

With your help, we could win this award. Please vote for us at: http://tinyurl.com/2yo3vy

NGOs going mobile… join the nGOmobile.org competition for grassroots groups in the third world

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September 18, 2007 in Africa, Civil Society, nptech, Kabissa, Web 2.0, ICT4D, Loband, web2fordev, SMS and MobileActive. 2 Comments

Via the mobileactive mailing list, I learned today about the nGOmobile competition, which is kicking off today! Grassroots groups in the third world seeking the tools and resources to use mobile phones and SMS in pursuit of their missions are invited to participate.

I am particularly excited because I have observed over the last two years, since participating in the first Mobile Active Convergence in Toronto back in 2005, that the opportunities of mobile phones for advocacy in the third world have been out there and available, but not fully exploited. The case studies (what works and what does not work) have not been widely shared and discussed for others around the continent to benefit from. More civil society groups need to see examples of how this technology is empowering others - and can empower them.

This competition will go a long way to remedying that problem - so hats off to kiwanja.net, 160 Characters and the others involved in putting on this competition. Read on to see the announcement, or go straight to ngomobile.org to learn more. Please help spread the word about this terrific initiative. Continue reading ‘NGOs going mobile… join the nGOmobile.org competition for grassroots groups in the third world’

Images FOR Africa - Flickr group promotes Creative Commons and sharing of Images FOR Africa

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September 4, 2007 in Africa, nptech, Web 2.0, WordPress, Blogging, Media, ICT4D, Flickr, web2fordev and Creative Commons. 1 Comment

I love Creative Commons. I love pictures. And I love Africa! So I was very pleased to encounter - and promptly join - the Images of Africa - Images FOR Africa group on Flickr. The group gathers images of Africa by people who want to share them with others. The photos shared by the group can be used freely under a generous Creative Commons license, and of course can be browsed, discussed or searched in the usual nifty Flickr ways.

There is even a beautiful Flickr map so you can place your own photos on the map and allow people to browse them by country.

I am enthusiastic about the new channels this provides for building networks of shared interest among likeminded and generous people in Africa.

I would gather that Flickr groups like this with such a clear common benefit for group members will provide a wonderfully gentle route into Creative Commons for people that otherwise are skeptical of the hype surrounding Web 2.0.
Continue reading ‘Images FOR Africa - Flickr group promotes Creative Commons and sharing of Images FOR Africa’

Interview with Walter Turner on Kabissa, Web 2.0, African civil society and more…

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September 4, 2007 in Africa, Civil Society, nptech, Kabissa, Web 2.0, Social Networking, WordPress, Blogging, Free/Libre Open Source Software, Democracy and web2fordev. 0 Comments

I was pleased to learn from Nunu Kidane (Priority Africa Network) this morning that an interview Kim Lowery and I did with Walter Turner back in May aired on KPFA in Berkeley yesterday and is available online.

The interview came on the heels of the Netsquared conference on “remixing the web for social change”, so Kim and I were very much jazzed up by - and no doubt still processing - the attention our Kabissa 2.0 proposal received at the conference and the many remarkable projects and ideas we were exposed to. We discussed Web 2.0 concepts but Walter Turner also challenged us to go into detail about the history and justification for Kabissa, on what we think civil society is and how we support the important work of organizations in Africa.

Gathering stories about Web 2.0 in African civil society

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August 17, 2007 in Africa, Civil Society, nptech, Kabissa, Web 2.0, Social Networking, Blogging, ICT4D and web2fordev. 2 Comments

Hey folks - I’m going to web2fordev in September and in the lead up to that am finalizing various outputs, including..

A paper I have been working on for the University of Washington’s Evans School about Web 2.0 in African Civil Society and which will be published on the Kabissa Wiki
An article about Kabissa and Web 2.0 for ICT Update
A presentation to give at the web2fordev conference about Kabissa and Web 2.0

As part of this, I wanted to get an update from Kabissa members and others in African civil society about their use of blogging and other social networking tools - remarkably, there are not that many case studies available despite the clearly active use of these nifty new tools and the massive potential dangling out there.

So I wrote a post on the Kabissa blog inviting grassroots groups to share their stories and sent out a quick mailing to members to invite them to come check it out. It should be interesting so stay tuned. If you have some good stories and links to share, please do so!

12-24 hours of skype free living - and email signatures: the ultimate social networking interface

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August 16, 2007 in nptech, Web 2.0 and skype. 0 Comments

skype status animated balloon button I was reminded today how important Skype is as a work tool for me. It has allowed me to be “joined at the hip” with my colleagues in the Kabissa office in Washington DC, as well as keep in close contact with many friends and colleagues in Africa, in Europe, and of course in North America. All this despite being on Bainbridge Island near Seattle, far too many time zones away from all those lovely people.

Still, I had a call scheduled for this morning, and thanks to the convenience of Skype didn’t even have the phone number handy for the person I needed to talk with. Skype was acting mysterious and I was offline. I then did a quick search of my email and found his various contacts in the signature info at the bottom of his email. Web 2.0 may be all that, but after all these years, email remains the central organizing tool for my work life, and email sigs are still a massively important part of leading a professional online existence.

Jiminy Crickets. Here is the rather humdrum announcement of this huge event on the Skype blog:

UPDATED 14:02 GMT: Some of you may be having problems logging into Skype. Our engineering team has determined that it’s a software issue. We expect this to be resolved within 12 to 24 hours. Meanwhile, you can simply leave your Skype client running and as soon as the issue is resolved, you will be logged in. We apologize for the inconvenience.

And what’s an email sig, you ask? We covered this in a Kabissa Dear Mimi internet advice column last year: I miss my letterhead! How do I give e-mails from my organization a professional look?

Don’t forget to add a meaningful footer! Often referred to as a “signature”, a footer is a snippet of text that you can have automatically added to the bottom of every e-mail you send. Don’t underestimate the power of this snippet: it can contain your organization’s vital coordinates, a link to your Web site, and even an emotive parable, quote or tagline that you change from time to time. It is reassuring for people to know how and where they can reach you.

Note that last sentence in particular - email is still the principle “home on the Internet” for me and perhaps most people. It’s where we turn to for finding answers, getting help - and connecting with our social network. My sig hasn’t been replaced by my LinkedIn and Facebook profile pages - not just yet.

Nicht mit uns! Let’s join the noisy Germans protesting censorship on Flickr

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July 11, 2007 in Civil Society, Web 2.0, Politics, Germany, Free Speech, Flickr and Internationalization. 0 Comments

I’m on my way to Germany today, so it’s timely that I come across this post on the development seed blog:

This week Flickr greeted its new international audience with a surprise: radical censorship. Originally I planned to write about how wonderful it was that Flickr added multilingual support for seven more languages. I was going to predict that its number of users and photos would quickly explode. That was before Alex clued me into the buzz from the German Flickr community, people who have been blocked from accessing a good chunk of Flickr’s content.

To access all content on Flickr you need to sign in with a Yahoo! ID. And now if you’re Yahoo! ID says you’re from Germany – or Singapore or Hong Kong or Korea – you’re blocked from accessing “moderate” and “restricted” photos. Because of the country you live in.

I am also heartily against censorship, and join the ranks of the noisy Germans in calling for an end to censorship on Flickr. May Yahoo respond quickly and find it in their hearts to reverse this decision!

This incident is a reminder also that we need to keep in mind that Flickr and other powerful Web 2.0 sites are not merely appliances that we can expect to continue using forever as we are using them today. Just yesterday I went looking for a tool to retrieve some of my favorite flickr photosets to copy onto my brand spanking new Sansa e250 mp3 player, and found that it was tricky to do so. Indeed Flickr does not offer a simple way to do it and you have to use a 3rd party tool that takes advantage of Flickr’s API.

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