#peoplespower

[cyrusandoz]

[djvincytz]

Mama ni nguvu, mama ni njia, mama ni msingi, without a woman’s no world. #kigamboni tumuunge mama @lucymagereli kwa kura zetu ili tuweze pata maendeleo na #kigambonimpya #peoplespower #chademaforlife (at Kigamboni, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFJ2sDqJwlT/?igshid=j8xsxhijw35z

[ajoeblogs]

Together We Are Strong

Imagine having access to the world’s brightest minds to get the idea for your next product or find solutions to a problem you’re struggling with. Surprise! You can already do this today. The Internet and ultimately social media made this possible through crowdsourcing.

In this concept, an online audience (or a “crowd”) is targeted to work or support a project rather than recruiting an individual or business (Howe 2013, pp. 7-9). The issue or project itself is often published online with the request for ideas, along with an incentive for the right solution, letting you just lean back while one suggestion after another flies in (Howe 2013, pp. 10-12). Through crowdsourcing, data and ideas can be collected and shared worldwide. Many digital initiatives are demonstrating how these synergies lead to greater freedom of expression and information. 

For example, "Ushahidi," an open-source software, has already been used in 90,000 projects and uses many examples to show how ordinary citizens are working online for more transparency and security, thus becoming digital activists. Crowdsourcing is a key to this new information age (Ford 2012, p. 33). The term stands for the bundling of knowledge and ideas of many people over the Internet. It’s a modern division of labour that was initially used primarily in the economy. Meanwhile, there’s a variety of social projects that benefit from crowdsourcing, and many platforms are based on the Ushahidi software. The software launched following the bloody clashes in the 2007 Kenyan presidential election, which killed 1,500 people. Eyewitnesses were able to tell by email and SMS where violence was occurring in the major cities in Kenya. The messages were first verified by staff, mostly in cooperation with local journalists and NGOs, and then inserted into a map on Google Maps – making the atrocities visible to everyone. The goal was more transparency and security for the local people. More than 45,000 Kenyans used the software to report danger zones.

Ever since its deployment during the 2010 Haiti earthquake, "Ushahidi" has been known internationally. The software is free and the 90,000 projects have been built by 6.5 million contributions from about 20 million people. The so-called "mapping" is a simple tool with great impact: incidents or grievances that would often go nowhere are documented, mapped and published. Among other things, after the 2011 Japan earthquake, a map was used to illustrate crisis information and aid coordination.

Crowdsourcing is the embodiment of modern information management (Hedges & Dunn 2017, pp. 17-22). Many voices and messages come together to form a large pool of information online. In a crisis or catastrophic situation, the "mapping" of danger zones can save many lives. However, the high number of people without Internet access also shows that it still needs traditional ways to inform and mobilize people. So the informational potential of these initiatives is enormous. Now they just need ideas on how to give more people access to them.

 Reference:

Ford, H 2012, 'Crowd Wisdom', Index on Censorship, vol. 41, no. 4, pp. 33-39.

Hedges, M & Dunn, S 2017, Academic Crowdsourcing in the Humanities: Crowds, Communities and Co-production, Elsevier Science & Technology, ProQuest-Ebook, viewed 17 May 2018, <http://bit.ly/2LdNrgE>.

Howe, J 2013, Summary: Crowdsourcing, Primento Digital, ProQuest-Ebook, viewed 17 May 2018, <http://bit.ly/2LNXTwc>.

Image Reference:

‘Crowdsourcing your market research’ [image], in Sixdegress.com n.d.., viewed 18 May 2018, <http://bit.ly/2kGA9y1>.

[realpapicholo]

#whatididtoday My sister ordered #pizza from @angelspizzaph. Amazing as always! All #veggies pizza! #yummy #foodporn (celebrating #freedom on #peoplespower #edsa #peoplespowerrevolution) (at Angel's Pizza)

[studentsformonteiro]

Join the coalition today!!!