COMM-ORG

• Here is the best advice I have found, from:

  An Activists' Strategy for Effective On-Line Networking

  1. Definitely build a Web site, but clearly define your audience, objectives and the costs for achieving those objectives. Who are you trying to reach, what information does this audience want, and how can you best deliver this information to them? How many people do you expect to reach with this site, and what results do you want to achieve? How much time and resources will you need to commit to create a Web site that will effectively realize your objectives? Is a Web site for an intended audience the most effective use of your money and resources to reach these objectives?

  2. Set realistic expectations for mass public outreach (or fundraising, membership development, etc.)

  3. Start "small." Focus on your existing constituency, and expand as interest in your site grows.

  4. Think of your Web site as your organization's library, with sections on New Titles, Publications, Reference Desk, and "Stacks."

  5. Integrate the Web with your overall communication plan (especially the use of email and email lists).

• The Activist Toolkit by ONE/Northwest (ONLINE NETWORKING for the ENVIRONMENT) will help with all kinds of technical advice for using the Internet in activism.

• Benton's Best Practices Toolkit, designed to help nonprofits make effective use of communications and information technologies.

• Contentbank, an online resource for information, tools and people dedicated to building Internet content that works for low-income and underserved communities by the Children's Partnership.

• Designing Effective Action Alerts for the Internet by Phil Agre, Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles

• On-Line Advocacy provides a variety of resources for those thinking about an on-line advocacy program.

• The Institute for Global Communications maintains EcoNet, PeaceNet, ConflictNet, LaborNet, and WomensNet, with lots of on-line resources.

• The Internet:  What it Can and Can't Do for Activists, by Larry Lamar Yates, 1996.

• NetAction shows ways that the Internet can support grass-roots activism, with a great deal of information resources and an on-line cyberactivism training course

• Organizers' Collaborative, harnessing the collaborative potential of the Internet and working to making computers accessible as a tool in support of community-based, social change organizing.

• Organizing on the Internet, a COMM-ORG list-serv message from Larry Yates with insights and links about Internet activism.

• Progressive Technology Project Resources for Organizers has technology assessment and planning tools.

• Technology Resources for Non-Profit Organizations provides web hosting, Internet Service Provide, hardware, and technology assistance links.

• Using the Internet for Organizing and Advocacy, by Dirk Slater of the LINC Project.

• The Virtual Volunteering Project, with advice, links, and resources supporting Internet activism.

Your members can now get access to their own personal e-mail through the World Wide Web. So they can go to the local library, the local community computing center, or other places, and access e-mail without their own computer.  Below are links to some free e-mail services.

• Juno (unique free dial-up e-mail that works even with old computers)
• HotMail
• Yahoo! Mail

In many cities, "community networks" provide free access to the World Wide Web through libraries, schools, community centers, and other places. You could even provide access through your organization. Use the links below to find out more about the community networks in your area.

• The Community Networking Resource Site
• VICNET The Community Network serving the State of Victoria in Australia--a good example for the rest of us.