Below are resources for the workshop I’m doing at the mass service alliance conference on nov15, 2005. It’s about using online tools to build technology. I’ve put the articles that impressed me at the top of the list.
A12 - Using Online Community Tools to Support and Strengthen VolunteerismInternet social software and community tools are not just for “geeks” anymore. They have evolved to easily enable you to keep in touch with, and energize, your volunteers. At the same time, these tools create vehicles for volunteers to share their experiences. Learn how to use weblogs, discussion groups, mailing lists, wikis, and more to deepen your volunteers’ connections with your organization and with each other.
http://www.mass-service.org/conferenceworkshops.shtmlI use google a lot, so I have included the way I found some of these articles. Other articles I had already bookmarked.
Using google.com (type in everything inside the “[]”)
[online community building + "building trust" + volunteer]
This article discusses common assumptions about online communities that nonprofits can overcome and then lists resources for delving further into what it takes to build and maintain effective online communities.
http://www.benton.org/publibrary/practice/community/assumptions.htmlAs part of our commitment to practice what we preach -- in this case our belief in the value of sharing lessons learned from direct experience -- we share with you our experience hosting online discussions at
Helping.org.
http://www.benton.org/publibrary/practice/lessons/forumlessons.htmlThinking about building or hosting an online community? Looking for specific tips, tools and ideas? Start here. The following is a collection of articles that may help inform your work. They are all covered by our
Creative Commons license which makes the material available with limited restrictions. Check it out.
http://www.fullcirc.com/community/communitymanual.htmPeople volunteer for many reasons, sometimes altruism, sometimes personal, but always for a purpose. We need to understand that purpose in order to attract and retain the volunteer. For many it's a way of giving back. You will hear volunteers say, "My mother received excellent care in this hospital and I want to repay some of that kindness." Another volunteer will say, "When I was growing up, there was a Boy Scout leader who made a difference in my life, and I want to be one of those who makes a difference to a young boy." The concept of giving back is strong in most volunteers' minds.
http://www.volunteerpro.com/past_newsletter_001.htm"Online communities will flourish, if they continue to provide top notch value. A community will grow and adapt or grow and break," says Shannon. "The major benefit of an online community is that you can be anywhere and get value out of the community."
http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9803/25/online_comune/What have these savvy organizations done to build community? Did they simply
build or buy the tools to create interactive Web sites? No. Although building community
online does require special tools, the key to success lies in an organization’s message
and its strategy for strengthening relationships with its constituents. Technology
is secondary. As experiences with the first generation of community-building tools
have demonstrated, there is no magic “if you build it they will come” solution.
http://www.getactive.com/pdf/white-papers/nonprofit_internet_strategies.pdfSome believe that the personal computer and the Internet could extend these trends and suggest that technology separates us rather than unites us. Now that we can instantly connect with people anywhere in the world, what remains to hold our neighborhoods together? This report describes efforts by a wide range of people, from inner cities to some of the most rural reaches of the country, which demonstrate how technology builds community bonds. From rural Maine to urban California, from Montana's Indian Country to downtown York, Pennsylvania, communities described in this report are using information technologies not to escape local bonds, but rather to strengthen them.
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/otiahome/top/publicationmedia/comm_conn/community_connections_illus.htmlNavigation and the issue of trust go hand in hand. “The Internet Trust study concluded that the strongest factor in building trust in an online service is ease of navigation. The trust worthiest sites are those that feature straightforward, clear, and consistent navigational strategies.” This is interesting because it emphasizes that a person’s real-time experience is even more important in establishing trust than how well a site deals with more general and serious concerns (Laurel).
http://www.du.edu/~jrutenbe/4503/nponline.htm
