Twestivals Update

Hey to all.

Exciting week as I mentioned yesterday, we have the first ever global fundraiser for Charity:Water that’s been promoted via social media.

Take a look at the latest promotional video by Live Earth:

It’s so exciting to me to ponder the precedent this event sets as evidence of the potential of social media to improve the human condition.

And as you heard Amanda solicit, (one of the coordinators twestival worldwide as well as Twestival London) anyone who wishes to can share how they’re promoting twestival on their blogs, photos, videos, and tweets, tagged with twestival by submitting all to Live Earth. And all tweets tagged with #twestival (hashtag for the event) are being followed as well.

Engaging in and/ or simply observing the vast usage of social media to promote this endeavor builds my own comprehension on how a grassroots campaign of this magnitude can unite people around the world both in promoting a cause they value and using a means that’s become far more a way of life than a passing trend.

I continue to be in awe over how quickly awareness of this global tweet up for Charity:Water spread in just a few weeks through tweets on twitter and I’m convinced it’s a phenonmenon I’ll follow for some time.

For while I blog and have a facebook, it’s through twitter that I’ve learned the most, seen the most movement of ideas and engaged in significant campaigns aiming to help humanity, all in the past few months.

I’m surely asking questions like how can the relationships built during single mega campaigns like twestival endure indefinitely…or should they?

How can all the inspiration and devotion poured into a single event the be channeled into lasting perpetual contributions of support…or should they?

Surely the need for clean water will continue beyond the wells built by the hoped for $500,000 raised on February 12, 2009. And once you participate in an effort at this level, it’s highly unlikely come February 13, organizers, event hosts, donors will just move on with their lives and forget about the millions needing clean water.

So I’m asking you the reader: what are your thoughts on the options for creating staying power?

Beyond the twestivals, how do you leverage the momentum roused–of once  dormant human hearts that will ignite around their newborn awareness of the global need for clean water– and create a sustainable vehicle or practical way that on a regular basis the every day gal or guy sitting at their laptops can still help this noble cause?

Because my sense of things is that unless a lot of thought is poured into that answer, Friday February 13 will emerge and reality of the demands of people lives will resume dominating thoughts.

And maybe that’s to be expected. But is that okay?

I appreciate much what Allison Fine asks in her post today:

Is there any benefit to organizations to raising money through epic events like this, or would it behoove a group like charity:water to use tools like Twitter and Tip jar to create regular, monthly giving habits for people intersted in their work. Which is better in the long run? Or maybe they need to co-exist?*

*(I’m pretty sure she meant tipjoy.com).

So give it some reflection and thought and offer your perspectives here in the comments when you want.

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But for the now, while there’s 3 days left before twestivals party around the world, here’s how you can participate:

To keep tabs on who’s planning what for twestivals in all other cities:

• Visit the Twestival home page
• Visit the LiveEarth homepage
• Join twitter and follow all tweets with #twestival (hashtag)
• Tune into twestival.fm to purchase a song or donate.
• Donate to Charity:Water via tipjoy.
• Purchase a ticket to a twestival in a city near you.

And happily, I’m starting to hear back from my sequence of tweets asking hosts of twestivals to be in touch about their plans.

Stay tuned for some posts on the plans for:

Montreal’s Twestival, Philadelphia’s Twestival, and Chicago’s Twestival and a few more….

Any questions on how to participate? Just leave a comment.

Enjoy, have fun, and more soon! 🙂

Tre ~