Almost nine months ago, my boss Steve Foster approached me and asked what I thought about having The Overbrook Foundation hire a consultant to help design a survey that would allow us to understand how our domestic Human Rights grantees are using the Internet and other technology tools like blogs, podcasts, social networking sites or information mashups to advance their work. Stimulated by a board discussion lead by expert Andrew Rasiej in the intersection of policy and the Internet, we wanted to try to assess how The Foundation’s grantees were engaged in the “new” Web 2.0 world and, we wanted to develop recommendations for The Foundation of ways to support our grantees in the new digital age. As one who grew up with a computer as an integral part of my life, I thought it was a great idea.
I quickly learned that what we were delving into something deeper than I had anticipated. The Web has changed dramatically from its early days. Yikes! I wasn’t even sure what Web 2.0 meant! If I was having a hard time defining it, would any of our grantees know what it was?
So first I had to educate myself. Luckily, The Foundation engaged Allison Fine, author of Momentum: Igniting Social Change in the Connected Age help us in this endeavor. She helped me to understand that the phrase Web 2.0 is used to describe the next generation of wireless and web-based technologies (or social media) that will continue to enhance the ability of social change organizations to engage, educate and mobilize large numbers of people in support of their causes. This article provides a good description of how Web 2.0 came into existence after our first introduction to web sites in second half of 1990s.
What we learned from our survey, and from follow up group discussions, was that majority of our grantees are firmly entrenched in the Web 1.0 world, in shorthand, meaning that they use the web largely as a source of information and as a way to push out their information rather than a tool for interactivity or community involvement. While there were a small handful of grantees that are using the social media in spectacular ways to engage their constituents in conversations or to contact lawmakers to push for policy changes, the majority of our grantees are not yet taking advantage of easy-to-use social media tools effectively.
Overall, grantees felt a common struggle in understanding which tools are critically important to their work, and they were mostly at a loss as to where and how to get.
It’s hardly surprising that when it comes to Web 2.0 most of our grantees are like “Babes in Wonderland” given that they spend most of their time doing their substantive work and raising money. They have too little time to stop and think about new ways to do their work, new ways to engage their constituents, and what the most appropriate uses of technology are for them. This makes many activists push the new tools away because they don’t know enough about them, don’t have the staff to explore and learn about them, and are working in environments that are often on the wrong side of the digital divide. As one group discussion participant said, “I think I’m missing something really big, but I don’t know what it is or how to find out what it is.”
But in a bit of reverse logic, I think we can actually see this struggle as positive sign. Our grantees are aware of the tools that are hallmarks of social media (e.g. blogs, RSS feeds, social networking sites, etc.) but just don’t know how implement them or integrate them into their work. Participants in the group discussion were eager for assistance and support. For the most part, the ways of Web 2.0 can be easily taught, and as long as organizations can engage in the principles behind Web 2.0 (e.g. The Wisdom of Crowds, and Linus’s Law) as well as a greater openness and transparency in their work, they can begin to think strategically about the implementation of many of these new ideas.
Moving forward, the desire we saw among our grantees strongly suggests non-profit organizations are beginning to think analytically about changing the way they work in context of this new web world. It’s Overbrook’s belief that the most effective organizations in the new digital age will be those who recognize these digital opportunities and quickly seize them.
In the fall, The Foundation will write several case studies to illustrate what we mean by effective engagement in the world of the Web 2.0. We also plan to highlight the blogs and social networking activities of our grantees. And true Web 2.0 fashion, we hope that our grantees will tell us what they need to be successful in this new virtual world. Additionally, I’ll be curious to delve deeper into the impact that Web 2.0 ultimately has on field of philanthropy itself. For instance, perhaps it will increase transparency in foundation decision-making, and maybe even reshape the traditional power dynamics between foundations and nonprofits.
Now that I’ve finally got a good bit of Web 2.0 under my belt, I have a little story to tell. Yesterday afternoon, I overheard a man walking down Fifth Avenue talking on his Blackberry. While I only heard a snippet of his conversation, I distinctly heard the words “Web 3.0.” I have absolutely no idea what it’s all about, but I better go find out.
For a full copy of The Overbrook Foundation’s Report, “Web 2.0 Assessment of The Overbrook Foundation’s Human Rights Grantees” and other resources and information, please visit www.overbrook.org and click on “Resources.”
Elizabeth R. Miller works as a Program Associate for The Overbrook Foundation, a New York City-based family foundation established in 1948 by Frank and Helen Altschul. Its mission is to improve the lives of people by supporting projects that protect human and civil rights, advance the self-sufficiency and well being of individuals and their communities, and conserve the natural environment.
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