Activism through Social Media: A Project for Pakistan

Feb. 7, 2013 - PRLog -- AUSTIN, TX –– Secretly everyone has had the dream at least once where the government calls with a special mission, and you are the one they need. It’s a dream that rarely comes true, and in our case almost got overlooked, when an email came to Speak Social's Vice President, Adam Price with the subject: URGENT: US Department of State Meeting Request: Activism through Social Media, Pakistan.

Like many would, Price said at first he thought it was a spam email. However, after a few phone calls with Pamela-Jean Mohamed, Associate Executive Director for International Programs with GlobalAustin, he confirmed that this was a legitimate request from the State Department in Washington for representatives from Speak Social to meet with delegates from both the U.S. and Pakistan to discuss the topic, Activism through Social Media. Speak Social’s portion of the meeting will take place this afternoon in Austin; however, the delegation will continue meeting on different topics both today and tomorrow, February 9.

According to Mohamed, the delegation from Pakistan is coming to the US through the US Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program, which fosters citizen-to-citizen diplomacy for emerging leaders.

Each year GlobalAustin coordinates meetings and opportunities for cross-cultural sharing for over 400 international dignitaries from over 90 countries. The topics range from agriculture to zoning and bring in emerging leaders from government, non-profits, academia, journalism and the private sector. The program has been in existence since after WWII and famous alumni of this State Department program include Gordon Brown, Queen 'Mamohato Seeiso, Tony Blair, Anwar Sadat, Margaret Thatcher, Nicolas Sarkozy, Hamid Karzai, Indira Gandhi, Felipe Calderón and Mikheil Saakashvili just to name a few.

Mohamed said that Washington personally asked her to request an opportunity for the delegation to meet with Speak Social to learn more about the company and how we use Social Media to promote awareness.

“We want to discuss best practices for engaging an audience to advance your message, the value of collecting analysis of web traffic and usage, and deciding on the best new media platforms to fit our objectives,” Mohamed said.

The delegation would also like to hear more about the Social Good Summit, Work-From-Home Program that we have vigorously worked with other volunteers to coordinate.

“I am honored to represent the US and work with the business leaders from Pakistan to discuss Social Media, and the positive impact it can have on business practices and the world,” Price said. “Working together, in these worldwide exchanges are a large part of why we started Speak Social.”

In addition to Adam, Speak Social President Brad Bogus will also be speaking with the delegation.

"By helping other cultures learn from each other, the State Department is doing a great thing,” Bogus said. “We're excited to show the Pakistani Delegation what we've done with our clients and causes, but we're more looking forward to learning what has worked for them."

Program Objectives
The Department of State has outlined the following specific objectives for the project:

·         To highlight innovations and ways in which social media have been used successfully in the U.S. by the public and private sector, as well as NGOs and grassroots activists.
·         To increase understanding of policies and strategies for developing effective communication platforms, and how to initiate and design far-reaching social media campaigns that further human rights and democratic ideals.
·         To improve technical skills needed to develop and use social media, such as content development, video production, and interfacing with existing social media platforms.
·         To learn about techniques and strategies to reach rural and/or low penetration areas, such as texting/SMS.
·         To increase outreach and global linkages with international organizations and institutions.

Austin Specific Themes

·         Human Rights Activism through Social Media
·         Politics and Campaigns
·         Bloggers:  Creating Online Virtual Communities
·         Volunteer Activity

SPEAK SOCIAL

Speak Social works directly with brands in various industries such as clothing, automobiles, restaurants, entertainment and health care to create and manage their online presence.

As a comprehensive marketing firm, Speak Social amplifies traditional campaigns with a combination of Social networking, forums, videos, images, blogs, custom design & development, review & recommendation site monitoring, as well as best SEO practices.

Speak Social’s elite force of professionals bring individual expertise to every aspect of branding – looking at companies from both real world and online marketing angles. In the fast-paced world of the internet, a brand needs the guidance and action of a team who knows all the tools – not just a Sherpa following a single path.

“We've learned many great lessons while developing successful Social Media marketing and campaigns for our clients,” Bogus said. “We're passionate about what Social Media can do for businesses. That being said, many businesses and individuals do it poorly because they don’t have a clear plan.”

CONTACT FOR MORE INFORMATION:  STEPHANIE BOGUS – STEAPHANIE@SPEAKSOCIAL.NET – 512.965.5053

GLOBALAUSTIN
GlobalAustin works with the U.S. Department of State to deliver educational and cultural programs to visiting international leaders. Proud member of the National Council of International Visitors (NCIV).  Our national nonprofit network of 95 offices and 80,000 volunteers was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001.

Formed in 1959 and chartered in 1960, GlobalAustin, formerly the International Hospitality Council of Austin (IHCA), is a non-profit community organization dedicated to serving international students, visiting faculty and international visitors to Austin.  A Board of Directors governs GlobalAustin, which is elected annually from the active members.