In September 2022, CGIAR funded our Open Knowledge Kit accelerated humanitarian and MSME regeneration program in Bali, Indonesia. We brought together selected technical and non-technical women and Indigenous youth to learn our accelerated program of SDG data collection, mapping, analytics and monitoring, drone operations, and Tourism and Creative Industries micro, small and medium enterprise support and market access.
Our model delivers faster, more accurate verifiable representative data using free and open source tools and low-cost equipment. Training local communities means expensive consultant, equipment, software and travel costs and carbon footprints are greatly reduced, and enable continuous and consistent monitoring while increasing local daily wages by 100 to 1700 percent.
CGIAR is a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. The Open Knowledge Kit program is supported under their gender and digital divide Digital Innovation Initiative.
Open Knowledge Kit is a global program that addresses long-standing barriers to addressing gender, jobs and climate security gaps. Non-technical and technical cross-sector local communities led by women are rapidly trained across 15 free and open source tools to create local data employment opportunities at 2-17 times higher daily wages, while agriculture, tourism and creative industries are connected to premium and ethical clients.
We’re committed to the long-term well-being of local communities by coordinating donors across multi-year investments and enabling them to make more informed decisions with better data, prioritization and monitoring methods across the Sustainable Development Goals.
Bali Fab Fest is organized by the Fab Foundation, the Center for Bits and Atoms at MIT, the Fab City Foundation, and the Meaningful Design Group. It brings together two major annual events, the 17th edition of the Fab Lab Conference and 7th Fab City Summit 2022. Bali Fab Fest is a learning experience for both international participants and local stakeholders who invest their efforts into inventing and realizing the world that is coming next, responding to global challenges such as climate change and social exclusion through small scale interventions in situated communities. The event aims to promote and enable meaningful collaborations between innovators, makers, entrepreneurs, organizations, and the public sector.
Early warning weather alerts, real-time traffic maps, ride-hailing services. Technology has quietly become part of our daily lives.
SEAsia is home to the world’s fastest growing e-commerce market. As a result, there is a pressing need to ensure that communities are not left behind in an increasingly digital world.
In this session we will talk about climate smart solutions that contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of reducing hunger, closing the gender gap and improving environmental management.
Access to technology can level the playing field for struggling rural farmers, new low-cost data collection models result in 17 times higher wages for local communities and an app for informal waste workers can contribute to a clean ocean.
What needs to happen to fully utilize the potential of green tech for our planet and our societies? What can funders do to empower local communities to develop their own solutions? How can bold innovations be fostered?
Key Takeaways:
How green tech can open a path towards sustainable growth across the spectrum of climate, gender and livelihoods
Beyond free and open source technologies, placing cross-sector communities at the centre of knowledge stewardship and employment models provides the stability critical to bridge successful policy and program implementation, while dramatically reducing costs and carbon footprints
Initiatives to improve recovery rates of plastics in the ocean need to take into account the social and economic impacts on informal waste worker
On March 1st I joined the American Chamber of Commerce’s Creative Industries Committee panel on supporting the Philippine film industry. Per usual, I spoke about the practical aspects of developing the film and creative industry: lack of accurate data and prioritization in a largely informal sector. I shared our local Open Knowledge Kit methodology that provides faster, cheaper, more accurate and verifiable data while creating local data employment opportunities well above the minimum wage. I also shared footage from one of the creative industry production hubs we are developing in the Philippines, with another location set in Indonesia to support the ASEAN region.
Media use is seen as a very important part of Filipino life as exposure to media mirrors the desire to be part of both society and the environment. Among the Filipino people, films are considered to be one of the popular forms of entertainment as it directly employs around 260,000 Filipinos and generate generating around ₱2 billion incomes per annum. Within the Southeast Asian region, Philippine cinema remains the most vibrant and diverse as the majority of films made in the region came from the Philippines along with the film industries of Thailand and Indonesia.
However, on a global scale, the downfall of Philippine cinema is traced to Filipinos’ exposure to foreign films rather than mainstream cinema. The competition from foreign films with better editing techniques, cinematography, story concept, and far bigger production made it difficult for Filipino films to compete. Also, high taxation for film producers affects the number of films available. Hence, with the advent of new technologies and new media platforms, the industry is faced with new challenges.
The technical quality of foreign films made it difficult for the local industry to compete since moviegoers mostly watched films for entertainment and a sort of enjoyment and diversion. Furthermore, the Philippine film industry has faced incredible drawbacks since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic – from the continued closure of cinemas that affected the production of local films, to the challenges plaguing the safe conduct of production activities and onsite events.
Media use is seen as a very important part of Filipino life as exposure to media mirrors the desire to be part of both society and the environment. Among the Filipino people, films are considered to be one of the popular forms of entertainment as it directly employs around 260,000 Filipinos and generate generating around ₱2 billion incomes per annum. Within the Southeast Asian region, Philippine cinema remains the most vibrant and diverse as the majority of films made in the region came from the Philippines along with the film industries of Thailand and Indonesia.
At the Creative Economy Council of the Philippines – CECP, we’ve partnered with Kumu, the Pinoy livestreaming app, to explore new ways for creatives to make a living. Kumu currently has 10 million users in 55 countries, with some regulars making P20,000 or $360 per week! Download the app and join our Kumu livestream @CreativeEconomyPH tomorrow at 3pm Wednesday, January 26 to meet and support the artists we’re working with:
We were invited to present at two sessions at the 2021 Understanding Risk Asia conference hosted by World Bank and National University of Singapore.
I led a solo session talking about our Open Knowledge Kit program and four career tracks and also curated the panel presenting the developers behind our technology and implementing partners.
Open Knowledge Kit (OK Kit) is a free and open-source tool kit to empower local communities with digital employment through geospatial data collection, analytics and monitoring toward the stewardship of their economic, climate, and social prosperity. Surveys, disaster and climate change modeling and 3D reconstruction are now possible at much lower costs, training local and non-technical communities.
OK Kit Addresses the key barriers to achieving the SDGs:
1. Short-term and uncoordinated donor projects led by community outsiders 2. Expensive, proprietary and closed technology systems 3. The gender gap 4. Decent Work
This Saturday September 4th, I”ll be joining the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Wolrd Congress’ Supporting Indigenous peoples in Defending Nature and Traditions with Geospatial Technologies panel to discuss how our Open Knowledge Kit Regeneration Program provides life saving employment, strengthens local knowledge stewardship and provides better quality real-time data, and industry-leading mapping analytics, disaster and climate change modeling with free and open source tools.
Saturday September 4th at 13:30 – 15:30 GMT+2 | 5:30am PST| 8:30pm PHT
Session Description
Evidence from across the globe shows that Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) are effective stewards of nature, yet they are constantly faced with threats from outside interests and their voices are often marginalized in decision-making processes. IPLCs frequently lack consistent and timely access to the data, technologies, and resources necessary to effectively gain official recognition of and uphold their land rights and monitor new threats to nature and their livelihoods. In this campus session, speakers will share their experiences from applying and designing innovative geospatial technologies and learn about the current suite of geospatial tools designed to increase access and use by diverse conservation actors. One key outcome of this session will be an action plan to improve knowledge exchange of ideas, capacity-building resources, and accessible geospatial technologies appropriate for Indigenous-led mapping and monitoring.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress takes place on Septembe 3-11, 2021. The IUCN World Conservation Congress is where the world comes together to set priorities and drive conservation and sustainable development action. IUCN’s 1400+ government, civil society and indigenous peoples’ Member organisations vote on major issues, action which guides humanity’s relationship with our planet for the decades ahead. IUCN’s unique and inclusive membership gives the Congress a powerful mandate as it is not solely government or non-government, but both together.
IUCN was created in 1948, and has evolved into the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network. It harnesses the experience, resources and reach of its more than 1,400 Member organisations and the input of some 13,000 experts. IUCN is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it. Our experts are organised into six commissions dedicated to species survival, environmental law, protected areas, social and economic policy, ecosystem management, and education and communication.
The Congress is also the largest marketplace for conservation and sustainable development science, practice and policy. Scientists, policy experts, business leaders and professionals from around the globe: share their experience, innovation and latest research.
At the Pacific Forum’s Advancing Women, Peace & Security in the Indo-Pacific conference on September 1st, I’ll be speaking about how our Open Knowledge Regeneration Program creates local women-led employment, improves local knowledge stewardship and creates better data and climate change modeling, all using free and open-source tools.
Thursday, September 2, 2021 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM (HST) Session 7 | Gender and Climate Security in the Indo-Pacific
This session explores different aspects of gender and climate security in the Indo-Pacific. What are examples of established and emerging evidence on the difference that women’s participation and leadership make on climate change responses? What are ongoing challenges posed by climate inaction to addressing gender equality, and vice versa? How and why are gender justice and climate justice interlinked?
Speakers:
Joan Carling, Indigenous Peoples Major Group for Sustainable Development (IPMG); Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI)
Dr. Laura Hosman, Arizona State University
Celina Agaton, Map the Philippines (MapPH)
Maria Tanyag, Pacific Forum Women, Peace and Security Fellow
Moderator:
Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls, Shifting the Power Coalition / GPPAC Pacific
The Pacific Forum is a non-profit, foreign policy research institute based in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Forum’s programs encompass current and emerging political, security, economic and business issues and works to help stimulate cooperative policies in the Indo-Pacific region through analysis and dialogue undertaken with the region’s leaders in the academic, government, and corporate areas.
The Forum collaborates with a network of more than 30 research institutes around the Pacific Rim, drawing on Asian perspectives and disseminating its projects’ findings and recommendations to opinion leaders, governments, and publics throughout the region. We regularly cosponsor conferences with institutes throughout Asia to facilitate nongovernmental institution building as well as to foster cross-fertilization of ideas.
Pacific Forum was listed among the “2020 Best New Think Tanks” in the 2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report; having recently returned to it’s former fully-independent status. This is an annual ranking produced by the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. The index looks at over 11,000 think tanks around the world.
In addition to ranking in the “2020 Best New Think Tanks” global category, Pacific Forum was listed in the top 100 “2020 Top Think Tanks in the United States.” Even more competitively, the organization was recognized as one of only 17 US think tanks listed in the top 73 “2020 Think Tanks With the Most Significant Impact on Public Policy” in the world.
Our goal is to help create more sustainable infrastructure and to provide a space for better cross sector collaboration, transparency and accountability for our communities. Our free online platform launches in early 2016 and provides opportunities for citizens and organizations to share their programs, services, and best practices, and to identify funding needs and connect with other stakeholders.
Celina Agaton with the Art Gallery of Ontario’s Education Committee
A Heart to Art Chat was an unconference-style event I developed to co-create ideas for the Art Gallery of Ontario. 70 community leaders and participants from the arts, culture and events communities came together in the beautiful new 35,000 square foot Weston Family Learning Centre. Over a six month process, I led the strategic planning, digital and community strategy for the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) and currently sit as an advisor to the AGO’s Education Committee.
I am currently developing a plan to create a sustainable infrastructure for youth and the arts through museum, NGO, government, and business partnerships and crowdfunding.
During my two years as Communications Director at Volunteer Toronto, I led and developed a training curriculum on social media, cross sector collaboration and volunteer engagement for non-profit organizations. I created an online process to enhance the matching of non-profit needs with corporate volunteer interests and established a program to provide low cost and free technology tools and discounted program resources to support Volunteer Toronto’s community of 500 non-profit organizations. I created Volunteer Toronto’s ChariTee campaign which was sponsored by the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration, George Brown School of Design students, and youth social enterprise, Me to We Style.
I conceptualized and launched Volunteer Toronto’s Free Movie Night, a social change film series to bring together funders, non-profits, business, government and volunteers, and to connect them to social innovation events and collaboration opportunities. These free movie nights brought together audiences of 300 people at each screening.
I collaborated with volunteers to create Volunteer Connect, a Facebook application for volunteer opportunities, which was endorsed by the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration.
I hosted Volunteer Toronto’s annual event, Toronto TimeRaiser, an event to connect people in their 20s and 30s to volunteer opportunities.
I also created and managed successful e-newsletters, social media content and campaigns. Highlights include using social media to recruit 200 volunteers in two weeks to attend an 8am volunteer program at Toronto Zoo.
Founded in 2005 by Oliver Madison and Craig & Marc Kielburger, Me to We Style is a social enterprise that provides domestically produced clothing using eco-friendly fabrics such as certified organic cotton, viscose from bamboo and recycled polyester.
Each year, Me to We Style donates half of their annual profits to their charity partner, Free the Children, while the other half is reinvested to grow the enterprise and its social mission. Through Free the Children, they plant a tree in the Maasai region in Kenya for every piece of apparel that is sold as part of a long term sustainability initiative.
Me to We Style is part of a family of youth organizations, including Free the Children, Me to We and We Day, that has a shared goal: to empower a generation to shift the world from ‘me’ to ‘we’—through how we act, how we give, the choices we make on what to buy and what to wear, the media we consume and the experiences with which we choose to engage.
In 2009, I established Me to We Style’s social media presence on Facebook and Twitter.
I spent 6 years leading national launches for pharmaceutical companies in Canada and enjoyed working across government, healthcare, business and creative sectors. I managed two historical launches for the Canadian pharmaceutical industry: AstraZeneca’s Crestor launch, the largest advertising account at $25 million, and Janssen Ortho’s Pariet launch, the fastest product launch over 2 months. Other notable clients include GSK’s vaccine portfolio including Twinrix vaccine, Solvay Men’s Health and AstraZeneca’s Symbicort respiratory therapy.
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We screened movies on local and international food issues, served free samples of delicious local food and presented Toronto’s community kitchens, neighbourhood gardens, chefs, farmers and teachers. Participants were able to
* Sample delicious food grown right in Ontario and prepared by community
kitchens, chefs and community-friendly businesses, like Vert Catering, George
Brown Chef School, Cowbell and Fiesta Farms.
* Enjoy 10 free food booths from our community partners.
* Learn about food sustainability and community-friendly businesses from
Toronto’s food community leaders.
* Connect with free programs from urban farming and cooking classes, to
children’s activities and farmer’s markets in our street fair.
* Join a local community garden, help pick fruit trees, or share gardening and
cooking skills with your neighbours.
We announced the winner of our $2,500 prize, Young Urban Farmers.
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In 2009, I founded Films That Move, a global social change film series that brings together people from across the sectors to connect and collaborate in their communities. I screened UK civic engagement documentary, Us Now to demonstrate the transformational impact of the internet across business, government and society.
Over 300 people attended each screening, and included Toronto Mayor David Miller’s launch of the city’s Open Data initiative to the non-profit community.
With international interest in Us Now, I launched a global screening project with other social innovation organizations around the world, taking Us Now to Portland, San Francisco, Tokyo, Toronto, Vancouver, Columbia, the Netherlands and Argentina.
I’m currently directing a film series pilot, and cross sector education and fundraising program for Toronto’s food sustainability community. In 2012, I organized the Toronto location for the celebration of United Nations World Food Day in partnership with the Centre for Social Innovation Regent Park, Daniels Spectrum and Food Forward.
I volunteer as part of the Crisis Mappers Humanitarian Technology Network. Crisis mapping is inherently interdisciplinary, situated at the nexus of many fields, drawing from debates in disciplines as diverse as: geography, epidemiology, sociology, environmental science, political science, forestry, ecology, psychology, linguistics, robotics, communication, cultural studies, statistics, mathematics, conflict studies, art and design, computer science and disaster and emergency management. Sometimes it is difficult to engage a group of people from such tremendously different professional and personal backgrounds, with dramatically different views of the world.
I created the ChariTee T-Shirt Design Contest in partnership with George Brown’s School of Design and social enterprise, Me to We Style to commemorate National Volunteer Week in Toronto in 2009. George Brown’s art foundations class produced t-shirt designs as part of their course curriculum, and we opened up the voting to the public to select the winning design.
Voting closed on Friday, April 10th with over 10,000 votes for the winning ChariTee design by Tlell Davidson. Her winning design was printed by Me to We Style and showcased on their site.
On April 15th, the ChariTee Design Contest exhibit and winner announcement took place at George Brown’s School of Design art gallery. Volunteer Toronto, Me to We Style and the School of Design awarded certificates and prizes for the top 20 designs, finalists and contest winner.
I consult as Don Tapscott’s community engagement director for his Open Cities initiative where we work with municipalities to transform cities into smart, collaborative cities.
Us Now was the second film screening for the social change film series I created for Volunteer Toronto.
Volunteer Toronto, through generous partnerships with nGenera Insight and Bloor Cinema hosted a free screening of Us Now, a UK film about how the internet inspires participation and collaboration in communities.
After the screening, Don Tapscott, authour and technology strategist, and Christopher Wulff from Social Planning Toronto hosted a discussion and audience Q&A.
Volunteer Toronto helps people find great places to volunteer, and provides training and resources to support a community of 400 member non-profit organizations. http://www.volunteertoronto.ca/
In 2010, I consulted as the digital director and policy advisor for the Toronto Deputy Mayor’s mayoral campaign where I introduced a social innovation mandate, food and civic engagement policies and citizen reporting platform, SeeClickFix.
