"EVIDENCE AND INFLUENCE in ACTIVISM"
Evidence is an activist's most powerful asset. Used well, it can transform even the most difficult advocacy effort into a cutting-edge campaign to influence perceptions, and actions around an important issue.
Tactical Tech will host the next Info-Activism Camp in India, April 2013, with 150 activists, designers, creative thinkers and hackers from around the world. Together for 7 full days, we will explore the art of evidence-based campaigning, inspire new and old projects, and make new, lasting personal connections.
You can join us! Applications open in the 4th week of October 2012.
the concept
You know about Wikileaks, but do you know how The Guardian journalists, who had never really worked with data, turned thousands of leaked cables into information graphics? You may have seen the new parody website Kickstriker or the Chevron We Agree spoof site and wondered what's the art of culture jamming and can you really learn it? Or Exxon Secrets: what are the different data sources you'd have to consult to build a website like that? How do you get access to that data? What kinds of back-end, technical skills do you need?
Social media, off-the shelf visualisation tools and digital devices have become more accessible to campaigners, but it is still a challenge to create innovative and memorable campaigns that are more than just sloganeering. How do we leverage the evidence we have in order to go beyond the 60 page report and create influential evidence-based campaigns? How can we use data and technology to transcend the typical two-dimensional presentations of information and influence audiences directly with evidence?
To explore the answers to questions like these, Tactical Tech, together with its partners, is hosting the 'Info-Activism Camp 2013: Evidence and Influence'. We are bringing together 100 participants from around the world, with 25 skilled facilitators, to collaborate on working with data, visual design and technology for evidence-based activism.
style of the event
This is not a conference, but a working event, where 125 people will spend a week working together in a remote location to learn from each other, testing-out and developing new creative approaches to working with evidence in activism.
There will be no conference badges, notepads or panel discussions. You will get to know your fellow-campers over the 7 days, sharing rooms, thrashing out ideas together, sharing skills and taking part in all kinds of evening activities.
Our info-activism events are known for their uniquely hands-on ethos, open-learning framework and the stress on participation. We have organised more than 100 different events, from large to small, and trained several thousand advocates over the last 10 years.
For an idea of what to expect, read about the Info-Activism Camp 2009 in India, the Visualising Women's Rights camp 2010 in Jordan, and the source camps. Also a selection of feedback from past events.
the content
We will focus on the different techniques and creative approaches to working with data, and its management, security, presentation and use in advocacy. Our tentative agenda includes focuses on different techniques for working with data through three core 'tracks' during the week: collecting, curating and investigating.
Overview of tracks
- Collecting refers to the collection of data to monitor and witness, and addresses questions around the management of such information.
- Curating is about the selection, organising and presentation of found data, about open data, big data and even un-data.
- Investigating will focus on negative data, about the under-explored, the taboo and working with metaphors, being creative and opportunistic with data from non-traditional sources.
Each track will have a similar structure, working participants through a set of basic techniques, concepts and tools, planning and creatively pushing the boundaries of working with data and visual representation. There will also be more freestyle and open tracks that will feature topics around data ethics, privacy, creative campaigning with evidence, visualisation techniques and skills, bringing simple coding into your work, working with corporate and government data, right to information requests and so on.
The content will be further shaped by our prep meeting with the core facilitation team in December 2012.
Who will be there?
Without being too prescriptive, we expect self-identified activists, advocates, data specialists, artists, creative campaigners, culture jammers, information designers, programmers, independent journalists, bloggers, researchers, map-makers and creative practitioners from around the world who have already been experimenting with these techniques. We especially encourage participants from countries in political transition or where freedom of expression is restricted.
The details
- Pre-application to register your interest: from July 2012 onwards
- Applications Open: Date TBA
- Pre-camp Retreat for invited facilitators: 12th - 16th December 2012 in Kerala, India
- Evidence & Action Camp 2013: April 2013 (after Easter, exact dates TBA)
There will be a limited amount of part-and full fellowships available for this event. Full details on this will be included with the application pack.
sign up!
If you think this sounds like an event you'd like to attend or send a colleague or friend to sign up here. We won't bombard you with too much information - your signing up is just to help us gauge interest in the event and to let you know when we open applications.
Questions? Email us at camp2013[at]tacticaltech[dot]org