Call for mobile advocacy toolkit testing organisations

Tactical Tech are looking for advocacy organisations to test their new mobile advocacy toolkit which they are producing in conjunction with Fahamu. We would like to narrow this first phase of testing to organisations who were represented at the meeting in Nairobi organised by Fahamu in June 2007.

The toolkit is made up of easily accessible tools and materials explaining mobile technologies. This project is carried out in collaboration with the African Human Rights organisation Fahamu.

This toolkit makes the most of the technologies that are currently available in this space to enable advocates and NGOs use mobile phones to:

* Provide access to information such as recorded voice or audio and news updates
* Increase participatory processes and facilitation through polling, voting, surveying and incident reporting
* Enable citizen journalism and remote publishing by using mobiles to blog or to create podcasts, and to upload photographs.
* Conduct awareness raising and outreach through demographically targeted or time based messaging, alerts, ringtones and games or small scale applications
* Co-ordinate meetings or organise ash mobilisation and calls to action
* Provide services allowing the creation of alert/SOS systems for migrant workers and other communities and of early warning and emergency response systems in general.

Tactical Tech is coordinating with a network of 50 of the worlds leading practitioners working with mobiles and advocacy to create the toolkit. It contains a range of tools, case studies and practical how-to guides as well as a set of references for additional resources and reviews of web-based services.

The organisation testing the toolkit should be looking to implement the use of mobiles in one of their projects so we will require some knowledge of the basics of mobiles and computers in order that the most effective use possible is made of the material.

Tactical Tech are looking for the following outcomes from this testing process;

* Feedback on whether the content is understandable, appropriate and well structured
* Feedback on the tone and presentation of the information; whether the language is understandable
* What is missing from the toolkit
* What isn't needed in the toolkit
* Whether the tools included are functional and appropriate

Feedback on the toolkit should be provided not just by the technologists in an organisation but also by programme staff and board members so that a broad range of opinion is canvassed this is vital to ensure that the material is appropriate for those working at different levels of an organisation be it strategic or technical. We will request that full documentation of the testing process is carried out by the organisations taking part.

This process will help us build the final official version of the toolkit in March 2008 so it can be of benefit to advocacy organisations around the world.

If you are interested in taking part please contact [email][email protected]