WikiGovernance/COLLaGE/Presentations Accelerating NGO Engagement

Accelerating Community Engagement for ODL Resource Development (Governance)
Presenter: --Randy Fisher 00:44, 30 November 2007 (CET)

ABSTRACT

This structured dialogue (and possible workshop activity) session will present an approach for accelerating readiness, community engagement and collaborative networking between NGO’s for the development of free and open ODL governance resources. By using a combination of people, process, social networking technologies (i.e., blogs, WikiEducator ~WikiGovernance) and Participatory Action Research, the COLLaGE approach focuses on strengthening resource-sharing, networking and capacity-building between NGOs to promote understanding, collaboration and adoption/customisation of great practices across geographic and cultural boundaries and perspectives..

Participatory Governance, Leadership and Empowerment are key themes in civil societies and emerging democracies. NGOs play a vital role in their communities through vertical and horizontal outreach, communications and advocacy. However, NGOs lack avenues to share their practices, experiences and history, cultural approaches and collected wisdom for participatory governance (i.e., what works- and doesn’t).

The Commonwealth of Learning’s – Leadership, Governance and Empowerment (COLLaGE) community is an innovative forum dedicated to fostering dialogue, networking and sharing of NGO perspectives relating to participatory governance and WikiGovernance (a project node on WikiEducator). COLLaGE is laying a critical foundation for grassroots NGO partnering and community mobilisation (i.e., a community action network of dyads and clusters of mutual interest), to collaboratively develop open and free educational content — that is required, relevant and culturally-appropriate for local stakeholders.

Structured Dialogue Format: two options:

 * Panel – the initial COLLaGE community dialogues occur online. It is possible that the COLLaGE Community presentation in July could take the form of a panel discussion at PCF-5 (in-person, with additional dialogue and facilitation occurring online). Panel participants yet to be identified, although they could include PCF-5 participants.
 * Workshop — Participants are organised into Clusters of Mutual Interest, and report back to the group and continue participating online, when they return home. (building in an implementation component).

Submitted November 29, 2007