Facebook, Google, YouTube, MTV, Howcast, Columbia Law School and the U.S.
Department of State Convene the Alliance of Youth Movements Summit
Dec. 3-5 Summit in New York to Bring Together Global Youth Groups, Tech
Experts to Find Best Ways to Use Digital Media to Promote Freedom and Justice,
Counter Violence, Extremism and Oppression
NEW YORK, Nov. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Facebook, Google, YouTube, MTV, Howcast,
Columbia Law School, the U.S. Department of State and Access 360 Media are
bringing leaders of 17 pioneering organizations from 15 countries together
with technology experts next month in New York for the first-ever conclave to
empower youth against violence and oppression through the use of the latest
online tools.
These young leaders will form a new group, the Alliance of Youth Movements,
which will produce a field manual for youth empowerment. The field manual will
stand in stark contrast to the Al-Qaeda manual on the basics of terrorism,
found by Coalition Forces in Iraq.
The gathering was inspired by the success of the One Million Voices Against
the FARC, a group started on Facebook.com by young people in Colombia. Aided
by social networking technologies, the organization inspired 12 million people
in 190 cities around the world to take to the streets in protest against the
FARC, an extremist group that has been terrorizing Colombia for more than 40
years. The magnitude of the marches illustrated once and for all that the FARC
lacked a strong support base. Within days of the protests, the FARC witnessed
massive desertions from their ranks. The Colombian group will share their
ideas with leaders of other groups that use social and mobile technologies to
promote freedom and justice and oppose violence, extremism and oppression.
The New York summit will bring together such organizations as One Million
Voices Against the FARC, Save Darfur Coalition, Genocide Intervention Network,
Burma Global Action Network and Invisible Children.
The Alliance of Youth Movements Summit will take place December 3 to 5 at the
Columbia Law School in Manhattan. "We at Columbia are excited about helping,
designing, and studying innovative public-private partnerships that leverage
new technologies to tackle some of the world's greatest challenges. This
summit is a great opportunity to do this," said Matthew Waxman, associate
professor of law. The event will also be streamed live online by Howcast.com
and on ThinkMTV.com. Howcast Media is organizing the Summit with additional
support from Facebook, Google, YouTube, MTV, Columbia Law School, the U.S.
Department of State and Access 360 Media.
Speakers at the Summit will include:
-- Whoopi Goldberg, Host of ABC's "The View"
-- Dustin Moskovitz, Co-Founder, Facebook
-- James K. Glassman, Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public
Affairs, U.S. Department of State
-- Oscar Morales, Founder, One Million Voices Against the FARC
-- Luke Russert, MSNBC
-- Matthew Waxman, Associate Professor of Law, Columbia Law School
Panels will discuss a variety of practical topics, including How To Build
Transnational Social Movements Using New Technology, How To Use New Mobile
Technologies and How To Preserve Group Safety And Security.
Summit participants will also be honored at a red-carpet event with
entertainment celebrities, business leaders, and civil society figures at the
former home of MTV's Total Request Live ("TRL") overlooking Times Square.
Howcast will use the field manual for youth empowerment developed at the
Summit as the cornerstone of a much larger online "hub," where emerging youth
organizations can access and share "how-to" guides and tips on how to use
social-networking and other technologies to promote freedom and justice and
counter violence, extremism and oppression. The hub
(http://howcast.com/youthmovements) will include instructional videos and text
guides, links to related online resources and discussion forums for sharing
experiences, ideas and advice.
"The Summit provides a unique opportunity to bring these socially conscious
groups together for the purpose of making real, positive change in the world,"
said Jason Liebman, Co-Founder and CEO of Howcast Media. "Howcast's mission
has always been focused on making it easier for people to learn how to do just
about anything, and I'm particularly proud to see Howcast being used to help
people learn how to make a difference in improving the world that we all
share."
"I'm thrilled and inspired to see how people, especially young people, are
using Facebook and other technologies to work together to improve the lives of
entire nations of people," said Elliot Schrage, VP of Communications, Public
Policy and Platform Marketing, Facebook. "We often focus on the value
technology brings to the individual but the true promise of technology is
unlocked when it connects people and enables them to work with a common
purpose."
"The State Department is proud to play a role in highlighting the new wave of
civil-society empowerment that is happening online," said James K. Glassman,
Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. "What is so
encouraging is that this effort is being led by public-spirited technology
firms like Howcast and innovative educators like those at Columbia
University."
"It's critical that young people continue to utilize the technological tools
available to them to band together and rally around causes and movements that
can make a difference in the world," said Ian Rowe, Senior Vice President of
Public Affairs and Strategic Partnerships for MTV. "On Think.MTV.com, we
encourage young people to engage in and take action on the issues that matter
to them most. This Summit revolves around how young people can do this,
through multiple technology platforms."
About the Alliance of Youth Movements Summit
From December 3 to 5, leaders of pioneering youth movements will launch a
global network that seeks to empower young people to mobilize against violence
and oppression. Brought together by Howcast, Facebook, Google, YouTube, MTV,
the U.S. Department of State, Columbia Law School and Access 360 Media,
leaders of the organizations will travel to New York City with the mission of
crafting a field manual on how to effect social change using online tools.
This field manual will form the cornerstone of a much larger online "hub,"
where emerging youth organizations can access and share "how-to" guides and
tips on using social-networking and other technologies to further their
causes.
About Howcast Media
Recently named a top website of 2008 by both TIME and PC Magazine, Howcast.com
engages consumers to watch and share free, useful how-to videos and guides
produced in-house at Howcast Studios as well as by innovative media partners,
trusted brands and individual contributors. Howcast Studios produces useful,
engaging how-to videos while also enabling up-and-coming filmmakers and
students to gain experience and build real careers by making professional
video with guidance in the Howcast Emerging Filmmakers Program.
To show consumers how-to videos wherever, whenever they need to learn how,
Howcast tailors Howcast.com and The Howcast Player to showcase instructional
content, while partnering with leading websites as well as home and
mobile-video providers. Howcast also offers marketers innovative, relevant
"how-to" video-advertising solutions.
SOURCE Howcast Media
Media (Domestic), Tessa Barrera, +1-646-558-0671, tessa.barrera@howcast.com;
or (International), Jared Cohen, +1-202-647-0531, cohenJA2@state.gov, both for
Howcast Media
