Youth Led Initiatives - from Ideation to Implementationby | 09-01-2015 21:43 |
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Youth Led Initiatives - from Ideation to Implementation - by Madhav Datt On Christmas this year (well, actually last year now, back in 2014) was a keynote speaker at the South Asian Youth Environment Conference, 2014, an opportunity and an excellent experience which I shared with the Eco-Generation Community in my last article. In this article, I talk about my talking points at the South Asian Youth Conference, 2014 and share the ideas and the discussion that emanated from this with everyone out here. Ideation process – problem identification, research, getting the team selling the idea to the team, convincing them it is important, Impact assessment (something that we as youth activists usually tend to ignore, or avoid doing – basically to figure out if the project is really worth the time, effort and energy that is going to be put into it). Using and motivating volunteers – engaging with the team to the best possible extent, ensuring maximum effectiveness and efficiency. Ways to increase impact – understanding the actual problem and coming up with unique methods to tackle it – getting the best out of these projects –using the United Nations Environment Program and other such platforms like Eco-Generation and Green the Gene. The very important and crucial phase – one of the most important in fact – planning the project – what all to keep in mind (problems that may arise, contingencies etc.). Getting required partnerships - involving other NGOs and why that is important, support, permissions, government involvement and supports - strategies to secure this, sponsors and fundraising strategies (what sort of companies to approach, different methods, suggestions etc.) Type of deliverables for sponsors. Doing projects with very low/no fundraising. Methods to involve conventional media (TV & Newspapers – at local and national levels), gain coverage, notability and media attention to increase – why this is important and how to use it to maximize impact in the most effective manner, as well as gain sponsors, writing press releases and other details. Using other media means – online news and social media strategies – online outreach and engaging people. As I hoped for at the end of the conference, here too, I sincerely hope that on-ground grassroots initiatives would result from this interaction and lead to some positive change and impact.
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