Social Good Summit is a global event initiated by Mashable held during UN week (Sept. 22 - 24) where big ideas meet new media to create innovative solutions. In New York, it is a three-day conference which the ideas are Digital + Global + Action. In China and Kenya, its leaders and citizens will gather on Sept. 24. In Manila, the Social Good Summit is 1 day only organized by Rappler and TweetupManila under the ideas of Innovation + Social Media + Social Good. The event aims to bring together the country’s brightest minds and creative thinkers to come up with innovative new ways in which digital technologies like social media can be used to solve the world’s challenges and make this world a better place – and then translate these ideas to action.
Let’s define Social Good?
Social good is a good or service that benefits the largest number of people in the largest possible way.
Since the morning session is an invite only, I will share to you what I have learned through the afternoon session open to general public.
1. Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr.
He is the driving force of the “It’s More Fun in the Philippines”, the country’s official tourism campaign that was inspired and spread through social media. It has currently 75, 000 memes from sublime to downright ridiculous representations taken by amateur to professional photographers etc.
He defines the word “eternity” as the Filipinos’ nonstop drive of taking photos of each other. This may have contributed to the widespread promotion of the “more fun” tourism line. He said that in 2008 there were 8 million local trips recorded. In 2011 however, it went up to 29.5 million!
2. Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang
The Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines in paperback which publicizes legal issuance, historical papers and archives in 1906 is in Spanish language. By that time and even earlier, access to this document is very hard. No one seems to care unless needed for education purposes.
In 2010 an online version came. It contains executive orders, President’s speeches and they added more means of information by using social media that people needed to know.
Features/links are: PAGASA ( weather forecast), Kalasag ng Bayan (earthquake prevention), Pera ng Bayan (one can anonymous tip tax evaders), Project Noah (can predict weather forecasts), Youtube Channels (President’s speeches), Twitter accounts for MMDA etc, Facebook Fan Page of the President and so on.
By adding these, the Official Gazette brings more practical use to the greater Filipinos using social media.
3. Celebrity and TV Host Bianca Gonzales
What’s good thing about her is she uses her celebrity status and social media influence to support her advocacies. She shares her 10 Twitter Rules to Follow:
1. Post online what you can say in real life
2. On bashers – IGNORE them
3. It won’t hurt to retweet (if it will help)
4. Be sure to credit what you retweet
5. Be careful what you retweeted
6. Make friends but also do not trust blindly
7. Be constructive enough
8. When big news breaks be sensitive
9. Keep vanity in moderation
10. Live in the present
4. Christopher Lao (The Informer)
Who does not know Christopher Lao from that infamous video that caused thousands (or hundreds of) people online cyber-bullied him. While listening to him I can feel how he was deeply hurt because of what happened to the point he left the country and may have thought of committing suicide. But he did not let his whole life be ruined totally, actually almost and moves on.
5. Maria Ressa
Social media is “when religion meets science”. It is a pity while she was giving her talk at the start I was dead busy tweeting of utmost importance (Hay Rona, kababanggit mo pa lang ng Live in the Present!) But worry not because the talk is video recorded.
She says that actively engaging thru social media accounts produces dopamine and oxytocin which is similar from getting these when we are happy, having sex, surprised etc…
She also talks about the “Mood Meter” of Rappler.com, that the statistics are more than the colors it represent but the actual feelings of those who chose it. During the heights of Corona trial, Robredo accident and Dolphy’s death the mood meters really reflected the pulse of the online readers.
Eighty percent (80%) of how we make decisions is based on emotions. When one clicks the Angry button, one becomes less angry. Clicking any of these mood has certain impacts in us.
To sum it up, WE SHOULD BE THE SOCIAL MEDIA PROFILE THAT WE PROJECT ONLINE. If you can’t say in in front of that person what you post/tweet, then don’t share it online. It only takes a click of a button to help or inform so why not use it? For issues that you know you can help or your opinion matters, speak up responsibly through your account not using an anonymous account just to hide your identity.
Do not post/tweet “Going to yoga” or “Detoxifying” when the whole world is posting/tweeting about a typhoon currently raging the area. Robert Carandang, Christopher Lao and Sen. Sotto are humans also. If you want to share your criticism, make it constructive and never make it personal. And again, live to the present. Know when to set aside your mobile phones and focus on what you do or who you talk with. Now this last one is something I need to work on really hard.
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