Destiny's Children [PDF Download] TRACE Magazine January 4, 2008

This is an oldie-but-goodie that I came across while looking for something totally unrelated. This is the first piece that I wrote about the Millennial Generation. It's very heavily influenced by Morley Winograd and Mike Hais's work, which was being published all over the place this time last year, and it's extremely partisan (in favor of Obama). I wrote it just under a year ago, though, for a series of reasons on the magazine's end, it didn't get published until sometime last summer. The PDF contains a copy of the whole magazine, so search for the arcile by its or my name.

[Revisiting] The United Church of Christ Social Media Case Study NetSquared December 30, 2009

"The plan and meditation takes into consideration my own relationship with the church, the relationship of other young people with the church (as collected through formal and informal interviews), observation and dissection of some of the more-successful approaches to organization and social media campaigns through 2008, and an appreciation for 2009 being a year in which social media outreach is, from the incarnation of any outreach plan, built into the DNA of a great mission and approach (as opposed to overlaid on a pre-existing goal)."

Some thanks, a bit of holiday cheer, and an update. Change.org December 18, 2008

"I want to be cautious so as to not be hyperbolic or too-excited by the high drama of modern history and speculation when reporting my observations."

Sustainability Any Way You Want It Change.org December 14, 2008

"This piece, Sustainability Any Way You Want It, is the first in the on-going series about the issues important to Millennials and how, from a generational perspective, individual activists came to embrace them. It was written by Isabel Cowles, senior writer at finding Dulcinea, blogger at the Huffington Post, and sustainability advocate, and it is very much my pleasure to present it here."

Third Culture Kids? Change.org December 10, 2008

"Ruth E. Van ReKen, co-author of 'Third Culture Kids: The Experience of Growing Up Among World', published a fantastic piece about these so-called Third Culture Kids' role in Obama's incoming administration."

Samantha Power, collaboration, and the anti-echo-chamber. Change.org December 09, 2008

"Power also noted the potential for activists to get wrapped up in echo-chamber elements of Internet communication"

Hello Kitty, Britney's fragile mental state, and Internet Activism Change.org December 2, 2008

"Holy crap! CNN actually reported on something other than Britney's fragile mental state, Lohan's lesbianic trysts, or Hello Kitty being named Japan tourism ambassador!"

Beth Kanter and the art of paying it forward. Change.org December 2, 2008

What are you ideas for non-monetary contributions to do-good orgs this holiday season?

If you Tweet them, they will come: Epic Change raises $11k in 48 hours on Tweetsgiving. NetSquared December 2, 2008

"Word spread (with over 3,000 mentions of Tweetsgiving hitting Twitter), the community donated, and in 48 hours, Monk, Kaplan, and Epic Change blew their goals out of the water."

The man, the myth, the 'old old-Millennial' himself, L. Lessig (and co.) on An Open Transition! Change.org December 2, 2008

"Larry Lessig (and brilliant company) have launched 'An Open Transition.'"

Old People: Stop excluding us because we're old. Change.org December 2, 2008

"What is remarkable about the Millennials' predisposition to break down walls is its ability to perpetuate and spread its own transferable essence."

How do you engage the wandering 20-something set? Change.org December 1, 2008

"We often lack stability of home, relationship, routines, or whatever else keeps us on a schedule."

Robin Parker: blog master at the Oregon Trail Chapter of the American Red Cross November 30, 2008

"She, blogs, tweets, posts photos, solicits art from users, interviews weather fronts, etc."

Adaptability, (slow) tech-integration, and Focus the Nation Change.org November 25, 2008

A closer look at Focus the Nation.

Is Kanye Our Kurt? Social Citizens November 18, 2008

"What voices best represent this generation and why? Are you speaking from the inside, or out? Is it silly to think that we're even spoken for? Is our voice crowd-sourced and on Twitter? Are we narcissists? Drug-addled Brits with sultry voices? What do you think?"

Too little time / too many flames in Los Angeles November 16, 2008

"A few pre-catastrophe highlights from my time in birthplace of Guns and Roses / setting of Terminator 2"

Millennials Changing America blog digest: Weeks 2 and 3 Change.org November 05, 2008

An archive of what's been written thus far.

Robin Parker, Oregon Red Cross Communications Specialist, talks shop NetSquared November 3, 2008

Robin Parker, Communications Specialist at the Oregon Red Cross, discusses social media strategy.

Who is victimized by hyper-surveillance governance? October 30, 2008

"As far as my being wiretapped, I think it's more likely that I was wiretapped either randomly, or that it was as a result of being very active online with the Dennis Kucinich for President campaign."

In Spokane... October 30, 2008

"Is [the enthusiastic touting of this generation's power] merely a corporate advertising tonic that we're dangerously uncritical of? Are we going to come to too-willingly believe in our own triumphant mythology and come to assume, as a result, that our intrinsic greatness alone will do all of the dirty work for us?"

Anima LaVoy, "authenticity," and admitting some biases. October 29, 2008

"The comment made her absolutely lovable, irresistible, and that's why I felt it important to post. This Millennial generation that I am trying so desperately to track is [supposedly] obsessed with the concept of authenticity and I couldn't help but to record and report her most unguarded moments."

Anima LaVoy and the rise of Swing Semester Future Majority October 28, 2008

Swing Semester is "sort of like Mary Poppins, only politically-driven and less creepy."

Observations from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Change.org October 26, 2008

"Planes were crashing, kids were shooting, the Internet was booming, and no children were left behind."

Millennials Driving Socially Responsible Business Practices Ypulse October 24, 2008

"I refer not just to the consciousness raised around anti-globalization/Washington Consensus riots, which popularized the images of trash cans going through Starbucks and Nike Town storefronts, but also of the Enron tragedy, where we were collectively introduced to the Gordon Gekkos of the new Millennium - scumbags who put the livelihoods of all of their workers on the line, lost, and escaped relatively unscathed."

"Millennials in the Mist... My Letter to the Wall Street Journal" from [the website] If We Ran It Change.org October 23, 2008

"If optimism = arrogance, please consider us the most arrogant group of individuals on the planet. It is our belief that the structure of operating a business needs to be changed in order for this country to adapt to the needs of a perpetually evolving world."

Riding shotgun with the Bang Gang. Change.org October 22, 2008

"To be fair to the gang's reputation - going after the thugs was wholly my idea - the Bang Gang might have been being polite in order to accommodate me, a guest, and it's unclear as to whether they regularly engage in the pursuit of vigilante justice."

The United Church of Christ, Social Media, and Connecting with a Younger Audience: A Case Study (Part II) NetSquared October 22, 2008

Here I've listed initial observations about the elements of the church's web presence which appear to be intended to appeal to a late-teenage/20-something audience. Over the course of the next two posts, I will integrate feedback I have gathered from UCC Director of Communication, Rev. Ben Guest, young people involved in the church, and organizational web outreach specialists as I contextualize the intended direction of the church's youth outreach plans while also making suggestions for how the UCC might consider effectively and efficiently moving forward with developing an organic, integrative outreach strategy that appeals to younger members.

Being careful to contextualize the "yupster." Change.org October 19, 2008

"[...] based on my experiences growing up with and talking with Millennials from across the country, the author's somewhat privileged experience surely invokes a reaction that isn't representative of the 80 million Millennials that live in this country."

Millennials Changing America blog digest: Week 1 Change.org October 19, 2008

An index of relevant posts from our first week of posting on the Change.org blog network.

Reporting from a random rest stops, nation-wide. Change.org October 17, 2008

"Our new euphemism for ivory tower is '2000 Elantra', as it is in the front two seats of this car where Callum and I have loftily gone back and forth about the pros and cons of Internet engagement."

Millennials Changing America: An Update replyforall October 16, 2008

This is just a quick update on our progress, posted on replyforall's sponsor's blog.

Google-Based Thriftiness and The Perks of e-Advocating in Small Town States NetSquared October 16, 2008

Christian McNeil of GrowSmart Maine generously shares his advice and observations based on his eAdvocacy work in America's Northeastern-most state.

The United Church of Christ, Social Media, and Connecting with a Younger Audience: A Case Study (Part I) NetSquared October 14, 2008

If liberal Protestant churches don't start filling their pews with young people soon, they're bound to perish. We set the stage for observing how the UCC is evangelizing (2.0) to a younger attendance.

We [Millennials] Care A Lot! Ypulse October 13, 2008

A brief conversation with Naomi Hirabayashi of the Changeblogger collective, reflection on bucking Gen X's cynical schtick, and a reference to Faith No More.

You Say You [Don't] Want A Revolution NetSquared October 7, 2008

As a millennial, I don't particularly want to join another movement.

Shifting The Conversation: The Anti-Institutional Giving Pool NetSquared September 26, 2008

Are millennial attitudes towards institutions and organizations going to change the way nonprofits rely on support?

The Next Generation of Organizing Ypulse September 25, 2008

You've heard folks discuss what it is the millennials care about, why they take action, and how we engage. The time has come for us to explain ourselves, in our own words, for our own information, entertainment, and inspiration.

Is Creating A Millennial-Staffed, In-House Think Tank Possible? NetSquared September 9, 2008

Businesses and nonprofits might be able to get more miles out of interns by offering them more opportunities in web outreach research and development.

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