Australian Conservation Foundation likes coal

Tonight I met David Noonan, a nuclear free campaigner with the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF). He told me a very interesting thing about the ACF's energy policy. The ACF disagrees with The Greens' position that the coal industry should be shut down by government due to its huge carbon footprint. The ACF believes that a national emissions trading scheme should be introduced and that coal should have to compete in that system like every other industry. For more detail, check out the ACF climate change policy here.

Their key points on why the ACF are against new uranium mines are as follows:

• Uranium fails the test on exports and on public opinion;
• Uranium is a high risk marginal export compared to the future of renewables;
• Increasing the risk of proliferation of nuclear weapons and of nuclear terrorism;
• Disproportionate impacts on indigenous communities;
• Failure of government regulation and corporate performance; and
• Pressure for nuclear waste dumping increases on Australia.

Again, for the stats and detail to back it up - go to the ACF site on a nuclear free Australia.

Why I joined the ALP

Today I joined the ALP. Ok to be exact, tonight I went to my first meeting of the Telopea sub-branch of the Australian Capital Territory branch of the Australian Labor Party - I am still waiting for the membership paperwork to clear. I could go into a whole range of detail on my views on the various political issues but if I could sum up in a sentence or two why I joined the ALP, it would be this:

I want to be a part of a movement to invest in our community and build a bright future - economically, socially and environmentally. Given that I am an Australian and in Australia I think I should start here. I think the ALP is the best vehicle to do that and that Kevin Rudd would be the best leader for that movement. The ALP is not perfect and we don't have all the answers yet but I believe that sooner or later you have to stop firing your slingshot from behind the bushes.

"Government is a place where people come together." (PJB, WW S1 E12)

Enough said on that for now, back to the sandpit.

Internet advertising spend has overtaken radio, magazine and outdoor

Today’s The Age features the long anticipated report that Australia’s Internet advertising spend has overtaken radio, magazine and outdoor in terms of revenue earned and now sits behind television and newspapers. Revenue from Internet advertising grew 61.5% in 2006 to break through the A$1 billion mark and more than doubled over the previous two years, according to the Audit Bureau of Verification Services in its annual report.

According to The Age’s Graeme Philipson, one important aspect of Internet advertising is that its audience is much easier to measure. Television is maintaining its share of the advertising pie, but print is declining and I agree with Philipson that when more money is being spent online than in magazines, you know the world has changed.

Do you camp? Then you must try BarCamp-ing

Usually camping conjures up images of tents, lilos, bush, fires, mosquitoes, knots, nature, badges, stars etc and for some of us this brings back warm and fuzzy memories. For others it is the very worst idea of a good time. Thankfully I am one of the former but recently I have worried about the social acceptability of wanting access to my precious devices, or not finding enough like minded people with whom I could argue about the world and solve its problems.

Thankfully, some smart cookies have come up with a concept that solves both my problems - the BarCamp. According to them, a BarCamp is an "ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, demos, and interaction from participants." You should also be handy with a laptop and expect access to hotspots.

Participants (no voyeurs, you have to jump in) give a demo, a session, or help with one, or otherwise contribute in some way to support the event. All presentations are scheduled the day they happen. You must prepare in advance, but they say come early to register your slot on the wall. The people at the event will select the demos or presentations they want to see. Presenters are responsible for making sure that their notes/slides/audio/video are published on the web for the benefit of all. People are, and have held BarCamps all over the world, from BarCampTokyo , BarCampMexico, FutureCamp Seoul, PodCampWest San Francisco and many others.

I like this concept so much that I have to tell you that the first ever BarCampAustralia will be held from 3-4 March 2007. The event is in the early stages of planning, but it is decided that there will be at least four locations (check out BarCampAdelaide, BarCampMelbourne, BarCampSydney and BarCampCanberra) with the possibility of more (see BarCampPerth). Sponsors and venues are still being sought.

I might see you there.

Has the Howard Government finally jumped the shark?

Dan (be nice to one another) alerted me to the fantastic concept of "jumping the shark". In an episode of the TV series Happy Days, the character Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli jumps over a shark while waterskiing (still wearing his black leather jacket). This moment has been defined as "jumping the shark". Its creators describe it as 'the defining moment when you know that your favorite television program has reached its peak. That instant that you know from now on...it's all downhill.'

Has PM John Howard and his Coalition government finally jumped the shark? It seems Malcolm MacKerras thinks he has, while Club Troppo appears less convinced. If Howard has jumped the shark, what was the defining moment? Was it Howard's attack on US Senator Barack Obama? Or perhaps the promise of 70 additional troops (advisers) for Iraq?

PM John Howard: where is your blog?

David Cameron, the UK's Tory leader, has started a blog. As the FT writer, Gideon Rachman, points out, when the world's least fashionable political party discovers a social trend, it is surely a sign that it is peaking. Ferenc Gyurcsany, Prime Minister of Hungary, posts new comments on his blog most days - sometimes twice a day. Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, President of Iran, has a blog. Of course Hillary Clinton has a blog. Segolene Royal, the French Socialist party nominee for president, has a blog. Lionel Jospin, former French PM and one time aspiring presidential candidate, has a blog. As pointed out to me by GoodToBeWithYou, Australia's alternative PM, (and now our preferred PM according to the latest Newspoll), Kevin Rudd, already has a blog.

So where is our John Howard? Is he going to be the last world leader to dive into the blogosphere? Or maybe he just doesn't have the ticker?

2006 Hitwise Online Performance Award for Australian political websites

On Line Opinion has taken out the 2006 Hitwise Online Performance Award for Australian political websites. On Line Opinion beat all the major political party sites and reached 100,000 unique visitors a month. As pointed out on Larvatus Prodeo, this is hardly a challenge, "in contrast to both the US and the UK, Australian netcampaigning is stuck somewhere in Web 1.0 – most political party sites either being an archive of press releases, or tedious pseudo-blogs with no opportunity for citizen engagement."

Interestingly, this award is not based on the opinion of a small number of industry luminaries rather it is given for verifiable traffic. Hitwise states that their results are audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers. On Line Opinion is published by Graham Young under the ownership of The National Forum, which describes itself as a virtual town square designed to provide free democratic space on the web for citizens, and shop fronts for institutions.

GetUp! fires up on David Hicks and more...

Also, GetUp! continues to fire imaginations, this week helping drive the David Hicks campaign back onto TV and the front page through coordinated protest actions. I expect we will see more from GetUp! as the election approaches – the question will be whether they choose issues that are relevant enough to mainstream voters to trigger action. Recently GetUp! joined with other online political campaigners to form Avaaz.org, a global online political campaign community.

Water allocations to be traded on eBay?

The digital realm has also been saturated with talk on water and climate change, especially around a new water trading system. One suggestion by the Wentworth Group’s economist Mike Young has been for household water to be traded on eBay. Young’s position is that only when a real price is put on water will people take action. I think eBay could also be used for carbon credit trading, enabling access by all sectors of the community.

Gates: The revolution will not be televised

The revolution will not be televised. That’s the prediction made by Microsoft’s Bill Gates at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, with traditional TV to become obsolete in just five years. Established trends towards the Internet, including the rise of Goggle’s YouTube, could be the end of the box as we know it. We will know doubt see a concerted effort in Australia, especially by the free-to-air stations, to protect their turf but sooner or later they will see the writing is on the wall…or more likely on the chat site.

Nairn: Australians to blog with ministers & bureaucrats

Australians could soon be able to blog with ministers and bureaucrats as the Government pushes ahead with new ways to interact with government, including accessing services and influencing policy. According to Special Minister of State, Gary Nairn, at the Information Online 2007 conference in Sydney, social networking and interactivity, such as blogs and podcasts, are key trends driving how governments deal with citizens. However, his description of some parts of the online community as “whackos” may ruffle some feathers.

2007 federal election in Australia - will we see change?

For those Australians returning from Mars, 2007 is a federal election year for Australia. Most commentators are predicting an October election although some Liberal Party insiders are increasingly suggesting the unusual step of a winter election in July or August.

And we are not alone – this year there are elections in Argentina, Bangladesh, France, Kenya, Pakistan, PNG, Timor Leste and many others. In Australia, the Coalition will face the new ALP leadership team of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard. The ALP will try to push industrial relations as a key issue, particularly the fear around the Government’s Work Choices changes. But with unemployment at record lows (4.6%), it will be harder to sell this fear. More feared is the “other” IR issue – interest rates. If the Reserve Bank raises rates again, or even twice, this could swing some of Howard’s battlers in key seats. The ALP will also try to differentiate itself on social policy – especially health and education.

Other issues are water and nuclear energy, as part of increased attention to climate change. The ALP will try to highlight Iraq (and by extension AWB) and security but unless we see body bags brought home or another attack on Australians, this is less likely to gain traction. Key one-on-ones to watch will be Swan vs Costello, Garrett vs Turnbull, Roxon vs Abbott and Gillard vs Andrews. Other influences will be the Greens appeal on climate change and whether Pauline Hanson’s return drives the values debate. Ultimately it could boil down to leadership – voters generally know and trust Howard (33 years in parliament, 11 as PM), they don’t (yet) Rudd and Gillard (9 years each in parliament). The Coalition have the track record, the ALP doesn’t. One thing is for sure, we can expect to see plenty of “public interest” advertising in 2007.

Minister Hockey: Access Card like an iPod

The Federal Minister for Human Services, Joe Hockey, has compared the highly anticipated Access Card to an iPod. In his address to the National Press Club today the Minister said that a third of the card’s storage capacity would be in the hands of the individual and could be accessed and used to store information, such as blood type and emergency contact details. The Minister also responded to the report of the Consumer and Privacy Taskforce headed by Professor Allan Fels, including by not accepting its recommendations that the card remove a person’s signature and card number. Some groups claim the card could be used as an ID card and lobbied strongly for these to be removed, along with a person’s birth date. The smart card will consolidate 17 social services cards, including Medicare and Centrelink. The Government proposes to gradually introduce the card from 2008.

Vote early and vote informed

TinkN FICCL bout d election? Dun wnt 2 vote? DEGT. U cld b cryN ovr d rEzlt on election nyt. T+ & vote.*

What does this mean? With NSW and federal elections coming up, political parties are grappling with how to win that floating group of voters, especially young people aged 18-25 years. Increasingly technology is providing the answers on how to engage this group that usually switches off when it comes to voting issues. So how to switch them on? The Daily Telegraph had a great piece on using technology and youth friendly language to get the Generation Y vote. Professor Phil Harris, head of marketing at the University of Otago and former Vice Chairman of the Liberal Party in the UK reckons that text messaging and other mobile content is the way to go. I wonder if Australian political parties will be as switched on to this new reality.

* Thinking, "Frankly, I couldn't care less" about the election?" Don't want to vote? Don't even go there. You could be crying over the result on election night. Think positive and vote.

Australians see change on government services

Australian providers of public services are starting to get the message that consumers need easy and accessible ways to use these services. The Access Card, which will replace 17 health and social services cards, is one response, with the AFR reporting that the first implementation tenders are due to be announced in the coming weeks. Also, I have it on good authority that the plan to enable you to use Medicare cards in EFTPOS machines will become a reality as soon as mid-2007. This means your Medicare claim gets credited directly to your account so you don’t need to go into a branch. Hopefully more public services will follow the digital path, especially given the increasing consumer demand. Computerworld reports that the percentage of users accessing government services via the Internet has risen from 39 percent in 2004-05 to 48 percent in 2006. The trick for governments will be to balance privacy concerns with the efficient provision of public services.

See change on climate change

Climate change is one the hottest topics at the moment and the public reaction shows the what technology has to offer to those engaging on issues. From sharp news commentaries on drought by Online Opinion to witty videos, such as this one on NSW coal projects on YouTube. Also check out GetUp!’s latest Climate Action Now with its suite of options for involvement. Online communities are helping push the debate and I am sure that bloggers will keenly track the seemingly inevitable backflip on climate change from Australian Government. One to watch will be the online community’s tracking of the backflip on our involvement in Iraq. Now that will be to literally see change.

Gaming for change

Getting your message across is like getting Australia's Murray-Darling River to flow – there are so many competing issues across many organisations and media. To cut through, advocacy groups are turning to online games. Mcvideogame was created to show all of McDonald’s alleged dirty secrets – the game includes taking the cows to slaughter and force feeding them GM foods. Disaffected! puts the player in the role of employees forced to serve customers under the dire circumstances apparently common to a Kinko’s copy store. Australia has the awful ability to boast one of the first racist online games, called Cronulla First, promoted by the fascist Australia First Party. What will be next? Maybe “Dodge the Drought”, where city slickers can save their virtual farm. Or maybe “Boiler Suit Larry” where Australians race to dig up and export precious metals and minerals from around the country to keep the economy on track. Game play can be a good way to help people understand the complexities of economic and social systems so no doubt there is more to come.

Do the proposed media laws matter?

All Australian media have been busy with discussions on proposed media laws currently before the Senate. The role of technology has been widely discussed, with two major streams of argument. The first says that the laws should not be passed as this will lead to a concentration of media, especially in rural and regional areas according to the Nationals. This argument also says that traditional media giants will come to dominate online media, pointing to News Corporation’s purchase of MySpace for US$580 million. A second line of argument says that technology will drive new forms of media, eg. Internet TV, and new business models that will disrupt the dominance of traditional media and quickly make obsolete these proposed laws. Google’s purchase of YouTube for US$1.67 billion is a strong sign of things to come. It is safe to say we will see a bit of both, with consolidation probably inevitable, especially globally, and the role of technology becoming more significant.

Emerging technologies can strengthen public policy

Consumer based digital influence campaigns show that emerging technologies can strengthen public policy by enabling greater scrutiny and participation. To highlight just a few: voting closes this week for the 2006 Children's TV Food Advertising Awards run by the The Parents Jury and Choice Magazine is asking parents to submit names of food products for review. From another angle, McDonalds’ has launched ‘Makeupyourownmind’ to respond to allegations against the company, such as dubious meat production, poor working conditions, environmental impact and marketing to children. Many have been critical, The Age said the move was driven by the release of the film Fast Food Nation and the visit to Australia by its writer, Eric Schlosser. As the ABC points out, marketing through the Internet is much harder to regulate, however bloggers love a fight and with this latest digital move McDonalds certainly has given them one.

Youf: how the hell do we reach them?

What do Governments share with companies and parents that is a joy when it works and incredibly frustrating when it doesn’t? It’s communicating with youth, a.k.a. ‘young Australians’ or even ‘youf’ and we have come across some interesting efforts. One approach is to create your own online presence – such as these for youth generally, rural youth, young business or specific issues such as mental health. Another is to go to where the wild things are by setting up in MySpace or other online community, as adidas and Oxfam have done. Both ways have their strengths – creating your own gives you control yet jumping into the world of youth can bring more credibility. As Dave Barry said, “I care about our young people, and I wish them great success, because they are our Hope for the Future, and some day, when my generation retires, they will have to pay us trillions of dollars in social security.”