[Justin] actNOW engagement toolkit be incorporated into the EIA profile page

[DavidLemayian]

Justin requests that the actNOW engagement toolkit be incorporated into the EIA profile page, in a prominent position, including use of the actNOW logo (changing the colour to green). The toolkit should offer a small set of streamlined ‘actions’ that, when clicked on, give users more granular choices. This needs to be done while being sensitive to not over complicating the UX. The four actions could be structured as follows:

1. Petition: Justin suggests that this action could offer users two choices:
   • Register as an I&AP (Interested & Affected Party) by having the users complete the prescribed form on #GreenAlert with the site auto-submitting it to the environmental consultant responsible for the EIA public participation process. Fiona notes that David has already worked on the form, but will clarity with government what the exact format / process is for submitting forms. Justin suggests that keeping the submission process on #GreenAlert will be a major boon for Oxpeckers because it will be empowered to easily monitor (through automated alerts) which EIAs spark widespread public interest / action, for journalistic reporting / research purposes.
   • Launch / sign a petition about the EIA to the relevant elected councillor / official for the ward where the EIA is located. The data about local councillors should be available through CfSA’s Know Your Hood and other political APIs.
2. Connect: Justin suggests this action would offer to connect users to others who have registered as I&AP, as well as their local councillor, and with relevant environmental action groups (NGOs, law clinics, activists, etc). The service would help users self-organise / mobilise to address issues in their neighbourhoods. #GreenAlert would not be responsible for doing the actual organising / mobilisation, outside of connecting like-minded parties. The role would allow Oxpeckers to monitor public interest / action around EIA issues, for journalistic reporting purposes. Justin warns that connecting users with other users would mean that #GreenAlert gets explicit consent to share user info. Justin suggests that the “match making” between users & NGOs could be a major value add for NGOs by helping them reach the public.
3. Follow: Justin suggests that this action would offer users ways to subscribe for updates / developments on an EIA or wider thematic issue (such as fracking, GMOs, etc). The current alpha version of #GreenAlert already offers email subscription. Justin points out this will need to be expanded, as follows:
   • The current email subscription option will need to include registration & creation of a user profile, so users can manage their various subscriptions. David suggests the proposed crowdAFRICA option (based on Pybossa) platform as an option. Justin is concerned about timelines, and suggests Google / Facebook / Twitter autho might be an interim solution.
   • #GreenAlert will service to primary communities: geographic communities (people interested in EIAs in their neighbourhood) and communities of interest (people interested in ‘causes’). Geographic communities are serviced by the existing email subscription tool. #GreenAlert still needs offer subscriptions / alerts for on thematic issues such as GMOs, fracking, mining, etc. This could be based either on the meta-tags already being used in the EIA database or on David’s new clustered category tags.
   • #GreenAlert needs to be proactive, to maximise its usefulness / traffic / impact. It cannot therefore only offer users reactive subscriptions for EIAs that have already been filed, because this would (unrealistically) expect users to repeatedly visit the site to monitor for new EIAs in their neighbourhood or interest areas. #GreenAlert must rather “retain” visitors who visit the site even once, by encouraging them to subscribe to an alert for future / new EIAs either in their neighbourhood or related to issues / causes that they are passionate about. This will encourage them to come back to the site, each time a new EIA that fits their profile is uploaded.
4. Share: David has done a great job building in social media ‘share’ buttons on the existing alpha. The buttons allow users to type a comment / call-to-action with an embedded URL to the #GreenAlert page, for sharing on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+. Justin also loves the Evernote & Email buttons, as important additional channels. Justin suggests that WhatsApp is the only “crucial” missing social media platform, and points to BBC India proofs-of-concept (around election issues) for using the instant msg service for creating highly engaged communities and feedback loops.