Alex Steed
Millennial Predictions for the Next Decade
As we this decade draws to a close and we prepare to ring in a new year, there are many perspectives about how the 2000s will be remembered. In the last 10 years, we've seen many defining moments, including the Sept. 11 attacks, Hurricane Katrina, a recession, the inauguration of our nation's first African-American president, incredible advances in technology and a social media revolution that has been compared to the Industrial Revolution.
However, what also defines this decade is the fact that our generation, the Millennial Generation, truly came of age during this time – and these events and many others have helped define who we are, for better or worse (although we hope the former). As we look forward to whatever lies ahead in 2010, Kari and I thought it would be a great opportunity to invite some of our diverse and interesting Millennial friends to offer 100-word predictions on what lies ahead for our generation in the coming decade. Take a look at their thoughts, and add your own in the comments.
I know enough to know I haven’t the foggiest what the 2010s hold. Rewinding back to 1999, very few among us could have predicted the anthrax scare, Twitter, sexting, “not on our watch!,” or Matisyahu. But I will posit that in the next decade, the social graph is likely to become an indispensible engine of social change. The average Facebook user has 130 friends. Every Millennial is empowered – like no member of any generation before them – to rally 100s, or 1000s, to catalyze positive change in the world. I have no doubt these social citizens will continue to amaze us.
- Jason Rzepka, VP of Public Affairs, MTV
I spend a lot of time thinking about how technology and social media can bring people together locally and globally. In the next decade, innovative ideas using the web, particularly mobile will radically transform our concept of volunteerism and giving. There is something powerful that happens when you can see the direct impact of your involvement. I view social networks and communication tools like Twitter as an evolution of the physical role a church or community centre once played. It has never been easier to find ways to get involved, meet others offline and use your skills for good.
- Amanda Rose, social entrepreneur and Twestival organizer
At some point over the last ten years I became an adult – and found out very quickly that being an adult is hard. There is no manual or guide to reference. You are on your own. By comparison, changing the world isn’t so difficult. Ten years ago, there was little that one individual could do that would produce meaningful, measurable changes in our society. Today, there are websites and widgets to help you navigate and a global community to join or help to mold. Being an adult will always be hard. Changing the world is getting easier by the day.
- Brian Reich, communications specialist and Media Rules! author
Next decade, giving money will become less important than giving voice, giving time and giving work.
- Ben Rattray, founder and CEO of Change.org (who challenged himself to predicting in 100 characters...exactly)
In 2010, the oldest of Gen Y will be 30 years old. No longer the "baby" in the nonprofit workplace, the "next" generation will quickly become the "now" generation and the whole world will be watching to see if we will step up to lead with compassion, innovation and a sense of urgency to fix the myriad of problems we've inherited. 2010 does not ask that Gen Y get "ready to lead.” It demands that we actually lead. What I think we'll see in 2010 is more young people answering that call. And I hope to God that you're one of them.
- Rosetta Thurman, writer, speaker, professor and consultant
Expect a re-examination of ideology in the sphere of millennial-directed activism. It is unsurprising that millennials – having grown up in the shadows of astronomically sloppy ideological doses – so strongly gravitated towards the pragmatic Barack Obama. However, we must re-imagine, not turn away from, ideology. Without an agreed upon and articulated set of ideals, we will find ourselves paralyzed, forever on the defensive. Algorithm-calculated action coupled with social-network-organized dissent makes for a dynamic revolutionary body, but if we do not birth universal and flexible guiding philosophies into which we can package our intentions and actions, it will live soullessly.
- Alex Steed, Millennial Generation activist and enthusiast
The 2000s handed society a new set of tools. In the 2010s, we face the burden and the opportunity of figuring out how and when to use those tools for social good. Social networking tools could create homogenous online ghettos—or bridge cultures and communities. Online philanthropy tools could reinforce reactive, inefficient giving—or increase impact and reward performance. To succeed, we’ll have to innovate. But innovation is not an end in and of itself. Innovation is a means to reach our goals. Let us hope that the 2010s are nicer than the naughty 2000s—and that we learn to use the tools we’ve been given.
- Jacob Harold, Program Officer at the Hewlett Foundation
The coming decade will see the demise of traditional political constituencies/Parties- to be replaced by The Cloudists. Cloudicrats/Cloudicans will create+push major policy agendas with cash, GOTV etc. using free G-software and no "national headquarters." They will organize via amazon-like algorithms ("voters who liked this initiative also voted for.....") and will change the very mechanisms of government/ing in ways we can't even imagine.
- Ari Wallach, cofounder of The Great Schlep
My generation, the Millennial Generation, is staring off the edge of a tall cliff – Democracy, Society, Economy, pick your metaphor – and we’re deciding; collectively and through the use of technology, whether we are going to fall off or take a running start, jump and soar. I promise, we’ll run, jump and soar and in this decade we will innovative, create, collaborate and build a new definition of leadership, for all of the metaphors above. We are facing obstacles, no doubt, but we will best them. I am energized by what my generation will build if we invest in each other.
- Maya Enista, CEO of Mobilize.org and cofounder of the 80 Million Strong campaign
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Wish You Were Here: the pros and cons of virtual events
As conferences across all sectors begin to experience a decrease in attendance -- what is the role of technology in fostering online discussion and debate? Is it possible that the days of rubber chicken lunches and long winded powerpoint presentations could altogether be replaced by online forums?
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Peer-Associative Branding or, "What if We Said Your Friends Are All Doing It"
"My Head is spinning with so much that is new or needs to be taken apart and put back together again ... Amazing, isn't it?" -Beth Kanter in the comments section of her blog post, "ROI: What are the best "I" words for nonprofits to think about social media and ROI? "
I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine; he's in charge of development at a state-wide AIDS awareness/action organization. He recently directed a fundraising campaign for the organization on Facebook and I asked him how it went. It went well, he explained, but the fundraising application takes 5% of every donation and he thought he'd have been better off receiving checks from some of the donors since he lost "so much" in processing.
True - the organization gave up 5% in processing fees, but what did it gain in peer-associative branding, I asked. That is, I'm a Facebook user and I see on my newsfeed that five of my friends gave to said organization. I've never heard of it before, or I'm not too familiar with it, but I see that three of my friends, peers I have positive associations with, gave to the organization as well. My friends, via their donations, have, in addition to giving money, attached a sliver of their personal brand to the organization. It is that, not anything that the organization (or initiative) projects on its own surface, that I am attracted to when I first learn of it.
Or, I am attracted to the organization because I want to have a connection and/or sex with and/or impress the three aforementioned donors. When I read more about the organization, my reception is tainted by the positive residue of my desire for said influencers, thus I give it more attention than I would in other circumstances.
This is, of course, the essence of social branding.
And fortunately for organizations, this association is more often a positive or neutral one than it is negative. Very typically one of these scenarios occur:
- A cluster of friends that I desire for whatever cocktail of reasons have become supporters - financial or passive (joining a group or becoming a fan) - of an organization, thus I receive the organization with an open mind and am more likely to look into it in a more meaningful way, be receptive to donating to or volunteering with the organization, or a combination of both.
- A cluster of friends I don't necessarily enjoy more than I do anyone else (but do enjoy enough to be Facebook friends with) become "fans." While this doesn't evoke the same positive peer-associative response, at least I see the organization's name, establishing for the entity a predisposition of familiarity in my brain, which will be handy the next time I encounter it in a more-meaningful way.
So, more often than not, public peer-associative branding by way of Facebook transactions are either positive or benign pieces of exposure. But it's exposure, people!
Since Facebook mostly clusters people by like-interest or experience, it's a very rare occasion that I am turned off of an item over which one can become a digital supporter because of who I see associating with it. In a very rare scenario, Helen supports something and I start to ask questions. We all know a Helen - I met mine at day camp in the 10th grade, she friended me on Facebook, (likely by way of that pesky damn "FriendFinder") and in all of our forced Facebook chats she casually drops I am going to hell because I moved in with my girlfriend before we got married (or conversely, she over-zealously evokes Marx every time politics come up). Perhaps Helen adopts some cause on Facebook and then I, for some time, associate that cause as one characterized by Helen's zealotry. But, if this is unintended on the part of the organization (we should assume that some causes passionately adopted by Helen don't necessarily want/need me as a supporter), even Helen-danger is a) pretty unlikely and b) far less potent and permanent. Drawing a passive association between a lesser-liked Facebook friend leaves far less permanent an imprint than the one left by the opening my mind to positively receiving a product or organization. When I was little, my desire to want something that the cool kids had far outmatched the intensity with which I did not want something less cool kids had.
Need proof?
I volunteer for an organization called Maine Youth Leadership and they held a Facebook fundraiser similar to the one held for the AIDS initiative. I gave my money and when prompted, I typed why I support the organization, and this went straight to my news feed. Immediately afterward, a friend, someone who works in a fundraising capacity for a national health organization, reached out and asked if he could some how get involved by volunteering and - if we needed it - in a fundraising capacity. Either he a) learned about an organization he would have liked already visa vis my involvement or b) learned more about the organization because he was open to doing so by way of my association with it or c) a combination of the two. Either way, the 5% processing charge was certainly worth its weight in this scenario.
In part, many are initially receptive to involvement with X organization for the same reason I wanted a Trapperkeeper in elementary school:we want the cool kids to like me. This isn't to say that this is the fundamental reason for our prolonged involvement; it is to give credence to, and leverage, the birthplace of desire for association and involvement.
And remember how the fundraiser suggests he would have been better off receiving some checks in favor of paying processing fees? Imagine this in the context of the Trapperkeeper. If all of the cool kids kept their cool toys to themselves, no one else would have wanted a stake in them.
In the digital age, the monopolization of cool no longer belongs exclusively to the monied, as the small organization is offered the same knowledge and mechanisms necessary for victory in the on-going battle for public perception that large ones are. While the latter still monopolizes on person-power for larger-scale implementation, they do not necessarily have an edge on leveraging said-power smartly. 2007 and 2008 were, after all, epic years for mismanagement of corporate forays into social media, which makes some sense in the context of my personal experience in which I observed that where lean, agile organizations were less equipped in machinery and manpower, they often made remained competitive by mastering approach, innovation, and industry literacy.
In situations like these, Beth's aforementioned sentiment - that her head is consistently spinning as she interprets and reinterprets all of this change - rings so true.
Last night I was watching flipping between Law and Order and Terminator 3 (don't judge me) and I thought:
"Wow. I wish that I could go back in time and tell the 11-year-old me - the one sitting in Mrs. Wentworth's 5th grade classroom at Cornish Elementary, reading an issue of The Weekly Reader that purports that 'The Information Super Highway' is going to change everything - and tell little me, 'This is bigger than I remember you thinking it is. It's not just about making 'Oregon Trail' a cooler game. What they mean to say is that in the future, thanks to the brilliance of various scientists and digital pioneers and a series of tubes, your reputation - the intangible essence of how you are perceived by people - will actually be worth something and leveragable. And while it will be used by countless corporations to sell you crap that's bad for you and that you don't really need, it can also be used to give credibility to organizations, people, activists and public servants that are very well-intentioned. And if you know that, if you are really aware of that, you, the individual, will hold a lot of power.'"
My head's a' spinnin'.
___
Note: I should be clear that I am not necessarily in favor or against a percentage of donations going to donation-processing. I would, as a fundraiser, prefer to opt for the free option. In this case, I am merely suggesting examining that's coming out of process, and suggesting a conversation be held with regard to what, then, the fee, if any, should be.
*Photo courtesy of [xinita] failed trigonometry
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2009, The Year of Alliance Building?
Over the course of the past two months we've watched as Alex Steed has racked up thousands of miles, hundreds of Tweets, and tens of uploaded YouTube videos - all in an effort to better understand the nascent style of Millennial activism. Today he is back east and blogging from the comfort of his home. Read on as Alex makes some predictions for 2009.
Alex Steed: "Stalled" in Middle America
Last week we introduced you to Alex Steed as he set off on his cross country Millennials Changing America Tour. While his trip started off a little rocky -- thanks to the 2000 Hyundai Elantra he's cruising in, he reported to me yesterday that he's hit a groove. And, when he's not reporting from bathroom stalls like the video above - he's meeeting with folks like David Meikeljohn a member of Bang Gang - a decentralized, recreational cycle gang based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We'll continue to hear pontifications from Alex from rest stops nationwide as he continues on his quest to understand millennials use of the internet for social change. And now, a note from Alex:
Hey there, everyone!
Here's a video that I took in the bathroom of a punk diner in Ann Arbor. If you watch closely, at the end someone tries to barge through the door and a quick look of terror overcomes me. Also, because I felt a crazy pressure to get it done quickly (there was someone waiting outside), I call the Interfaith Youth Core "Interfaith Youth Council." Whoops!
Thanks for watching, though. I look forward to updating you further very soon. Take good care in the meantime!
- Alex
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an unconventional road trip begins
As this post goes live, Alex Steed -- a straight talkin’ millennial, frustrated by the way his generation is perceived by the media -- is setting off on a 30 day cross country trip. Who does he want to meet? Social citizens like you. If he hasn’t already found you on couchsurfing.com or Craigslist – it’s not too late to find him. You can keep up to speed on Alex’s journey here on Social Citizens and through video and blog posts along the way. Without further adieu…here’s Alex.
This is the first day of the Millennials Changing America Tour. The journey across the United States will bring me face to face with young activists who are tapping into technology to help create social change. I'll be posting my findings here and on a series of other blogs along the way. I am extremely grateful to the Case Foundation, which has partnered with the tour by offering to match the first $5,000 in person-to-person support we get on our website. So many thanks to them.
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