Social Ninjas in Rural Networks

IN TIPPERARY INSTITUTE, a hard-working pack of networking ninjas contributed to winning a major award to establish Ireland's first rural social network. This was a hard-fought process, one that found inspiration from an inner circle of quiet social entrepreneurs. That circle of friends collaborates face-to-face at events like Bizamp Limerick, OpenCoffee sessions (evidence at left), and Barcamps around Ireland. The mainstays are regulars on LinkedIn, Facebook, and IGO People. Instead of just talking about social media, these collaborators proposed engaging ways to connect like-minded people who normally live miles away from broadband coverage. By proposing an optimum mix of events, newsletters and virtual desktop conferencing that currently deliver high value-for-money in outreach programmes, Tipperary Institute carved out the essence of an emergent National Rural Network. In a few days' time, we will meet up with James Corbett, a Level One Awardee of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland and we will share some thoughts about effectively building buzz for social networking in remote areas. Corbett is the strategist behind Vizitant, a project that makes a difference. Wondering whether we can extend the age range of the National Rural Network, we'll look at submitting an application that will ensure we can work with young teens in rural areas learn how to effectively connect online by creating creative multimedia content themselves.

---

James Corbett -- "Call for Applications" on his blog, 3 Feb 09.
Clay Shirky -- Here Comes Everybody ISBN 9780141030623, 2008.
Seth Godin -- Purple Cow ISBN 978-1591840213, 2003.
Photo from a Limerick OpenCoffee session.

x_ref125sm