Internet toxics/activist info

[Patricia Dines <73652.1202@CompuServe.COM>]

For your info - online database with toxics info; info about activists using the
Internet...P. Dines

--- FORWARD ---
From: Rich Winkel, INTERNET:rich@pencil
Sender: o-imap@chumbly.math.missouri.edu
To: Patricia Dines, 73652,1202
Date: Mon, Nov 18, 1996, 4:38 PM
Subject: NetAction: Right-to-Know Online Database, Net Organizing ...

/** headlines: 149.0 **/
** Written  8:33 AM  Nov 14, 1996 by newsdesk in cdp:headlines **
/* Written 10:38 AM  Nov 11, 1996 by akrause@igc.org in list.roundtable */
/* ---------- "NetAction Notes No. 7" ---------- */

From: Audrie Krause <akrause@igc.apc.org>

NetAction Notes
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Published by NetAction          Issue No. 7             November 11, 1996
Repost where appropriate.    See copyright information at end of message.
* * * * * * *
IN THIS ISSUE:
You Can Lead Activists to the Internet, But You Can't Make Them Use It
The Virtual Activist Workshop
A Chance to Chat
More Resources
How to Help NetAction
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You Can Lead Activists to the Internet, But You Can't Make Them Use It

The Right-to-Know Network (RTK Net) is a powerful example of how the
Internet can be a useful tool for community-based activists.  Sponsored by
two non-profit organizations, OMB Watch and The Unison Institute, RTK Net is
an easy-to-use online database that contains a wealth of information about
pollution and waste within communities.

RTK Net provides online copies of the numerous reports that industries and
businesses are required to file with various federal agencies, including
inventories of toxic chemicals, incident reports on toxic spills, and
information on EPA Superfund sites.  This information is searchable by
address as well as by company name, and information is available in both
detailed and summary form.

The online network also has a wealth of information on housing, including
the American Housing Survey (AHS) data and other information on bank and
mortgage company lending practices and the demographic characteristics of
individual neighborhoods.

Environmental activists who are already familiar with the Internet will find
RTK Net easy to use.  Unfortunately, many environmental activists who are
working on local issues are *not* familiar with the Internet.  Furthermore,
local activist organizations may not have the resources to make effective
use of this powerful research tool.

This was made painfully clear at a recent workshop that OMB Watch hosted in
Oakland to introduce RTK Net to Bay Area environmental activists.
Participants included volunteers from Oakland-based PUEBLO (People United
for a Better Oakland) and San Francisco-based CBE (Communities for a Better
Environment).  Both are highly visible and effective grassroots
organizations, actively working at the neighborhood level to expose and
eliminate local sources of pollution.

Several volunteers from these organizations attended the OMB Watch training
in order to learn how to use the RTK Net.  With few exceptions, the
volunteers who participated were not using computers regularly.  Some had
never used a computer before that day.  Even the staff members from these
organizations had reservations about how useful RTK Net would be to
neighborhood-based activists.

What struck me as I listened to the discussion at the end of the day was how
much of a difference it would make if these organizations had just one or
two Internet-savvy volunteers to help get them started.  With a very small
commitment of time, Internet activists could train one or two community
activists to use RTK Net and other useful online resources.  If one or two
Internet-savvy volunteers were available by phone to troubleshoot, volunteer
activists could learn to use RTK Net and other online resources to research
local environmental issues.  If volunteer activists had someone to call when
they encountered a problem, they would probably feel much less intimidated
by the technology, and be more willing to try it.

Many activists who are using technology don't realize how intimidating
computers can be to those who don't use them.  We will need to pay attention
to this if we want to see powerful tools like RTK Net put to effective use
by neighborhood activists.  If there's a grassroots organization in your
community, I bet they would welcome your help in getting online.  Why not
volunteer?

The RTK Net database can be accessed on the Web at http://www.rtk.net, and
is also accessible by telnet, gopher, and FTP.  db info in Toxics/resources
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Virtual Activist Workshop

NetAction and the Media Alliance are co-sponsoring a half-day workshop on how
to use the Internet for organizing, advocacy, media outreach, and
fundraising.

The workshop is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 16 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at
the San Francisco State University downtown campus at 425 Market Street
(by Fremont), in San Francisco.  For those who are outside the Bay Area, I
will be providing a summary report of the workshop in a future issue of
NetAction Notes.  I also hope to organize similar workshops in other
communities.

Guest speakers include:

* Michael Stein, co-author of "Fundraising on the Internet" and Director of
Special Projects for the Institute for Global Communications (IGC). IGC
assists over 14,000 progressive, non-profit organizations in using
computers, the Internet and the online medium.

* Dr. R. Anders Schneiderman, Senior Partner at Progressive Communications,
an Internet and research consulting firm. Schneiderman was responsible for
placing a wide range of community organizations online for free through the
Economic Democracy Information Network (EDIN) Project.

* *Karen Wickre is executive producer of PlanetOut, a worldwide online
community for gay, lesbian, bi and trans people. She is also a writer who
has covers the Web and Internet trends for print publications and Web
sites, and is a co-founder of Digital Queers, a national organization of
techno-professionals who empower GLBT organizations with decent online
technology.

Cost of the workshop is $20 for Media Alliance and NetAction members, and
$25 for non-members.

TO REGISTER, call Media Alliance at 415-546-6491.

Media Alliance is a non-profit organization bridging the media and public
interest communities of the Bay Area. MA strives to ensure the free flow of
information and ideas necessary to maintain a truly democratic society and
dedicates itself to fostering the diversity of voices and perspectives,
holding the media accountable for their impact on society and protecting
freedom of speech.

NetAction, a project of The Tides Center, is a non-profit organization
dedicated to promoting effective grassroots citizen action campaigns by
creating coalitions that link activists using the Internet with grassroots
organizations, and educating the public, policymakers, and the media about
technology-based social and political issues.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A Chance to Chat

I will be the guest this week on HotWired's Electronic Frontiers, a forum
for discussion of techno culture and digital activism.  The online chat is
scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6 p.m. PST, (Friday 02:00 GMT).

Hosted by journalist/activist Jon Lebkowsky, formerly of FringeWare Inc. and
a founding member of the Austin, Texas, chapter of the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, HotWired's Electronic Frontiers is a forum for discussing the
social, political, theoretical, and practical issues of cyberspace.

For more information about the chat, visit the Electronic Frontiers Web site at
http://www.hotwired.com/eff/.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More Resources

If you haven't visited the NetAction Web site in a while, you will find a
few changes.  The site has been reorganized and a new section has been added
with links to other online resources.  The Web site is located at
http://www.netaction.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How to Help NetAction

Membership in NetAction supports continued publication of NetAction Notes,
as well as a wide range of organizing and training activities.  NetAction
projects include helping grassroots organizations harness the power of the
Internet as a tool for outreach and advocacy; helping activists who are
already using the Internet do a more effective job of building a base of
grassroots support for technology-based social and political issues; and
promoting more widespread access to information technology by organizing
hands-on demonstrations of the Internet.

Please join NetAction today by sending a check payable to NetAction/Tides
Center to: NetAction, 601 Van Ness Ave. #631, San Francisco, CA 94102.

Regular membership is $50 per year; student/senior/low-income membership is
$25 per year; sustaining membership is $100 per year; non-profit
organization membership is $125 per year; and corporate membership is $250
per year.

NetAction brochures are available for distribution at conferences and other
events.  If you would like a supply of brochures to distribute, send email to:
akrause@igc.org, and include your name and the mailing address where you
would like the brochures sent.

Thanks for your support!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright 1996 by NetAction/The Tides Center.  All rights reserved.
Material may be reposted or reproduced for non-commercial use provided
NetAction is cited as the source.

NetAction is a project of The Tides Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit
organization. NetAction is dedicated to promoting effective grassroots
citizen action campaigns by creating coalitions that link online activists
with grassroots organizations, providing training to online activists in
effective organizing strategies, and educating the public, policymakers and
the media about technology-based social and political issues.

To subscribe to NetAction Notes, send a message to: <majordomo@manymedia.com>.
The body of the message should state: <subscribe netaction>

To unsubscribe at any time, send a message to: <majordomo@manymedia.com>
The body of the message should state: <unsubscribe netaction>

For more information about NetAction, contact Audrie Krause:
E-mail: akrause@igc.org * Phone: (415) 775-8674 * Web: http://www.netaction.org
Or write to: NetAction  601 Van Ness Ave., No. 631   San Francisco, CA 94102

** End of text from cdp:headlines **

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