Tuesday, January 6, 2009

PRESS RELEASE: Wednesday, Jan. 7: Change.org Opens Voting for the Top 10 Ideas for America

Change.org Opens Voting for the Top 10 Ideas for America

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, January 5, 2009 -- Change.org, the leading online platform for social change, today announced it has opened voting for the Top 10 Ideas for America, to be presented to the Obama Administration at an event at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., just days before the Inauguration. Each winning idea will form the basis of a national advocacy campaign organized in collaboration with leading nonprofits to translate each idea into real policy.

The voting process comprises the second and final round of the "Ideas for Change in America" competition, which was launched by Change.org and MySpace in November 2008 in partnership with more than 50 leading nonprofit organizations and a dozen online political communities and voter registration groups, including TechPresident, Netroots Nation, Declare Yourself, Student PIRGs, and HeadCount.

Since the launch of the competition more than 7,500 ideas have been submitted, addressing major challenges ranging from global warming to the economy to education. More than 30,000 comments have been added and 250,000 votes have been cast to discuss and identify the best among these ideas. This first round finished last week, and voting to select the 10 winning ideas from 100 finalists will run from January 5th through January 15th at www.change.org/ideas.

Change.org also today announced it has partnered with the Case Foundation to host an event at the National Press Club on January 16, 2008 to unveil the Top 10 Ideas for America. At the event, Change.org and the Case Foundation will announce the launch of national advocacy campaigns in support of each idea in partnership with leading nonprofit groups. Following the announcement, a panel that will include Chris Hughes, co-creator of My.BarackObama.com, will discuss how new technology such as that used by the Obama Campaign can help to advance greater levels of civic participation in America.

"The inauguration gives every American a renewed opportunity to get involved and make a difference," said Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation. "Just by voting for Change.org's Top 10 Ideas for America people across the country can help decide what some of our initial steps are and become a critical part of making those ideas a reality."

The Ideas for Change in America competition was launched in response to President-elect Barack Obama's call for citizen involvement in government, and the overwhelming response has shown the extent of the interest people across the country have in participating in the policymaking process in the same way they were able to get involved in the 2008 campaign.

"The Obama campaign showed the power of the internet to get millions of Americans to participate in politics in ways never before possible," said Change.org founder and CEO Ben Rattray. "Our aim is to demonstrate how the same technology can be used to create a more participatory form of democracy and engage the American public, leverage a diverse range of voices to generate innovative ideas, and build momentum for specific policy change. We hope this is the first of many efforts to use new models of online collaboration and organizing to effect the change that so many millions across the country seek."

ABOUT CHANGE.ORG

Change.org is an online hub and media network for social issues and collective action. The San Francisco-based social entrepreneurship venture operates a network of blogs covering more than a dozen major social issues and has partnered with more than 3000 leading nonprofit organizations to provide outlets for powerful action. Change.org was founded by two former classmates from Stanford, Ben Rattray and Mark Dimas, in 2006.

ABOUT THE CASE FOUNDATION

The Case Foundation, created by Steve and Jean Case in 1997, invests in people and ideas that can change the world. The Foundation champions initiatives that connect people, increase giving, and catalyze civic action. For more information, visit www.casefoundation.org.

No comments: