By Getrude Lung'ahi
Social media is forming
an increasingly central part of how we communicate. The available social media
tools have made communication easier, enjoyable, and faster.
Mercy Corps Kenya is
innovatively using WhatsApp and Facebook to communicate to its staff and
consortium members. This has proven to be an effective and efficient way of
organizing workshops, getting feedback and learning from each other.
‘‘I created the WhatsApp
group named BRACED Premies because of logistics of a permaculture workshop
which was held in Laikipia, Kenya. I needed to get updates from participants on
logistics since I was coordinating different groups from Karamoja (Uganda) and
Wajir (Kenya),” said Natalie Topa, programme director, Mercy Corps.
Participants of the
workshop who are active users of the WhatsApp group include government
officials from Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Regional
Development Authorities (MENRRDA) in Kenya, representatives from the Ugandan
local government, universities, and consortium partners.
Photos of the training
and interesting ideas have been shared on the platform which provided
opportunities for knowledge sharing and exchanges among the participants from
the two countries.
“The WhatsApp group has
been very useful. It has stirred interesting discussions (and) built relations,
trust and bonding among the group. People feel more relaxed and chat freely.
Interesting layers to partnerships have been formed, feedback on food and
accommodation during the workshop was shared and made me feel part of the
experience,’’ explained Topa.
Social media tends to
build ties and trust. Relations created by the interaction have encouraged the
group to continue to use the platform even after the workshop.
Follow-ups on travel
logistics and the progress made by each of the members were carried out using
the platform. It was evident that social media communication has no protocol
and the members were freely chatting with government officials as opposed to
face-to-face communication.
So far, key discussions and
experiences on the practical application of permaculture interventions in both
sites (Karamoja and Wajir) are being shared on WhatsApp.
Read the full story at Building
Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED).
No comments:
Post a Comment