04 5 / 2012
Syrians: #RotationCuration and Why You Should Get Involved!
#RotationCuration is not just a model the TweetWeekSyria is based on, it’s a ground-breaking movement in the world of social media specifically and social change in general.
Why Social Media?
Social media has given us a great new way of communicating with each other and is continuously allowing us to form powerful networks that can be harnessed in different ways for the benefit of humanity.
James Surowiecki, journalist and staff writer at The New Yorker, argued in his TED talk titled “The Turning Point for Social Media” that people, acting in mass, could be smarter than we think. James is also the author of The Wisdom of Crowds, which proposes that in some circumstances, large groups exhibit more intelligence than smaller, more elite groups.
Why #RotationCuration?
RotationCuration gives a platform, on social media, for different people (somewhat average) to speak their minds. No matter what the cause or the focus, #RotationCuration has proved itself as a movement and different adaptations of this model started to emerge.
A project started by the Swedish Institute, called Curators of Sweden, was the starting point. The project hands over the official country’s account on Twitter (@Sweden) to be managed by a new Swede every week.
In an age of mass communication and increasing globalization, a country depends largely on how it is perceived abroad. Political objectives, trade, investments, visitors, exchange of talent and creativity are all heavily dependent on the view of the outside world. Sweden’s development and future prosperity depend on strong relations with the outside world and a more active exchange with other countries in many areas. This is only possible, if more people are familiar with Sweden and become interested in the country and what it has to offer. [*]
Other projects had different aspirations. @TweetWeekUSA, an unofficial account and an adaptation of the #RotationCuration Model defines its purpose as:
… to afford US citizens and residents the opportunity to exchange their perspectives and opinions and to provide a forum where other citizens of Planet Earth may engage them as well. [*]
Why TweetWeekSyria?
#RotationCuration is a very democratic experience at its heart. There might be many reasons why such a program is important to Syrians and Syria in general, but the most important one of them is that since Syrians are at the verge of drastic political and social change, we believe that offering a platform to which many people pay attention (Syrian and global citizens) and many Syrians can use to cast their voices and speak their ideas will hopefully be of tremendous value, through social media channels that are becoming mainstream.
If you’re Syrian and have anything that you’d like to say, or know of anyone who’s ideas you want to be heard, click on Nominate a Curator and submit a nominee.
