The TakingITGlobal Dispatch! 
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For the Month of August 2002 (volume 2.4)

In This Issue:

1 -> Welcome to the Dispatch
2 -> EarthYouth.net Pre-Launch!
3 -> TIG Youth Day - August 17th, 2002
4 -> The Showcase Ontario Award of Excellence
5 -> Online Chat Sessions (times/dates)
6 -> e-Cards
7 -> Cartoon Project
8 -> Ads in Fashion18 and Shift Magazine
9 -> TIG meeting @ the Youth Employment Summit
10 -> Wrap Up

~•~ 1. Welcome to the Dispatch ~•~ 

Thank you for your commitment to making a difference in the world
and for your connection and involvement with TakingITGlobal. We
now have over 7,500 members from 193 countries -- that's 1,300 more
members and 9 more countries since the last issue of the Dispatch
one month ago! We hope that our network will continue to grow and
that you will take advantage of the many resources that TIG provides.

The past month has been tremendously busy so there's a lot to go
over. On August 17th, the inaugural TIG Youth Day happened, with
members from around the world organizing events in their communities
in order to tell people about TakingITGlobal and, hopefully, get
more youth involved in various local initiatives.

TIG itself is expanding at an incredible rate. In preparation for
the World Summit on Sustainable Development, we have launched a
new site, EarthYouth.net, around making sustainable development
easier to understand and more actionable, and in collaboration with
many partners. With a new e-Cards section coming soon and many topical
sites on the go, there is more to find at TakingITGlobal than ever
before! Please continue to let us know if you have any ideas on
how we can improve!

Thanks for your participation and support,

The TakingITGlobal Coordination Team

~•~ 2. EarthYouth.net Pre-Launch ~•~ 

As 60,000 people descend on Johannesburg this week for the world's
largest conference ever, the World Summit on Sustainable Development,
we are pleased to announce that we will be launching a topical site
on Sustainable Development, EarthYouth.net!

This website is a place for young people interested in sustainable
development to come together and make a difference. We invite all
TIG members to visit EarthYouth.net by going to: http://www.earthyouth.net/ 

-- and, if you're interested in Sustainable Development, make sure
it's selected in the interests list on your profile 
(http://d.takingitglobal.org/community/profile.html?section=interests)
to hear more!

EarthYouth.net is the one-stop entry-point for young people concerned
about the need for sustainable development -- for the beginner to
the seasoned campaigner.

You will be able to:
               
~ Meet like-minded young people who are interested in sustainable
  development and network with them. ~ Initiate and participate in
  discussions on issues that are pertinent to the World Summit, sustainable
  development, and young people. 

~ Connect projects with resources. 
~ Get involved in the WSSD process in your country or region. 
~ Read and/or contribute articles
~ And, most importantly, take action for Sustainable development.

The idea for the website was conceived at the UNEP Global Youth
Forum held in Denmark in March 2002. Its development has involved
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP), UNICEF, Pollution Probe, and several
other international & environmental organisations that are geared
towards sustainable development.

http://www.earthyouth.net/

Please send your questions, comments and partnership ideas to earthyouth@takingitglobal.org
             

~•~ 3. TIG Youth Day - August 17th, 2002 ~•~ 

A special congratulations and thank you goes out to all those TakingITGlobal
members who were involved as participants and coordinators for TakingITGlobal
Youth Day activities!! Initiated by TIG member Rana Bilal Ahmed
in Pakistan, TIG Youth Day is a chance for TIG members around the
world to celebrate their achievements! 16 TIG members in 9 countries
have taken on the challenge of becoming TYD Coordinators and took
the lead on organizing events for this day. The goal of this international
event is to inspire, inform and involve young people around the
world, celebrating the achievements of TIG members and promoting
the involvement of local youth in TakingITGlobal! 

Each TYD Local Activity Coordinator planned activities around the
following objectives:
- Introduction of TakingITGlobal into participating local communities.                
- To inform young people about how TakingITGlobal works and how
  they can get involved. 
- To recognize that youths are a positive force in society and have
  enormous potential for contributing to the development and advancement
  of societies. 
- To take steps to respond more effectively to the economic, social,
  educational, cultural and spiritual needs of young people. 
- To promote the role of local youth organizations in the community.                
               
View the planned events at http://tyd.takingitglobal.org! 

~•~ 4. The Showcase Ontario Award of Excellence ~•~              

TakingITGlobal is proud to announce that we have been nominated
as a finalist for the 2002 Showcase Ontario Awards! The award was
developed to recognize "the best and brightest voluntary sector
technology projects from all parts of Ontario." 

Organizations are evaluated based on their use of IT in recruiting
and supporting volunteers, building voluntary sector networks, and
improving the delivery of volunteer services to the people of Ontario,
Canada. Of the four finalists, one will be awarded the grand prize
- the Diamond Award of Excellence - at the Showcase Ontario Awards
Banquet on September 11, 2002. 

For more information on this award, check out volunteersonline.ca.

~•~ 5. Online Chat Sessions ~•~ 

TakingITGlobal is inviting all members to join us in our first
chat workshop! Learn new skills, gain access to information, connections                
and resources, and participate in an amazing discussion online!

Please join us for this exciting event:

Experience Entrepreneurship
August 20th, 2002

7:30am and 4pm Pacific Time (GMT-8)
10:30am and 7pm Eastern Time (GMT-5)
3:30pm and 12 midnight GMT
1:30am and 10am AUS EST (GMT+10) (August 21st)

To take part in the chat:
1. Go to http://www.takingitglobal.org/community/chat.html
2. If you aren't logged in, you will need to follow the link to
   do so 
3. Click "Launch general chat!"

Please try these steps out right away and let us know if you have
any problems accessing the chat application. Also, please log in
at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled time, so that we are
all ready to start on time!

Look out for more online workshops coming up!

~•~ 6. e-Cards ~•~ 

You're surfing the TIG site, and you suddenly remember - I forgot
my best friend's birthday! Have no fear - TIG E-cards are almost
here! In just a few short weeks, you'll be able to send greeting
cards to all your friends and family through TakingITGlobal. You
can send a card for specific occasions or "just because",
and if you can't find the one you want, you can create your own
custom card! 

Are you interested in creating e-cards for everyone to use? We
are looking for submissions to build our database of e-cards! Also,
if we don't have the category you want, just let us know and we'll
add it!

If you are interested, e-mail gallery@takingitglobal.org for more
information!

~•~ 7. Cartoon Project ~•~ 

A group of TakingITGlobal members are working on creating a cartoons
section of TIG, and they're looking for cartoonists; whether you're
a professional or a beginner, this is a chance for you to develop
your skills and share your thoughts and talent with TIG members
from around the world.

If you're interested, visit the projects page for this initiative
at: http://projects.takingitglobal.org/comics

~•~ 8. Ads in Fashion18 and Shift Magazine ~•~ 

Through a partnership with a Canadian media company, TakingITGlobal
has been able to obtain three magazine advertisements in major Canadian
publications this year!

http://d.takingitglobal.org/aboutus/ads.html

Let us know what you think of the ads (info@takingitglobal.org),
and if you know of local or national publications in your area that
carry Public Service Ads, let them know about TakingITGlobal!

Do you have a great advertising idea for TakingITGlobal? If you
can, design and send it to us, or just send us the idea; We're always
looking for creative and innovative ways to tell people about TIG!

~•~ 9. TIG Meeting @ the Youth Employment Summit ~•~              

TakingITGlobal members are invited to attend a TIG meeting in Alexandria,
Egypt on the evening of September 8th, 2002 at the Youth Employment
Summit! A special room will be reserved for TIG members to meet,
share ideas and connect! Details on time and location will be sent
out soon. In addition to a TIG Members Meeting, we will be running
an Open Session about TakingITGlobal and will also have a booth
at the Innovation Marketplace.

TakingITGlobal is collaborating in the organizing of the Youth
Employment Summit, which is launching a decade-long campaign to
create sustainable livelihoods for 500 million young adults. TakingITGlobal
co-founder Jennifer Corriero is a member of the Organizing Committee,
and Co-Chair of the ICTs for Youth Employment Working Group of the
Summit. TIG has also led development of the Global Knowledge Resource
and the management of the Global Alliance for Youth Employment.

~•~ 10. Wrap Up ~•~ 

Your interest, support and involvement with TakingITGlobal is what
allows the community to grow and encourage more young people to
be inspired, informed and involved every day!! Thank you for being
a member!

Stay connected,

The TakingITGlobal Coordination Team