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Delegate Organizations

The participating groups of the first Alliance of Youth Movements Summit are passionate, dynamic, and creative. They have all utilized new media, online social networking, the internet, and mobile technology to push back against violence and oppression. They speak for compassion, human rights, and freedom. They use unique methods to tell their story. They come from countries and communities around the world. They have each created communities online—some large, some small— but with the ultimate goal of creating a community offline— a community of friends, activists, leaders, students, and professionals— all working to create positive change in the world in which we all live.

Burma Global Action Network

Burma Global Action Network (BGAN) emerged out of the famous "Support The Monks' Protest In Burma" Facebook group, launched by students Alex Bookbinder, Imran Jamal, Sophie Lwin, and others in September 2007. At its peak, the group had 450,000 members, all of whom worked together to organize demonstrations around the world. Operating in conjunction with other nonprofit organizations, BGAN is dedicated to promoting the struggle for justice and democracy in Burma. The organization has developed into a worldwide network of young human-rights activists speaking out against the atrocities and brutal rule of the country's junta. Visit Burma Global Action Network at http://www.burma-network.com/

CAMBIO/Día de Solidaridad con Cuba

The CAMBIO campaign, which supports democracy in Cuba, is symbolized by white bracelets printed with the word CAMBIO. Thousands have been distributed in the United States, and the bracelets even gained attention from the Cuban regime--Raúl Castro called for cambio when he assumed power in 2006. The unifying message of change (cambio means "change" in Spanish) is something many different grassroots movements can get behind. The first annual "Día de Solidaridad con Cuba" was held on May 21, 2008. The two main groups behind this campaign have organized multiple vibrant online efforts to support the release of dissidents, mobilize young people, plan events, and conceptualize new ways of sharing information. Visit CAMBIO at http://www.cubacambio.org/index_english.cfm

Fight-Back

Conceived after a tragic attack on two women in Juhu, India, on New Year's Eve 2007, Fight-Back was founded by Zubin Driver and other professionals to address the issue of gender violence in India. With an active Facebook group of more than 1,600 members, the organization is utilizing the digital space, university campuses, the music industry, and new media to provide information on how individuals can protect themselves from gender violence and get help. From police telephone numbers to human rights lawyers and a gender violence Hall of Shame, www.fight-back.net--in English, Hindi, and Marathi--gives young Indians the tools to confront gender violence and fight back. Visit Fight-Back at www.fight-back.net

Genocide Intervention Network

Founded in October of 2004, the Genocide Intervention Network, or GI-Net, was born of the efforts of two students at Swarthmore College, Mark Hanis and Andrew Sneiderman, and Rwandan Stephanie Nyombayire. The group was incorporated in 2005 and has grown remarkably in a few short years, with representatives across the country. In April 2005, they held the "100 Days of Action Campaign," to commemorate the 100-day genocide in Rwanda in 2004. The group's student arm, STAND (Students Anti-Genocide Coalition), has 850 chapters at high schools, colleges, and universities across the U.S., with chapters in 25 other countries. Visit Genocide Intervention Network at http://www.genocideintervention.net/

Illuminemos México

On August 30, 2008, at 6 p.m., an estimated 2 million people in 88 cities in Mexico and 6 other countries joined the Iluminemos México march against violence. Founded by América Alemán and Elías Kuri, the group joined online and offline efforts to organize the mass demonstration. Many Mexicans were horrified by the recent kidnapping and brutal murder of 14-year-old Fernando Martí, the son of a businessman, and the protest spurred many to say, "Ya basta"—enough crime, kidnapping, murder, fear, and insecurity. Visit Iluminemos México at http://www.iluminemosmexico.org.mx/

Invisible Children

In 2003, three young men from California traveled to northern Uganda to cover the crisis in Darfur. Plans changed when they discovered a humanitarian crisis involving the children of northern Uganda, who walked every day for miles to escape being kidnapped and forced into combat by the Lord's Resistance Army. Armed with a video camera, they recorded the atrocities and released Invisible Children: The Rough Cut in 2004, first showing it to friends and family; then to hundreds of thousands of students at colleges and universities across the country. They used existing student organizations and online social networking to organize two nationwide sleep-ins that mobilized more than 150,000 young people. Focused on the well being of children in the region, the now well-established NGO has many programs, including the Bracelet Campaign, the Schools for Schools Program, and the Visible Child Scholarship Program. Visit Invisible Children at http://www.invisiblechildren.com/home.php

No Más Chávez

Modeled after the No Más FARC movement, this movement originated on Facebook and in Venezuela and Colombia to oppose Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's oppression of his people. The Facebook group numbers almost 80,000, and the leadership organized protests on April 11, 2008, that mobilized 2,000 people in 25 cities around the world. Visit No Más Chávez at http://www.libertadydemocracia.com/

One Million People Against Crime in South Africa

To address crime in South Africa, Herman Lochner, a proponent of the power of online activism through social networking, founded a Facebook group. The trilingual group has steadily grown to more than 100,000 members since its founding in October 2007. Visit One Million People against Crime in South Africa at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6340297802

One Million Voices Against the FARC

Un Millón De Voces Contra Las FARC is the Facebook group that made news around the world. Founder Oscar Morales created the group on January 4, 2008, and called for a massive march one month later on February 4. In that short space of time, the group gained almost half a million members online, and 12 million people--primarily organized through social networking--hit the streets to protest the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia). The No Más FARC rallies are considered to be one of the largest and most remarkable demonstrations ever organized, both in the history of Colombia and worldwide, mobilizing people in over 200 cities in over 40 different countries. The rallies are also considered the largest protest ever against a terrorist organization. Visit One Million Voices Against the FARC at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6684734468

The People's March Against Knife Crime

The People's March Against Knife Crime was formed in July of 2008 to push back against increasing violent crime in Britain. Gemma Alway and Sharon Singh decided that something had to be done, and they organized a mass demonstration in London on September 20, 2008. The march gained the attention of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, other politicians, and the media. So far this year, there have been 21 teenagers murdered in London alone, and the group has organized multiple vigils for the victims as well as antiviolence protests. Visit The People's March Against Knife Crime at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=38285976512

Raíces de Esperanza

Raíces de Esperanza, Inc., is a non-profit, non-partisan group sponsoring academic and cultural initiatives focused on youth development in promoting a pluralistic and democratic Cuban society. Our strategy has been to (a) build and unite a student network of campus groups, (b) sponsor academic conferences for Cuban-American youth, (c) mobilize youth abroad in solidarity, and (d) reach out to our counterparts on the Island. We have a committed volunteer core that works on all levels. Visit Raíces de Esperanza at http://www.raicesdeesperanza.org/

Saudi Women Petitioning the Government for Driving Rights

Founded by one of the daughters of the famous driving protest of the 1990s, Saudi Women Petitioning the Government for Driving Rights is an online movement designed to collect signatures that can eventually be presented to the King of Saudi Arabia for women's right to drive. The movement has led to similar efforts both in online social networks and video.

Save Darfur Coalition

Founded in 2004, the Save Darfur Coalition represents the collective efforts of 180 religious, humanitarian, and political organizations dedicated to addressing the crisis in Darfur. While multiple Facebook groups related to the crisis in Darfur have been created, the Save Darfur Coalition has been a central point in the drawing them under an umbrella of existing organizations and NGOs whose focus is working in Sudan. Save Darfur's Facebook Cause online counts more than 1 million members--one of the largest online networks anywhere. Visit the Save Darfur Coalition at http://www.savedarfur.org/

To Write Love on Her Arms

To Write Love on Her Arms began in Orlando, Florida, in February 2006 as a story on MySpace--the true story of a young woman who was denied entry into a drug-treatment center and spent five days with a group of friends who cared for her. The story itself, written by Jamie Tworkowski, was a look at those five days, and TWLOHA T-shirts were printed, distributed to bands, and initially sold as a way to pay for the friend's treatment. Today, To Write Love on Her Arms is a nonprofit movement dedicated to giving hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, and inspire--and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery. Since 2006, the group has responded to 80,000 messages from people in 40 different countries. TWLOHA has the largest online audience of any nonprofit on both MySpace and Facebook, and was recently featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Visit To Write Love on Her Arms at http://www.twloha.com/

Genç Siviller- Young Civilians

Young Civilians, or Genç Siviller, was founded in Turkey in 2006. More than 2 million Turks are members of Facebook, a sign of the country's active, proud, and thriving online youth culture. Young Civilians began online in 2006 and quickly grew into multiple offline causes supporting democracy in Turkey. Most recently, the group was part of the successful campaign that pressed Turkish President Abdullah Gul to accept Armenian President Serj Sarkisyan's invitation to attend the World Cup preliminaries in Yerivan, Armenia. Young Civilians is a diverse group, encompassing both secular and religious members as well as a variety of political affiliations (liberals, leftists, feminists, environmentalists, democrats) and a wide array of ethnic and religious backgrounds (Turks, Kurds, Muslims, Jews, Armenians, Allawites). Thee have all drawn together because of their passionate belief in democracy. Opposing military intervention in Turkish politics, Young Civilians aims to establish a liberal democracy in Turkey based on rights and liberties, rule of law, tolerance, and justice. The political stance of Young Civilians cannot be pigeonholed into a single ideology; instead, Young Civilians follows its conscience. The group’s most important "weapon" is humor and popular culture, which is the reason Young Civilians is one of the most popular and prominent youth groups in Turkey. Visit the Young Civilians at http://www.gencsiviller.net/

Youth for Tolerance

Youth for Tolerance, an NGO based in Lebanon, promotes a culture of tolerance that will result in respect, acceptance, and appreciation of religious and political diversity in Lebanon. Its presence on Facebook is small but extraordinarily vibrant, managing to function and be effective in an environment filled with sectarian and political tensions. Using Facebook as an organizing platform, Youth for Tolerance has launched games and an ad campaign airing on local TV stations to raise awareness against violence and blind allegiance. It has also distributed booklets to students on polarized campuses. Visit Youth for Tolerance at http://youthfortolerance.org/