Digital Capital Week

This year is becoming a year of firsts for technology, media and science in the Nation’s Capital.  Much like DCWeek’s inaugural convention for techies & creatives, for the first time this October, over 400 of the nation’s leading science, engineering and academic organizations will descend on the National Mall to present the First Annual USA Science & Engineering Festival.

Amongst the numerous hands-on science exhibits, workshops, and performances The Kavli Foundation is looking to showcase student videos that will be broadcast during the festivities on the National Mall.   The K-12 Kavli Science Video Contest will award cash prizes to the student’s school or youth organization, with the winner receiving electronics and software gift certificate and a trip to Washington DC or a VIP Discovery Channel “Mythbusters” event.

The contest encourages students to create imaginative, clever and entertaining youth-driven media that shares their love of science, be it engineering, robotics, oceanography, astronomy, 3D modeling with other youths.  Describe your favorite subject matter, a winning science fair project or showcase a new invention, just be creative!
Click here for more information, the deadline is August 31.  Work on your own, team up with a friend and create something that the entire Mall will see this October.  Dozens of videos have already been submitted; click below to take a peek at two of them!

http://www.scivee.tv/node/18605

http://www.scivee.tv/node/18719

A 5K+ person festival does not happen overnight and certainly doesn’t happen without the help of many, many people. We’ve highlighted a few of our volunteers in the past. Today I want to highlight a few of the core team members who may not have been in the limelight as much as Frank, Peter and myself.

Audrey Matthias is a strategist at iSL, with a level head and cool demeaner. From day one, Audrey helped in every aspect of this endeavor. From helping us manage communications with hundreds of people, researching to find great speakers, to managing content schedules, website updates, printing needs, shopping lists and more.  No matter how many days into the planning or festival we went, you could recognize Audrey by her fresh, sunny smile and attitude day in and out.

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DJ Saul is also a strategist at iSL, with a quick sense of humor and determination that helped in pretty much every situation. Wanting to help make this an amazing event, DJ quickly reached out to all of his industry contacts to help with speakers, sponsors and more. From developing original content plans to pulling together the Apps4Ben contest, DJ was completely focused on making sure we followed through on every count.

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Joe Corbett lead from an operations perspective. From behind the scenes, he made sure we had all the right equipment in place and that all of our technology including monitors, mics, projectors, computers, Internet connections, printers and more were working each and every day. Technology is never without glitches but Joe handled them all in stride and was never more than a walk-talkie second away.

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Zach Goodwin made sure that Digital Capital Week looked gooooood. From the online logos and site treatment to spray painting logos on trash cans for the opening party, Zach helped us create a brand that people could recognize and remember.

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Zvi Band is our geek in shining armor! Zvi is a developer who not only launched this digitalcapitalweek.org site, but also lead projects and was a finalist in the Apps4Ben contest. When online emergencies arose, it was Zvi and his easy-going demeanor to the rescue!

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Chris Lawson joined us a bit later in the planning, but his sheer desire to be part of this effort cannot go unrecognized. Chris had a big task – to organize a group of volunteers to help with everything from daily operations (set-up, registration, breakdown, etc) to daily blogging and documenting. He did so with vigor (and many late nights!) and helped us find Dot Johnson…

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Dot Johnson became our daily content editor, leading a core group of bloggers and documentarians to cover as many of the DCWEEK events as possible. This was a round-the-clock job and Dot has continued to help shape the site and challenge us to think beyond DCWEEK.

Both Chris and Dot helped far beyond what they originally signed up for!

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Many, many thanks to all of you for not only your contributions, but your belief in this event, positive attitudes and desire to create something amazing for everyone.

Photos courtesy of Chris Heuer and Jen Consalvo.

For all those who heard it, the buzz surrounding Digital Capital Week was deafening. There’s huge amount of data we’ve collected and it’s summarized here:

DCWEEK 2010 Final Metrics

This would not have been made possible with out the generosity of our sponsors!

Opening Party Beer Sponsored by:

Custom Sticker Printing by

Posters and Flyer Printing by

If you missed DC Week’s 140 Conference on Thursday here’s what you missed #140 style:

acarvin: Jonathan Coffmann: @PBS soc media strategy has always been about engagement rather than amassing followers.

acarvin: “You’re a professional if you’re paid. You’re a journalist if the crowd decides as such.” @darthcheeta at #140conf #dcweek

weave says you don’t need a social media strategy. You need an engagement strategy. Exactly.

doctorjeff -”#Edchat inspired me to think about education reform” #140conf

dyhatchett #socialmedia resources for educators #edchatand blogontheuniverse.org/dc140 #140conf #dcweek

8of12 Education institutions that block social media participation force students to hide their activity, miss chances to teach. #dc #140conf

melissapierbce just sang ‘twitter girl.’ “we are living in a twitter world, and I am a twitter girl.”#toocute #140conf #dcweek

spromisel check out http://lifeinperpetualbeta.com/ from @melissapierce #140conf #dcweek

VzFriend Let negative comments stand on SM platforms, b/c your advocates/community speak up for you – so true!#140conf #DCweek

weave says you don’t need a social media strategy. You need an engagement strategy. Exactly.

JasonPeck Love going to events like #140conf. Always reminded how powerful soc media is and how people are using it to improve the world.

PrestonCNN Had a blast on the DC media panel with @andreaitis @jimbradysp @darthcheeta at @jeffpulver#140conf. The star? The microphone!

Weave He suggests blending traditional media with social e.g. Knorr | “Salty”http://youtu.be/OekR7Ocu86M #140Conf DC

msrasberryinc DDB (@weave) creates traditional ads, then utilizes social platforms to expand on the message.#140conf #dcweek

Du4 @troopswap describes an AWESOME desired endstate for in-theater soldier commo & collaboration. Listen up. @usarmy. #140conf #dcweek

HardcoreCanada Great speaker at #140conf pretty much the Captain America of Social Media. Loving this presentation. #DCWEEK #SoAmerican

dyhatchett “Nurture and culture your community on Twitter.” Via @stevenfisher Good words to live by. Don’t manage them. #140conf #dcweek

IdeaMarketect [news distribution is FLUID now] RT @lmikles: Natl and local PBS stations use each other’s social to gather and amplify news #140conf

daniellericks This is cracking meRT @bdresher: Next panel Brand of Love with @eFlirtExpert and @URwingman#140conf #dcweek

acarvin Jonathan Coffmann: @PBS soc media strategy has always been about engagement rather than amassing followers. #dcweek #140conf

johnYSchen I wonder if dominos will deliver to #140conf

shashib: I am going to say there is no social media anymore it’s human connections and conversation tools #140conf

dorthyonthehill Love the term ‘brand pilot’ instead of mngr, way more fun #140conf #dcweek

Debbas: “We are making our own biography by tweeting. This your legacy”@jeffpulver #140conf

TheSingleFilez: Wow. Twitter can do that? How lovely! RT @eFlirtExpert Just spoke at #140conf & @URwingman shared that we met & fell in love on Twitter.

Du4: Reason I dig #140conf: 3 people called me “Mr Awesome” today.#loveyoulongtime #stayclassy #muatbeawesome

Du4: This is such a more informative, engaging & AWESOME conf than #csm10.#140conf
Thanks to Glenn Luther for this post, who is also fun to follow.

TogoRun’s June 15^th event “Public Health: What’s Digital Got to Do With It?” moderated by Dr. Val Jones (@drval) attracted a capacity crowd at the Pew Research Center and sparked a vibrant discussion on Twitter of, among other things, how health institutions are using social media and how digital innovation is improving public health.

Susannah Fox

Panelists and self-proclaimed “internet geologist” Susannah Fox (@SusannahFox) of the Pew Internet and American Life Project discussed examples of  social media being used for quick dissemination of time-sensitive information in the public health sphere including the FDA and CDC’s use of blogs, SMS, podcasts, video and tweets to alert consumers – especially the powerful “mommy blogger” cohort – of Salmonella-tainted peanut butter last fall. She also gave the audience a preview of new research in the works designed to discover what happens when a person receives a life changing diagnosis and uses the social media resources available to them – and where subsequent conversations happen both on and offline.

Maya Linson

Presenter Maya Linson (@mlinson, @NAPH1981) appeared on behalf of the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems, which represents the nation’s safety net hospitals and health systems – those that care for patients regardless of ability to pay. She shared examples of NAPH members’ use of social media as a practical resource to enhance patient experience, handle emergencies and conduct community outreach and education. “Social media gives patients a voice,” said Maya, citing the example of one Ohio State University Medical Center employee (@OSUMC) who intercepted irritated Twitter posts from a patient unhappy with his long wait to see his physician. Just by responding and following up, the OSUMC employee’s actions turned the patient’s posts from negative to neutral to advocacy, when the patient went on to re-post the hospital’s public health alerts on Twitter.

Erin Enke

TogoRun digital strategist Erin Enke ((@TogoRun) reminded the audience that social media can affect people’s health behaviors and even save lives, which she demonstrated through a TogoRun case study example of a disease awareness campaign for Hepatitis B in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Learn more here.

While the panelists discussed the value of social media, many in the audience, mostly representing government programs, nonprofits and members of the health community, were practicing it by engaging in a parallel discussion via Twitter using the hashtag #digitalhealth. The conversation continues and we encourage you to join in.

For a fuller account and to watch the full video of the event, click here!

A series of broad lessons were provided by the panelists on the District 5 panel of creatives last Saturday. Jim Darling (freelance designer and photographer), Philippa Hughes (founder of Pink Line Project), Sventlana Legetic (founder of Brightest Young Things), Valli Revindran (Creative Director, PBS and co-founder of DC Design Babes), and Jeff Wong (Creative Director at Clearspring and AddThis) all have fascinating careers, but their stories and the lessons we can draw from them are what really make them unique, and provide valuable lessons for aspiring creatives, designers, and entrepreneurs.

It’s Hard Work
All the panelists emphasized this one: this job isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s not an easy one, and you shouldn’t expect it to be. According to Philippa Hughes, she works longer hours now than she did working at a law firm, but its a different kind of work–her job now is a lot more fun. Svetlana Legetic talked about how Brightest Young Things grew out of nothing more than a generic blogspot blog (and it’s still up), but with some hard work, passion, and great connections, grew into the powerhouse DC blog that it is today. Speaking of connections, Jim Darling has used his to make freelancing a realistic endeavor, capitalizing on his connections for paying opportunities and more exposure.

Be Realistic
It’s a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling thinking that “you can do anything you put your mind to” and “nothing is more rewarding than expressing your creative passion,” but a certain dose of reality needs to be applied there, too. There’s no doubt everyone has plenty of creative potential, but finding the right balance between inspiration and reality is essential to making that sustainable. Every single one of the panelists hit on this point–you have to have a business, too, if you want to be a creative professional. Like it or not, money is a hard fact of life, and just “expressing your creative passion” won’t necessarily pay the bills.

If Something Scares You, Do It Anyway
That was the quote of the afternoon, thanks to Jim Darling. He hit the nail on the head, and each of the panelists agreed–breaking out of your comfort zone is the only way to really break out as a creative professional. Do those things that are scary. Go to those intimidating events. Thinking about skipping an early morning photo walk? Go to it anyway, sometimes those can be the most rewarding experiences. And well, breaking away from normal routine is kind of what DC Week is all about.

Thanks to Alex Priest for the write up!