Global Online Giving Marketplaces event, Berlin

“Our purpose is to share knowledge, connect people and drive social justice maximising human potential and care in the world” Global Online Giving Marketplaces, 6 November 2009

U2 rocked the streets of Berlin Thursday 5 November - it seemed the perfect backdrop to this years Online Giving Marketplaces event which for the first time is being hosted by betterplace.org in Europe.

The goal of this years meeting was to gather the world’s leading online giving players, to seek some level of consolidation, under the assumption that we are stronger and more likely to achieve our common purpose as a group than as individual platforms.

The question is how?

The meeting really kicked off on Thursday 5 November with a panel discussion. Hartmut Kozok, managing director of Tribal DDB spoke of the importance to bring the needs of users closer, thereby making it easier to engage them. Sachar Kriwoj, Head of PR at Scoyo, spoke about the power of the individual to be a change maker.

Vikki Chowney, who represents the digital generation, shared her passion for “all things digital” and how technology can be used to mobilise social change.

Daniel Grozinger demonstrated how pennergame.de (an online game where the player is a homeless person) has managed to balance the fine line between provocation and effective social awareness.

And Reinier Evers, founder of trendwatching.com left us with the thought: Generation G - “ Giving is the new taking, sharing is the new giving”, and

Neil Crofts then took over the meeting as facilitator of the conference, embarking the group on a journey of purpose, vision and choices. Our outcome was a clear desire to take the GOGM to a greater more global level of cooperation, with the most concrete goal to organise a Global Action Day that can be launched in each of our markets.

It is work in progress, and I am sure a lot can be learned from organisations such as avaaz.org on mobilizing people to act globally.

This weekend marks the 20th Anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall - as a group we are persistently hacking away at the next wall to fall - poverty!