Peace Initiative Uses The Ushahidi Platform: Building Bridges

Juliana Rotich
Apr 13, 2010

Butterfly Works and Media Focus on Africa are two organizations that are not new to Ushahidi. They tested our Alpha version in 2008 and did the Peace Heroes Project, which you can read about in our archive and download a use case on our wiki. Both organizations and its partners have embarked on a new initiative called Building Bridges. It uses the Ushahidi mapping platform, plus a component developed to work with the popular content management system Joomla. They will share this component with the greater Ushahidi community in the near future. The campaign website provides various ways of linking individuals and organizations. The mapping tool gives an overview of Registered Peace Building Activities throughout the country.The search functionality includes selection on location, fields of expertise and type of activity. Through ‘Yellow Pages’ one can find the contact details of professional operating organizations for information or assistance.

Building Bridges Initiative

The aim of Building Bridges is to raise awareness and reward citizens involved in peacemaking and to encourage Kenyans to start new peace building initiatives. The initiative launched on April 2, 2010. Building Bridges will recognize and reward peacemakers and peace projects across Kenya as a way of strengthening the peace building capacity of Kenyan citizens. Kenya needs peace to prosper and everyone has a role to play. The campaign supports people from all backgrounds to make a change. Building Bridges, in partnership with Media Focus on Africa Foundation and Butterfly Works, is raising awareness and support for the winning initiatives and individuals through an interactive online platform http://buildingbridges.co.ke. The campaign will run for three months and the winning individuals and organizations will receive cash prizes. Building Bridges is open to all Kenyans engaged in peace building and peacemaking activities, including organizing peace gatherings, community discussions, creative and sportive activities or even holding festivities and doing pro-bono work to ensure peace in areas. Building Bridges is putting them all on the map and rewarding the most promising projects. Individuals stand to win Ksh. 50,000/= and organizations can win Ksh. 100,000/= to Ksh. 150,000/= to support their peace building cause. As always, there are many ways to submit information (a hallmark of Ushahidi) • Send an SMS to short code 5447 (on Safaricom and Zain, no extra cost) • E-mail: act@buildingbridges.co.ke • On the web: www.buildingbridges.co.ke • Or via Mail: P.O. Box 660-00606, Nairobi, Kenya Prizes All registered peace initiatives will be recognized and have their efforts promoted on our online mapping platform. In addition, a jury will select the winners of our cash prizes. Building Bridges offers three cash prize awards: • 1 Individual will win Ksh. 50,000/= of which half in cash and half in goods and services for the peace activities • 1 Community Based Organization will win Ksh. 100,000/= to be used by the organization for peace activities • 1 Civil Society Organization will win Ksh. 150,000/= to be used by the organization for peace activities The results of the competition will be publicized through an advert in The Standard newspaper, and winners will receive their prizes during a prize-giving event in Nairobi.