Put your hands together for web 2 for development!

The web2fordev conference finished with a simple model to remind ourselves of the main lessons raised during the Rome meeting.

Looking for a human metaphor to capture the key messages, we started by counting on our fingers.

In our left hand:

• a thumb for blogs and vlogs, to publish our content in words, videos or images;
• a second finger of wikis and social network tools, to jointly develop ideas and exchange;
• a third finger of tags, to order our thoughts;
• a fourth finger of feeds to spread the word to other sites and across the net;
• and a last finger of mash-ups, to bring a view of the web together for ourselves and others
• (listen to Pete Cranston).

Alone, single-handed, these applications and tools are not enough for development. We also need to combine them with our right hand:

• the thumb to look at the people we use the tools with and for - considering their specific needs and requirements;
• the second finger for access issues, such as connectivity and language;
• the third is for participation, considering motivations and reasons for engagement;
• the fourth deals with content issues, such as style, media and type;
• the final finger makes it all worthwhile, it considers change, progress and innovation.

the web2fordev hands, photo by Alec Singh

So let's put our hands together for web2 for development !

But beware! Different cultures use hands to communicate in different ways: We greet in different ways, shaking hands, holding hands, or by putting hands together in a 'wai'; we attract attention with our hands and we wave our goodbye's. There are many ways we can put web 2 together with development ... but remember that some hand gestures and fingers raised may offend ...

Read related stories.

See also relevant articles from the following sources:

- web2fordevblog
- ICTlogy
- crisscrossed blog