Change It ’07 (http://www.changeit07.org) is a project of Greenpeace and Seventh Generation designed to train and empower dedicated students to become the next generation of leaders in the global movement for environmental change.
Change It invited EchoDitto to create and execute a top-notch online strategy for its 2007 campaign. Our mission: use the internet and new media to dramatically increase the program’s reach and overall participation from previous years.
EchoDitto worked with the Change It team to develop a dynamic, interactive website and online strategy that rapidly grew a community of more than 1,200 Change It applicants as well as like-minded individual—three times the number of applications to the 2006 training. The voting system and online strategy also attracted 48,000 voters, most of whom had never been exposed to the Change It program.
The website we developed enabled visitors to engage in meaningful dialogue and online activity, before, during, and after the project’s week-long training. Each student created a public profile page as part of the new online application process, and then the public was charged with the challenge of selecting 10 of the 200 total participants through online voting. This strategy elevated resonance by connecting its essence with an aligned audience.
We also built online momentum and word-of-mouth buzz around Change It to raise the profile of Change It ’07 and its partners through outreach to appropriate list-serves and groups, enabling "tell a friend" technology on the website, and informing applicants as to how they could promote their application to receive votes. By utilizing and encouraging story telling and change-making, the site became a destination and a tool for real change while creating buzz and brand awareness for Change It and its partners.