Author: Nick Booth

From paint balling to leadership – a new podcast on the Grassroots Channel

TYGA is a youth group in Balsall Heath in Birmingham which began with fun and conversation and yet in just over a year has raised thousands for charity through a 500 mile bike ride, travelled to Pakistan to help with earthquake relief and started a regular street clean-up in their own neighbourhood.

Sue Beardsmore talks to Kamran Fazil about the next steps for TYGA – a structured leadership programme for young people.

We also want to wish 120 students from Queensbridge School good luck this week with their day on the streets of Balsall Heath in Birmingham, meeting different neighbours and helping clean up the neighbourhood. It’s all part of an extension of their citizenship teaching in collaboration with the Balsall Heath Forum.

Links

TYGA The Young Generation’s Association (dead link)

Birmingham Community Empowerment Network (supports the podcast) (dead link)

Written pdf giving more information and contact details for TYGA (dead link)

Web 2.0 or Why My Head Hurts


The possibilities of building relationships across the internet can leave us a little agog. We’re amazed for good reasons: common sense tells us that we can’t cope with limitless information or relationships. We have this image of other superhumans managing hundreds of fruitful relationships in dozens of countries, which is of course a myth. In my opinion those who heed common sense may well find the most productive ways to exploit the potential of web 2.0

You can only have so many friends.

Research from the early 1990’s found a correlation between the size of a human neocortex and how many others we can succesfully relate to. Evolutionary Psychologist Professor Robin Dunbar of Liverpool University and others predicted that human’s would be able to ‘maintain’ about 150 acquaintances – and this figure matched research on the size of neolithic villages (‘primitive’ comunities tend to split once they reach a figure of 150 members) and more modern personal networks.

We can recognise far more people than that – but the reality is that our brains only have the capacity to manage a limited number of relationships – each of various qualities.

This has literally mind-bending implications for people working in an apparently more connected world and for how non-profits might use web 2.0 technologies…..

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Until My Dying Day – Nocks’ Brickworks in Erdington – a new podcast on the Grassroots Channel

Mike Overton has fought for years to prevent developers building homes on an old waste tip and clap pit in Erdington in Birmingham, UK. He talks to Emma Lewis of b:cen about the site and why protecting it matters so much to him. Also in the programme a thanks to listeners in Belgrade and Birmingham who mentioned our programmes on their blogs and more information of the Podminions, a podcast channel run by pupils at Kings Norton Boys School.

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Win Win – Nike +, iPod and you. (Oh and win again)

Josh Hart at mademedia (a Birmingham based web agency) alerted me to a potent combination of community, marketing and technology.

Josh is exercising more because of a heady cocktail of connections. Two brands – Nike and Apple; two desirable products – the right running shoes and the right mp3 player; the internet and music al tastes; personal achievement and support for celebrity sponsored charities.

Here’s how it works…

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