<ned> Board Meeting and all were welcome to participate. In attendance: Evvy, Meron, Jackie, Sam Barlow (who agreed to take notes), Ellie Parks, Heather Martin-Mcnab, and myself. 2 (or so) great hours on a sunny Sunday afternoon. It was a great group too, in that Sam and Heather are rare visitors to Ned, and Ellie is very unfamiliar with o/net, Ned or the entire 3.5 year history...so it was a great balance of people. I'll start with the list of the initial nine things, then some random notes I took, and an action list of sorts.

1. Better World Media Network

I'm working with Josh Friedman and we have formed a for-profit LLC business called Better World Media Network. We are working with "better world" oriented web sites and selling advertising/sponsorships space on their web sites to advertisers and ad agencies. 10% of monthly gross sales go directly into microfinance via Ned Foundation (being formed) and 55% of Ned revenue will be distributed back through the Ned community people/projects. Online advertising is going from 20 billion dollars this year to over 60 billion dollars a year over the next 4-5 years. One of the reasons I wanted to get ned.com to one million pageviews monthly is to provide regular revenue stream to favorite Ned community projects. One million pageviews at a $35CPM (cost per thousand) is $35,000 in monthly revenue. I strongly suspect BWMN will do over a million dollars in revenue in 2009, though not sure how Ned will factor into that (of course I could be off my nut regarding the numbers...but I gotta hunch)...the ad agency grew to over 7 million annual revenue in five years.

2. Ned Microfinance (MFI, workshops, schools, Alpha/biz/home party, biz/sales/marketing training) Interest: 1/4 admin, 1/4 more loan principal, 1/4 community projects, 1/4 principal/interest payback

Since April and May I've given 9 microfinance presentations to high schools in the Portland area. 15 minute talk, 15 minute video, 15 minute Q/A. Working with one student, and perhaps more to find ways to do other presentations to various businesses and organizations in the Portland area spreading the word about microfinance. There are some potential sponsorship and home party type potentials for revenue here. Would like to explore this further in the ned.com community and what that might look like.

3. Ned Coop-ish Thingamajig (test 7/1/08 thru 12/31/08)

Ned needs some things done and needs to pay people to do some of those things. It needs graphic design work and some technology work to build out some new features on the site. Also noodled up some interesting ideas as to smaller scale projects and small work for hire jobs that could be done in emerging markets as well. The long at short of it is, Ned is going to test this idea out over a six (6) month timeframe (7/1/08 thru 12/31/08) and we'll evaluate it at the end of that time. Geographically created pay rates are all based on very conservative, very small per diems in any event. Ned will commit up to $18,000 USD in total capital during this six month evaluation timeframe.

So one technical person and one graphic designer will be hired and paid an initial monthly per diem rate of $250 USD each. If someone has solid experience in international grant writing, there would be consideration that for a position as well. In addition to that will look to hire for some very part time emerging market positions that will pay out at a rate of $25 USD per month. Positions will include; Ned staff photographers (we'll provide digital cameras, and photographers will be encouraged to find other ways to earn income with their cameras), Free Ned training sessions offered for no charge to local ngo/npo staff members (with associated generous commission rates (like 100%) if organizations purchase Ned private group access), other small part-time, flexible hours job ideas as well. Building and hosting small NGO web sites free or at very low cost. Peace Tiles coordinators? Open to ideas.

Very decentralized "staffing" with self reporting functions that are easy to see the results of and present back to the community online.

Now, if during the July to December test additional revenue comes in past the commitment I've already made, the $250 per month staff will go to $500 and the $25 per month staff will go to $50, and a new level of staff will be hired at the initial $250/$25 levels (all still part of the test that will be evaluated during the final month of December).

4. Ned Better World Teams

Giving away money online to make good things happen has been interesting over the last four years, and in the community sense of giving away money...many of us share a very unique experience within the o/net community. Now when the Steve Case Foundation Parade Magazine America's Giving Challenge happened, it was thrilled that Atlas Service Corps and Scott Beale was on the receiving side of $50,000 USD. But, like the Razoo speed granting effect, I was still left feeling like the "biggest network" will and always does win...so went about noodling up what something very different could look like. Something without the biggest network always wins. Something without oodles and oodles of rules and complication. Fewest rules possible, failure (multiple failures) is an acceptable outcome. Succeed small, fail small, learn and redo. Wash, rinse, repeat. Not afraid to fail small and often. Big things can still happen...but let's all learn loads together without fear of failure or need of a net (and over planning/worrying). Get to the action. The result. Making good things happen. Let people on the ground decide what those good things that happen indeed are. So, when a Nedsters Makes the World A Better Place project is announced, it would look something like this.

1. At the time of this announcement the team leader must be an existing Ned member.
2. Taking a leadership role, anyone who wants to be a team leader recruits 5 new members/friends to Ned to be on your Make a Better World team (each team will have a leader, and 5 new members who are friends/associates/acquaintances).
3. The first 10 teams to self organize become the official teams by signing up in a workspace at Ned.
4. Each team spends 7-14 days talking about exactly what they will do to make the world a better place, what results will they expect, who on the team will be responsible for what, and how will they measure their efforts, and each team will be sent via Moneygram $250 USD to make the world a better place.
5. A given timeframe will pass, and groups will hopefully report during their efforts on their better world team progress. A final very, very brief report of written results will be completed (50-100 words) and the Ned community as a whole will vote...based on their favorite result/outcome.

Well, you get the idea...sharpening feedback and ideas always welcome. Would like to get this going in early July as well.

5. Ghana/Homowo/Ned - library, internet café, business incubator/innovation center

Been working with Susan and Obo Addy and Homowo to build a facility in Accra, Ghana ... and the first step in the process would be to tour the country with 10-16 people from Portland, Oregon during the first two weeks of November this year. 8 have committed so far, and we need a total of 10 to commit to make this a certain thing.

6. Ned Goals (inside people/orgs and outside orgs Intel/Nike)

Aside from the Ned goals in my signature file, I don't have any other personal goals written, other than to help other people and organizations use Ned to help meet their goals. Outside organizations such as Intel and Nike have expressed interest in working with Ned, and are very interested in seeing how ideas 1-4 from above play out over the next few weeks and months. My goal is to make Ned a place that offers real help to real people, projects and organizations so they reach their goals.

Jackie and Meron both spoke very passionately and wonderfully about Ned, and more to the point...the Ned community of people and what we all mean to one another, our mutual support, caring and helping out one another. On many levels, given what we’ve all been thru, we have all started out in a very unique situation and have been thru some very challenging thing together...and know we can all deal with hardships, and still maintain the ability to move ahead in a positive way. Special people all around. Respectful. Caring. Wonderful.

7. Ned Better World Island

Touched on this briefly. Jackie and Mark will need to connect and do something meaningful and not too overly complex. We'll keep in simple, yet with the ability to scale and bring in some additional revenue for Ned projects.

8. The Giving Project

Since the PayPal problems happened (now fixed), all Giving Project monthly payments were permanently stopped. Before Niny left town, she just said to apply her payments towards web site hosting. I think some members would be interested in getting payments going again, but perhaps with certain projects or types of projects to choose from.

9. Start-up package for <Ned> NameYourLocation

This was simply too late in the day to delve into, what with all the other things we talked about. Once there are some revenue generating models in place, I'll be much more comfortable exploring what a startup package might look like.

Okay, the notes above were scratched out...here things get truly scattershot out.

Ellie said something that resonated, well quite a few things...but that Ned is not a coop, but a collective.

Ned is friendly, but how do people dive in?

Expectation, hook, draw.

Ubuntu Management book was suggested as a good read

For social profit. We are for social profit. Profit for social good.

Real people doing real things to try to make a better world.

We need an environment of welcoming and connecting people to others.

Ask newcomers to post a comment or share something about themselves.

Five Minute Action Network, simple things people can do in five minutes one day to make the world a better place.

Problem, solution, action.

Power over, power to, power with, power within

Some people are entrepreneurs, some looking for work, some looking for sponsors, some looking to share wisdom.

On a Ned.com home page it would be good to have Ned News. More targeted Ned stories.

People connect to stories (and ideas), we really need to find a place where members can really get into sharing stories.

Would live chat on Ned be good or bad?

On the Ned.com home page it could be interesting to offer small widget type things for LiA, Partners for Others, Peace Tiles, The Emancipation Network, that would offer people something small to purchase, something small to give/donate (ala mini-action network), and some small action to take...so visitors choose from some things in which immediately and really make the world a better place.

Ned could be good to offer some users (many users?) ned.com email addresses.

Manzini is the name of the Children's Hospital in Swaziland that Jackie is going to be on the board of.

Volunteer Sector Knowledge Network (read, ask, share) http://www.vskn.ca/

People are asked to do one of four things: 1. collaborate, 2. give, 3. do, or 4. learn/share

Change Everything powered by Vancity http://www.changeeverything.ca/

UVIC African Partnership Network http://ring.uvic.ca/08mar06/afri can-partnership.html

Ellie shared a couple decision making techniques one of which is called "Fist-of-Five" or "Fist-of-Five". In this method each member of the group can hold up a fist to indicate blocking consensus, one finger to suggest changes, two fingers to discuss minor issues, three fingers to indicate willingness to let issue pass without further discussion, four fingers to affirm the decision as a good idea, and five fingers to volunteer to take a lead in implementing the decision

The other decision making technique is called dotmocracy. 1. An issue is presented with questions. 2. Discuss potential solutions. 3. Post proposals. 4. Fill dots to record opinions. Write comments. 5. Formulate a common solution.

Listening to Jackie, Meron and Evvy talk about how important o/net/Ned was and is in their lives as a supportive community and group of friends was a very special time during the discussion. I didn't take notes but just rather listened and took it in and Heather, Ellie and Sam took in their words. Truly people that give so much also get so much. Not just the words but the true connection only people can have with one another. People connecting. Good people. Making great things happen. Personal transformation and incredible individual commitment. Very special people indeed.

End of the Board Meeting Action List of Sorts

1. Partners for Others web site to be designed and built/hosted inside of a Ned workspace.
2. Change age restriction on site from 21 to 15 so high school students can participate.
3. Restart brief 8:30AM PT Friday AM goal conference calls (on Skype)
4. Help new members connect
5. Simply need to be more action based
6. Need to encourage more and small Ned FTF meetings worldwide

Jackie. Meron. Evvy. Please by all means help plug in the many holes that I left in this message.

Please feel free to talk about anything here.

Questions.

Ideas.

Comments.

You name it.