Our User-Powered Library Reaches 1000 Resources

You may have seen

Our Library recently passed (June 2014) 1000 user-added resources.

Chab Dai first started dreaming up this counter-human trafficking resource platform back in 2012 and it's been amazing to see it go so quickly and come to full fruition. (It's been open just 6 months now.) Below is the current breakdown by resource type. 

Engagement

We built it in a way that empowers everyone to contribute — and we think it's making all the difference.

As a registered user, you are able to add resources to the system and up-vote other items that you like and have reviewed. 

The Library democratically displays materials based on the number of up-votes they've received in conjunction with the number of comments. If you search a subject — say "victim rehabilitation" — you're given results in the order that the community has determined through its collective voice. 

For each resource, you're able to push comments up and down as well (through "upvotes"/"downvotes"). Take a look to the right at the amazing discussion generated by one of the resources in the Library (Episode 01 of Freedom Dialogue: the micro-podcast series we recently started). 

If you've written, created or partnered with someone on a resource, you are also able to add it your personal profile as well as your organization's profile.

Try it out by registering here. If you have a Facebook or Twitter account, it only takes one click.

Moving Forward

It's been amazing to see this tool continue to grow and increase its engagement

Be sure to check back anytime you're in need of the latest information on a particular subject.  One of our 919 users are sure to have added something on the subject.

If you're looking for something recently published to read, you might want to take a look through the U.S. 2014 Trafficking in Persons Report which was published just a few weeks ago (June 2014).

In July, we are finishing up the development of a few additional filters. Current filters are: Subject, Type, and Geographic Focus. This month we're adding:

Browse

Recently added

Recently Commented

Most Commented

Most Viewed

Publish Date

Since 2010

Since 2005

Since 2000

Since 1995

Since 1990

Since 1985

Since 1980

Since 1975

Before 1975

Language

Resources in available languages.

If you have suggestions for improvements to the Library, we would love to hear them! Thanks for reading!


Taylor Poe
Freedom Collaborative Manager
Chab Dai Int'l

Talk it Out to Walk it Out

As a person who has studied communications and now works under that same title, I am very aware of the nuances involved with... communicating. That includes verbal and nonverbal cues, as well as the delicate process of conveying information across a variety of media and through diverse cultures. Now, that's not to say I'm any kind of expert in this field because I'm not; I'm just sensitive to the difficulties inherent in good communication. There is a certain level of trust you have to reach with others to feel safe enough to be honest with one another. That's true for any kind of relationship -- romantic, platonic, familial, professional, etc.

When you have a team that works on two different continents, separated by a 14-hour time difference, awareness of and sensitivity to the details of communication becomes even more important. A third of my team works in Cambodia while the rest of us are located in California. That third is crucial to the work we're doing here, and we need them to be effective. It's easy to get sucked into our individual tasks and forget to check in with each other to make sure we're all on the same page, even here in our little offices where we share square footage and sometimes (often) desk space. But we've learned how crucial it is to talk to each other on a regular basis, beyond even the monthly team meetings we schedule out.

I love this quote by George Bernard Shaw: “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” This is one of the truest statements to me. We often assume that other people have the same thoughts, ideas and beliefs as we do, but that's rarely the case. We are all unique individuals and bring varying stories and abilities to the table (see my last post on playing to your strengths), and that's a very positive aspect of being on a team. But it also means we have to talk to each other with that truth in mind, recognizing that others' understanding and expectations are going to be different than yours or mine.

Our team communicates a lot. We have email threads and Google Hangouts going pretty much all the time to ensure those channels stay open. Everyone has the opportunity to be involved in the decisions that affect them, or at the very least to stay "in the loop" with the various aspects of current projects. We're not perfect at it, and there can be a breakdown in communication simply due to the distance element. But we're trying and I like to think we've got a fairly good handle on it. We all recognize the importance of cultivating this skill and we are willing to put in the time to work it out.

So what's my point? It's never going to be easy to communicate. I don't care how awesome you are at relaying your feelings and how in-tune you are with the other person, you're not going to always agree or even understand each other. But you have to keep trying. You have to fight against the difficulties of remote team members, lack of clear tone in emails, opposite skill sets and conflicting goals or priorities to help each other out. Don't assume anybody else thinks the way you do. If you do not understand something, ask about it. Be proactive about creating clarity and refuse to get your feelings hurt due to imperfect communication channels. When you're working with other people (and we all are unless you're the sole human in a robot company, in which case I'm very glad I'm not you because that is terrifying), this is the reality of being effective within those office walls. And, like most things in life, the more you do it the better you'll be at it.

Launching Freedom Collaborative

By Taylor Poe

At 1 am on December 2nd 2013, WE FINISHED IT!

We launched Freedom Collaborative — a web application we've been working on at Chab Dai for the past three + years. It's a project designed to help bring new connectivity to the counter trafficking movement-at-large.

The launch

The feature release that held the most anticipation for me personally was the Freedom Library. I often cringe when I hear statements like this, but I'm going to say it anyway, this resource center is undeniably innovative. I'll let this page convince you of this and will use this blog space to tell you a little bit about its creation.

We started designing this collaborative resource center in 2012 — spending a few months researching the latest paradigms in wiki library models. Our design process was conducted in Cambodia that summer during a two month sprint of furious white-board writing & prototyping.

As for the Library's creation, I want to say a special thanks to Rob Perrett & Joy Anchalee P. Roberts for all of the time, energy and expertise they put into crafting this feature. Rob is an IT professional from Australia who has visited nearly every country in the world; Joy is a metadata expert at the American University of Cairo. While I'm at it, I'd like to to thank our entire advisory board — who has put so much into this project over the years:

As we upload our initial data input of resources over the next few days, our counter-trafficking library system will be set to become the largest of its kind in the world. And our team is pretty excited about this.

Other updates for the launch include the addition of personal profiles and the extension of the Freedom Registry to make it a global platform. Read about these updates here or you can view this PDF format.

We're not stopping in 2014

Below is our project schedule for a few of the major tools we are working on building for the community this year.

And since you've read this far, here's a reward: a premiere sneak peek at one of them. It's a human trafficking news aggregator that pulls in posts across all social media channels which use the hashtag #humantrafficking. We're working on incorporating it fully into the app before publicly announcing it, but go ahead and test it out by using the hashtag on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & Google+.

I hope you will join us in this new and exciting collaborative platform.

TechCamp Comes to Phnom Penh: Bringing the issue of Human Trafficking to the Tech World

By Luke Weatherson

I was very excited to present at Tech Camp Phnom Penh as it was the first time Freedom Registry Cambodia was to be presented to a broad range of stakeholders. I was hoping to meet with a few key stakeholders to further discuss the project, garner some feedback and maybe a little buzz.

#TechCampGlobal are global events that organize stakeholders to develop innovative strategies and create tools using technology. These particular TechCamp’s focus is to be a platform to harness technology to fight the battle against human trafficking.  I couldn’t ask for a more perfect venue introduce Freedom Registry to stakeholders.

Tech Camp format was to connect influential NGOs with digital experts in areas such as mapping, mobile, voice, data collection, and social media awareness to create real time solutions. As Freedom Registry is applied technology the question was how would it be received, would stakeholders see it as a solution to the issues they’re facing, would technology experts see it as effective?  Remember again in attendance was world class technologist from all over the world and anti-trafficking experts with years of experience, including two TIP Report Heroes.

I first presented Freedom Registry  in 5 minute speed geeking sessions and then in 30 minute breakout discussion. Camp attendees listened intently and asked engaging questions and you could see they like the idea. I was approached for the remainder of the camp by participants wanting to learn more about Freedom Registry. Questions like “when is it coming to Cambodia?’ or Will it be available in the Philippines?” were common.  3 of the presentations of the real time solutions generated by participants mentioned Freedom Registry as tool they would use.  I was astounded by how the trafficking community embraced the idea and how eager they were for it’s launch.

Check out our previous blog on Freedom Registry's New Tools.