Users of Facebook, MySpace and all the other networks can sponsor elephants for small fee that funds the elephant’s conservation efforts.
When you sponsor an elephant you can embed all the elephants data including video and GPS into your social profile and share it with all your friends. Facebook and iPhone apps are already being used for similar human sourced data feeds
The biggest value multiplier comes from combining the human’s social network with the elephant’s social network. For example John Doe sponsors an elephant named Elle. All the other people that sponsor Elle then befriend John. John as an enlightened individual that cares about animals automatically has something in common with all of these people.
The Mash-up
Michael Brashier | George Mason University | Published July 27th 2008
We can create new demand for the Asia elephant’s existence using the Internet.
Elephants have very strong social networks that they depend of for food, water, and safety. Humans have web based social networks that we depend on for information, communication, and sometimes fun. If we combine our digital social networks with the elephants social networks using the PAN data we can create a platform for educating people about the Asian Elephants plight, fundraise, and aid in conservation.
It’s a 4 step process:
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1. Get the PAN video, audio, GPS, and biometric data onto the web.
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2. Build a website that identifies all PAN carrying elephants. The more we personify the elephants the better.
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3. Encourage schools and museums to use this data to teach children about the elephants. Kids might even form a bond with their favorite elephant.
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4. Add the PAN data into our social networks.
This association works both ways. Elle has twenty other elephants in her social group according to the GPS data. When somebody sponsors one of Elle’s friends or family members then John is informed and can ‘friend’ them.
John and his friends are free to create their own mash-ups with the PAN data. I imagine there will be numerous apps that compare and analyze every possible aspect of the elephant’s lives from land speed to heart rates. Whenever there is multiple sets of data available people will compare them.
