Everything really is bigger in Texas.
The conference center here is cavernous and echoing. Even the free totebags are stuffed full.
What a weird place. Everywhere I go I see people, some well-dressed, some in T-shirts and jeans,
are sitting in hallways plugged to the wall, typing away.
Seeing as how Democracy for America paid my way here, I’m chilling at the DFA caucus. The deputy training director for DFA is teaching people how to organize events.
What have we learned so far? We’ve gone through a case study of organizing a student global warming confernence that DFA did in DC.
The takeaway idea so far seems to be this: Set a goal, set sub-goals for discrete chunks of time, and measure your success accordingly. So if you want 500 students to show up at an event in 5 months, try to invite 100 people per month. If you’re not making your benchmarks, maybe its time to re-evaluate.
I’m typing this on my XO laptop (aka one laptop per child). Have you seen me carrying this around on campus? It is small and green and cost 400 dollars.By 400 dollars I mean you pay 400 dollars to “give one get one” so that you pay for the cost of producing two, get one, and the second one goes to a child in Mongolia, or Nepal or wherever. Check it out.