Este sitio funciona sobre la 
In 2006, I founded ZapBoom Consulting, which specializes in the analysis of how digital
tools like cell phones and the Internet can be used in social change campaigns in developing countries. I have
researched and written reports on topics ranging from 
image from Chile Primero website explaining what a petition is: "What are Petitions? Let's Learn a New Political Practice"
Petitions are one of the most popular forms of digital activism nowadays. MoveOn does it. Avaaz does it. Even the Free Paris Hilton campaign does it. You've probably signed an online petition yourself for one cause or another. The problem is, petitions don't translate into all cultures.
As I've mentioned before, I am working with Chile Primero, a new Chilean political movement (which would like to grow into a party) which is very interested in using technology in spreading its message. They are eager to use petitions to help Chileans engage more strongly in the political process by creating petitions on their website which they can present to Congress to further legislation which Chile Primero supports.
The problem is, there isn't a preexisting culture of online petitions in Chile. In fact, Chileans are suspicious of petitions. People are likely to believe that signatures have been falsified. Thus Chile Primero not only has the challenge of creating petitions using a blog platform (post is the petition text, signatures appear as comments). They also have the challenge of creating a petition culture in Chile.
So, how do you create a petition culture? First, explain to people how petitions work, which Chile Primero has done on their website. Second take extra precautions to make sure the petitions are credible.
Yesterday Alberto Precht (the site's director) and I were talking about the petitions and he kept returning to the need to verify that signatures were real. He wanted people to give their phone number or fill out a long form before signing. I didn't understand the big deal. In the US if you give your name and address people pretty much believe your signature is for real. But not in Chile. The idea we came up with yesterday was to send an e-mail to every person who signs the petition asking them to verify their identity (the final verification process may end up being something slightly different.)
This is the stuff that really interests me: not the theory of global digital activism, but the practice.
Buenisimo Mary, quedo muy explicativo tu post y el lunes damos el segundo paso en esta creación de una cultura de los petitions acá en Chile.
A nombre de Chile Primero te agradesco tu aporte que fue muy importante para ordenar las ideas y establecer un camino de como utilizar esta herramienta en la construcción de una mejor y más participativa democracia.