WordPress.com is purposely censored today in protest.

Wikipedia is about to Join the Blackout as well

To learn more about SOPA, The “Stop Online Piracy Act”, visit the wikipedia page dedicated to explaining the details - Stop Online Piracy Act. We have no doubt that anti-Piracy is being used as a guise to clampdown in the freedom of spreading information and on legitimate free speech. Personally I’m not concerned about  prevention of actual piracy as i support this in that stealing other people’s products is obviously wrong. I am more concerned of the hidden agendas and ripple effect of consequences which this piece of legislation attempts to establish.

Some of the big players opposing the Bill include Facebook, Google, Twitter, eBay, Yahoo!, Mozilla, Wikipedia, WordPress.

Check out what Mashable had to say about Why SOPA is Dangerous.

Join the protest - http://sopablackout.org/

A Wide range of WordPress Plugins exist to support the Anti-SOPA movement - http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/search.php?q=sopa Some are even going to the extent of laying the ground for establishing an alternative internet to circumvent censorship and governmental controls by working on a plan to launch an Internet in space – German Hacker Group Working on Space Internet

As a Muslim, it is part of my belief system to take water issues really seriously, as we as Muslims have been advised by the Prophet Muhammad(pbuh) that “even if we have a flowing river of water, we should still not waste it”. I am taught by the Scripture which I follow(The Quran) to believe that Our Creator has created every living thing by making use of Water as a major component of it’s creation. It’s very simple, water is essential for life, though we as a Human race are abusing this very essential element in just about every single manner possible. There is enough water flowing around our planet at any given time to provide for each and every living being, but we have chosen to make it a right only some of us can enjoy.

Things we’re doing to make our water situation worse:

• Waste in general
• Using unenecessary amounts of water for enternatinment or commercial use
• Hoarding up water resources and depriving others
• Polluting our rivers, lakes and even the oceans
• Polluting the atmosphere out of which the Rains fall
• Unnecessarily using valuable resources on bottled water in many cases where it’s not necessary

In the modern home the amount of water each person uses on a daily basis for various activities could at times equal what others may use in an entire month. If only we could see the thousands of litres we’ve consumed, polluted, wasted unnecessarily we may be more conscientious. I speak for myself first as being very guilt of all of these things.

Here’s a list of things we can all do to be part of the solution right now.

• Shower Instead of bathing
• Shorten shower duration to what is necessary
• Wash your face with cold water, don’t wait for water to warm up
• Rinse dishes, fruit etc in a bowl of water instead of leaving the tap running
• Don’t throw chemicals or other pollutants down the drains
• Water your garden early morning or late evening to avoid vapouration
• Reuse water used to rinse fruit & veg for house plants
• Don’t drink bottled water unless absolutely necessary
• Fix leaking taps asap
• Only run dishwashers and clothing washers when they’re full

I found a great list of 100 tips to conserve water – Use Water Wisely

One more tip to inspire you towards appreciating water in a more meaningful way it, go out into nature where fresh water is still flowing naturally, like a river, waterfall or mountain stream. When you see clean water in nature and you appreciate it’s beauty & benefit it helps increase respect for this divine blessing.

That’s me on a 2 Day Hike in the Cedarberg Mountains in the Western Cape South Africa. It helped me gain a much better appreciation for clean flowing water and the blessings it holds.

1. Go Digital – Save Trees

Going Digital means cutting out many of the paper based systems we use as business people and many times unnecessarily so. I use almost no paper and I don’t use a printer at all. Take you data assets online and back them up using various mechanisms. It will not only save trees but can drastically improve you efficiency.

2. Work Remotely – Save our Atmosphere

There really is no good reason for knowledge workers to be commuting in their thousands on a daily basis. The web has made it extremely easy to setup online collaboration spaces which help keep remote teams in touch with each other. This can also improve your quality of life and reduce stress, save valuable travel time and reduce carbon emmisions.

3. Less is more – Save our Resources

Or should I say, less is less. We tend to go over the top when we get involved in things and go on spending sprees for our hobbies, work and families. Embrace a more simple life and you’ll be consuming less valuable earthly resources as well as needing less money which leads to needing to work less. Humans can survive very comfortably with very little.

4. Re-use – Save money

I buy everything I own or need on a cash basis, keeps me in a almost permanently debt free state. When I do need to make a purchase, most times I opt for a good quality used item whether it be a car, computer, desk you name it. Why should we be increasing the need for production of more and more when the items in circulation are good enough.

I don’t go around hugging trees regularly nor am I obsessive about every last purchase or action, but a few simple life principles naturally reduces the impact I make as an individual. What are you doing to make a difference? I could do with a few extra bits of advice.

Calling all photographers and Earth-lovers … Help us record a day in the life of our planet, in pictures.

If you’re into all things environmentally friendly or just want to celebrate the beauty of this wonderful planet we call home, take a few snaps of your little corner of Earth and submit itto the Earth Mosaic Project!

These range from PR consultancies to advertising agencies, branding agencies, media companies, new media, event managers, design studios and general communications consultancies.

What influences companies to use a specific type of communication? Why do certain companies naturally gravitate towards PR rather than new media, or above the line rather than direct marketing? It’s not always the appropriateness but sometimes they just haven’t thought about anything else. It also seems there is a fear to reach out in new ways.

We’re at a point in the development of communication technologies and methodologies, where we’re leaving behind us many old ways and embracing new methods of interacting with each other as a society. Companies are slowly taking up the challenge of developing more human ways of interacting with their customers and clients.

What do you think will be the next shift in the way companies relate to people and society in general?

• What does new school communication look like?

• Is it only about web 2.0 & social media?

• Do companies need to change the way they function fundamentally?

• What new processes, methods and mechanisms of communication do you think companies need to embrace to keep in tune with changes in society?

• How do you think people want to interact with businesses & brands.

• How do you think companies need to change their marketing approaches.

• Do companies still need to speak in a specific kind of language?

I think communications professionals perpetuate the same approaches and patterns, creating an expectation from both businesses and individuals in terms of how companies are meant to interact with society. Regular conversation and relationships requires change, challenging ideas and points of interest and inspiration to hold our attention. This is no different when applied to the interaction between businesses and individuals. Alot has changed with the shift in web communication and the proliferation on web 2.0 but not enough of the thinking behind these interactions have filtered down into the offline space.

Why do you think most of the business world has kept itself stuck behind the corporate veil and not embraced the new openness which social media has unleashed?

I particularly admire Cerebra & Huddlemind locally for the manner in which they interact with their respective markets. I’m also particularly interested in the services & approach of Ethical Media based in the UK as well as The Ethical Agency. Skyrove‘s approach impresses me as well in terms of it’s keenness on developing real meaningful relationships with the community it serves.

It’s more than just about social media. In fact the technology has only served to facilitate the inherent human need to connect, communicate, collaborate and have a meaningful conversation.

The way business people are starting to understand real value or values, is moving closer to a more human-centric vision of business.

How can communications agencies and consultancies change mindsets so the old models can get some “CLUE“s to where the human “TRAIN” is headed.

This has been a random rant and thought storm thrown together in short disconnected bursts , let me know what you think and if you have any answers to any of these questions. Or add a few of your own randomly profound brainwaves and lets talk.

It’s been something I have always been concerned about but not always known how to approach, how to provide services which benefit and do not harm. To me business is not merely about putting cash in my pocket. I believe that the way we earn our living should be something we give careful consideration. Does it really make sense to be feeding oneself at to the destruction of someone else.

Primary Areas of exclusion

The reason I have chosen to only service certain types of companies is a mixture of religious and ethical. Primarily I do not promote or facilitate the promotion of:

• Alcohol or other intoxicants
• Gambling
• Anything explicit or of an Adult only nature
• Financial Services.

These are generally influenced by my religious beliefs. In promoting anything I am putting my own personal stamp of approval on it, saying I agree with the product or service. Many would disagree with me on this approach and people are entitled to their own view points, but I do believe we need to start putting our money where our mouths are.

I think it’s about time people begin to start highlighting the products and services which bring on social ills and contribute to spreading illness, moral degradation, corruption and general imbalance in society. We complain on a daily basis about things like crime, rape, abuse, poverty etc, but it seems not many people are willing to take the necessary action to start weeding out these problems.

Promoting things which add to the greater good

I have also decided to start seeking out businesses which actively contribute towards a healthier society, and then promoting them. I want to be involved with businesses which provide products and services which are inherently beneficial to people and society and who embrace sustainable & healthy practices.

So far I have only focused on staying away from the negatives, but am interested in building a database of ethically motivated companies, organisations & individuals. Those who support environmentally friendly practices, who embrace the idea of sustainability on many levels and who make it their aim to improve the condition of people.

Getting a community started

I’m not sure whether to create an area on this site or to start a new site which focuses specifically on these issues and builds a database and hopefully a community.

Anyone interested in being involved in this type of initiative please contact me, post a comment, put forward some ideas of suggest resources if you are so inclined. Hope to meet some other like minded individuals who can help me further my own ethical ambitions and who I can be of benefit to as well.