Happy Digital Citizenship Month!
Welcome to the second annual celebration! This year’s theme is “Use Your Digital Citizenship Voice.”
Before I say anything else, let me stop and give you a link that explains how and why I launched this 31-day digital experience in 2014.
This week, you are invited to join the #DigCitizenVoice conversation by sharing your definition of Digital Citizenship and how you are using your Digital Citizenship Voice.
Use the #DigCitizenVoice hashtag and follow:
- @DigCitizenMonth on Instagram
- Digital Citizenship Month on Tumblr
- @DigCitizenMonth on Twitter
To get you started, I have included my definition of Digital Citizenship and 10 tips to help you embrace your Digital Citizenship and Digital Citizenship Voice below.
Digital Citizenship is the act of marrying your passionate interests and digital presence to support campaigns, causes, events, ideas, movements, policies, programs, and values that build awareness and community, create positive change, and promote social good.
10 TIPS ON EMBRACING YOUR DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP AND DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP VOICE
1) Identify your passion and interests.
2) Find causes and campaigns that connect you to your passion and interests. Use hashtags to search for your tribe (people who share similar passions and interests). Conduct the search by going to Google or another search engine. Search on blog platforms (Blogger, Medium, Tumblr, and WordPress) and social media.
3) Launch and support causes and campaigns that improve the quality of life for people in your local, regional, national, and international communities.
4) Participate in local government events and document your participation on your blog and social media.
5) Build community. Once you find your tribe, listen to the conversations they are having. Join them when you have something to say. Ask questions. Follow the folks you are listening and talking to on your social media. Comment on social media status updates and blogs. Share them with people in your online network.
Take it a step further by participating in discussions that happen in Facebook groups, Google Hangouts, LinkedIn groups, Meerkat and Periscope events, Pinterest boards, podcasts, webinars, Twitter chats, Yahoo groups, and other online events.
Leave the digital world and attend a conference, event, or meet up in your local area. Get out and meet people face-to-face.
Reach out to one or two members of your tribe and schedule an in-person meet up. Go to breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Grab a cup of coffee and tea. Connect over smoothies, ice cream, or a walk in the park.
6) Inspire and encourage. Use your blog, social media, and web site to share empowering and inspirational messages.
7) Educate and share information via your blog, email, social media, and web site.
8) Blog and post positive social media status updates about local businesses you patronize in your local community.
9) Celebrate local, state, national, and international holidays and observances to raise awareness about issues you care about.
10) For People Living in the United States: Engage in #socialcivics with the White House (especially Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman – @Goldman44 on Twitter) and Federal Government. The White House Conference on Aging will be held on July 13. Click here to learn how you can get involved:
Also, the White House sponsors #WHSocials, #WHMeetups, and online events each year to engage American citizens. Click here to learn more about the in-person events. Subscribe to the White House email updates to stay informed.
Special Digital Citizenship Month Event
Tune into the Digital Citizenship Month interview series featuring Dr. Janet Johnson on July 2 at 10:00 a.m. EST. The topic of discussion is “Using Your Digital Citizenship Voice in Your Career and Life.” Click here for more details.
Ananda Leeke 
Hi Ananda,
It’s great you’re doing this! My definition and how I use digital citizenship require much, much more than 140 characters, so I hope you don’t mind my response here. For me, digital citizenship means using social media to inform others and engage in civilized conversation. That engagement piece is the key in all of this. That said, I use my digital voice in a variety of ways. I write about politics, policy, and social media on my blog. On Twitter, I share my ideas, engage with others around the world, and participate in Twitter chats. As a teacher, I encourage my students to use social media. I’ve taught them about digital diplomacy, and I’ve encouraged them to use it to question our elected officials. Some of them even took the plunge and participated in a Twitter chat about the future of NATO! That was an especially proud moment for me. It’s nothing as extensive as that great list you have above, but I like to think I’m still somehow making a difference.
Keep up the great work!
Jason Knoll
Hi Jason. Happy Digital Citizenship Month! Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I am so excited about the work you are doing with your students. It is HUGE! Keep shining!!!!!