Archive
Today, May 12th, 2009 is Election Day in B.C.
It’s Election Day in BC – Polls now open
Polls are open from 8:00am until 8:00pm.
Below is a photo of Carole James, Leader of the BC NDP and friends at the Firehall Arts Centre @ 280 East Cordova Street, Thursday, May 7th 11:00am in speaking about Support the Arts and Take Back Your BC
” Ms. James took her campaign to a busy Vancouver SkyTrain station and later ventured into the Downtown Eastside. Although she has talked about homelessness throughout the campaign, the event in the epicentre of the country’s poorest neighbourhood had nothing to do with the people lying on the streets nearby. Instead, she spoke inside the Firehall Arts Centre, where she pledged that her government would boost funding for the arts.
“It’s a smart investment in tough economic times,” she said, estimating that a tax dollar invested in culture will be paid back “tenfold.”
AHA MEDIA is very pleased to congratulate W2’s Executive Director Irwin Oostindie nomination for an Individual Stand Out Award in the catergory of Visionary Leadership for the Pop Vox Awards 2009
AHA MEDIA is very pleased to congratulate Irwin Oostindie, our Executive Director for W2 and Fearless City Mobile.
If not for Irwin Oostindie’s great encouragement, training, mentoring and vision – AHA MEDIA ( made of Vancouver Downtown Eastside residents learning to become skilled new media community content producers, social media event reporters and hyperlocal citizen journalists) would not have existed!
As we continue to participate events and projects with our most recent being at Vancouver Digital Week 2009, we are continously learning about creative and digital technology!
Thanks so much to Irwin for making us as AHA MEDIA who we are and what we are becoming for the future ! We owe so much to you for believing in us, as marginalized Vancouver Downtown Eastside citizens that could make a very positive difference in our lives, our communities, and for the world! 🙂
Irwin Oostindie’s very belief in us has changed our very existence in the most misrepresented area of Vancouver- AHA MEDIA is now made up of proud Downtown Eastside ( DTES ) people with real skills and training!
Thank you very much Irwin! You’ve saved and changed our humble lives! What AHA MEDIA is today, is because of your continuing work with us! Thank you for all the opportunities you’ve granted us! 🙂
We look forward to the Pop Vox Awards Show at Workspace Wednesday May 13,2009. AHA MEDIA will be livestreaming during the event and reception!
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With respectful thanks to Carla Bergman http://www.rainzine.org for her following writeup on Irwin Oostindie’s nomination
W2 is pleased to announce that Irwin Oostindie, Executive Director, has been nominated for an Individual Stand Out (ISO) Awards in the category of Visionary Leadership for the PopVox 2009 Awards for Digital Media. New Media BC presents PopVox: People’s Choice Digital Media Awards which recognize all major sectors of the digital media industry and celebrates its creativity, talent, and achievements.
Irwin Oostindie cofounded W2 in 2005, and is currently Executive Director responsible for project development, community and stakeholder engagement, and clustering the many organizations and programs that make up W2. W2 is scheduled to open at Woodward’s in the Fall 2009, serving DTES residents with programs empowering through arts and creative technology. Oostindie was nominated for his work facilitating Downtown Eastside residents in breaking the digital divide, and showcasing what digital technology can do to improve peoples lives, while democratizing access to technology and peer training. Oostindie designed the W2 Incubator program which uses a new model fusing entrepreneurship, capacity building, and empowerment.
Oostindie is nominated alongside two Vancouver new media entrepreneurs in the Visionary Leadership category. Michael Tippett has built Now Public into the world’s largest citizen journalism website, and Jason Mogus, has expanded Communicopia to be a leader in web technology, strategy and social change.
W2 is also nominated under another PopVox category this year, with Kris Krug, Co-Chair of W2’s Fundraising Committee, nominated in the Social Media category. Krug is a major force in Canada’s web 2.0 and social media industry.
The awards are being held during Vancouver Digital Media Week, on Wednesday, May 13th. W2 VJ Director, Suez ‘Electrabelle’ Holland, will be on hand to animate the PopVox event with live digital media streaming. For further details visit http://www.vancouverdigitalweek.com/
Below is a photo ( Left to Right)

Lani Russwurm – DTES CAN – Downtown Eastside Commnity Arts Network
Irwin Oostindie – Executive Director of W2 and Fearless City Mobile
Kris Krug – Social Media Rockstar
AHA MEDIA is very honored and blessed to know each of the above men who are our mentors and leaders as we learn more about creative technology! 🙂
nextMedia Event at Vancouver Digital Week 09

Below is a photo of a view of Canada Place that can be seen from the grand floor to ceiling windows of our reception area at the NEW Vancouver Convention centre

Below is a photo of nextMedia Event event’s text messages and livestreamed images remixed by Suez Holland aka VJ Electrabelle

Below is a photo of Hendrik Beune, livestreaming a bartender during nextMedia networking reception

In this video, Hendrik Beune, Director of AHA MEDIA during the nextMedia Party after Convergence 09 at Vancouver Digital Week 2009 gives thanks to Reg Catubay, a wonderful banquet server at the new Vancouver Convention Centre
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobile cameraphone. April is passionate and skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.
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The next photo is Paul, a Manager at the NEW Vancouver Convention Centre with Reg Catubay, our excellent banquet server to AHA MEDIA, who we thank so much for her supreme hospitality 🙂

Livestreaming Convergence 09 for Vancouver Digital Week at the Vancouver Convention Centre

Convergence `09
Part of Vancouver Digital Week
http://www.vancouverdigitalweek.com
May 11: CONVERGENCE ’09
http://www.cossettewest.com/convergence2009
(7:30 AM to 4 PM – at the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre – 1055 Canada Place )
Brought to you by the People from Cossette West.
A gathering of digital-savvy marketing and communications thought-leaders from across North America sharing ideas on how to stay competitive in the ever-shifting digital landscape. This year we focus on digital branding through social media and why you should integrate it into your marketing strategy…starting now.
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KEYNOTE SPEAKER Obama’s Unsung Hero
DAVID PLOUFFE, Campaign Manager, Obama for America
After winning the election on November 4, 2008, President Obama called Plouffe “the unsung hero of this campaign, who built the… best political campaign, I think, in the history of the United States of America.” Credited with achieving one of the biggest upsets in American political history, his campaign generated a brand loyalty program with unprecedented success. Plouffe shares with the audience the election story and the process of developing a winning social media strategy that inspired millions to engage in the Obama campaign.
Below is a photo of the entrance way to Convergence 09
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Below is Jean Herbert of Mobile Muse guiding Peter Davies and Hendrik Beune of AHA MEDIA, working as livestreaming camera operators for Fearless City Mobile ( http://www.fearlesscity.ca/mobile and W2 http://www.creativetechnology.org at Convergence 09 for Vancouver Digital Week 09

Below is an example of mobile phone technology

Below is April Smith text messaging and twittering on a HTC Touch phone for community engagement at Convergence 09 at the Fearless City and W2 booth

Below is Suez Holland aka VJ Electrabelle mixing all the text and twitter messages, photos and videos together to appear on the big screens.

Below is Roland Tanglao ( red Fearless T-shirt) giving mobile tech support to Fearless and W2. Suez Holland’s live Vj work appears on the two LCD screens wth livestreams coming in from Peter Davies and Hendrik Beune’s HTC Touch Cameraphones

Below Hendrik Beune holds an HTC Touch phone to livestream

Below Peter Davies explains what livestreaming is to his neighbour while getting ready to film a panel

In this video, Peter Davies, reporter for AHA MEDIA and also livestreaming camera operatorfor Fearless City and W2 answers some questions after livestreaming the Widget Smidgets panel at Convergence 09 forVancouver Digital Week
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobilecameraphone. April is passionate and skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.
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Below is local Vancouver social media manager Rob Jones ( middle ) of BuildDirect http://www.builddirect.com a speaker in “The intersection of search marketing & social media.

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In this video, Irwin Oostindie, Executive Director of W2 explains about the Fearless City Mobile Project, the remxing on the live vj screen and the sift tool for Fearless City http://www.fearlesscity.ca/mobile and W2 http://www.creativetechnology.org at Convergence 09 for Vancouver Digital Week.
This was filmed by April Smith of AHA MEDIA on a Nokia N95 mobile cameraphone. April is passionateand skilled in making Nokia films by exploring mobile media production through the camera lens of a cellphone. For a better quality version of this video, please DM April Smith @AprilFilms on Twitter.

Below is the wonderful support team helping us ( April Smith, Hendrik Beune and Peter Davies of AHA MEDIA ) to livestream Convergence 09

From Right to Left ( Back Row ) ( Fearless City http://www.fearlesscity.ca/mobile and W2 http://www.creativetechnology.org mentors and leaders!)
Roland Tanglao http://www.rolandtanglao.com
Jean Hebert http://www.clicknoise.net
Suez Holland http://www.electrabelle.com
Carla Bergman http://www.rainzine.org
Irwin Oostindie http://www.creativetechnology.org
Kris Krug ( sitting in front ) http://www.kriskrug.com
To view the livestream, being streamed by Hendrik Beune and Peter Davies of AHA MEDIA ( also working as members as Fearless City http://www.fearlesscity.ca/mobile and W2 http://www.creativetechnology.org) using HTC Touch phones, using Livecast software from Mobile Muse, please go to Jean Hebert’s site http://www.clicknoise.net
Our next event is to livestream NextMedia in Vancouver! 🙂

At Vancouver Digital Week, join nextMEDIA for an afternoon program that includes a Keynote and reception, and connects the digital worlds of Music, Advertising, Broadcast and more.
Robert H. Reynolds, Manager & Attorney – The Killers
Ethan Kaplan, Vice President of Technology, Warner Bros.
Kris Krug, President, Raincity Studios
David Gratton, VP Products and Business Development, Workatplay
Adaline, Singer/Songwriter
Elise Estrada, Singer/Actress
Bags of Bread in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside
In these photo, AHA MEDIA reporter Peter Davies looks at the many bags of bread given out in the Vancouver Downtown Eastside. One thing is for certain, one will never starve in our neighborhood! 🙂



