Help Sri Lanka’s IDPs with your blog posts

The Drummer has a brilliant idea: use the Sri Lanka’s Top 100 Blog Posts Book to raise money to help/rehabilitate internally displaced people (IDPs) in the former war zones of the north. The organisation that will get the money: ACT (Action and Care Trust Sri Lanka) – also known as ACTION & CARE TRUST TO REHABILITATE SRI LANKAN WAR SURVIVORS, ACT to Rehabilitate and ACT

Why ACT:

1. ACT has already demonstrated an ability to make a difference on the ground —specially in Vauniya
2. They have access to restricted areas — such as IDP camps and hospitals
3. They have stated that they are a non-political Trust –  NOT an INGO with access to international funding
4. They have stated up front that they will not discriminate in the rehabilitation of the injured — including soldiers of the Sri Lankan armed forces.
5. further more, there are some bloggers involved in the relief work

Disclaimer:

I don’t know any people in this organisation (beyond reading a blog by one of them). I am also not a member of this organisation or affiliated with it in any way.

How it works

• Bloggers nominate BLOG POSTS (not blogs) of OTHER bloggers that the nominator thinks is worthy of including among Sri Lanka’s top 100 blogs
• An editorial team picks the top 100 blog posts to be included in book form.
• The selected bloggers DONATE permission for the posts to be published and the proceeds to be given to a specified organisation.
• If there aren’t enough blog posts (or selected refuse permission) we 
  1. wait for more nominations
  2. sniff around the Sri Lankan blogosphere till the quota is met
• Once the blog posts are selected, they are edited for grammar/spelling, etc. and published in a traditional book (paper) form.
• Whoever gets the permission of the bloggers to publish this book MUST be bound to donate the proceeds of the sales

What’s needed right now

An editorial team who are good at

• proof reading/editing the horrid grammar / spelling/typos we bloggers have
• wise enough to handle the diverse sensibilities of the blogosphere (political and otherwise)
• Coming up with an editorial policy
• A design to handle the conversion of the blog format to a book (its not that easy)

A publisher who is

• financially brave/strong enough to manage what is essentially a non profit project
• has sales/distribution/publicity channels/links outside Sri Lanka – not just to bring in hard currency donation but also to raise awareness that Sri Lanka is a much more diverse place than it is painted out to be.
• handle the transfer of funds to ACT transparently

What YOU can do:

• Nominate a blog post that you REALLY think is worthy to be included under the phrase Sri Lanka’s Top 100 blog posts
• Clearly and briefly justify your nomination.