We believe that online social networking is a powerful tool for learning and positive action worldwide. A platform that is both self-guided and collaborative, both easily accessible and inherently complex, online social networking, in theory, enables action along a wide spectrum of skills and engagement. Empowered by technology to create, share, and connect online, individuals who have collaborated to take action via social networking have produced significant, unexpected achievements in political, social, and cultural spheres—from uncovering inaccuracies in network news reporting to coordinating humanitarian assistance in response to events such as the Indian Ocean tsunami and Hurricane Katrina.

And yet, social networking has come under fire from parents, schools, and authorities, who aim to limit young people’s access to these tools. Although these are valid claims in some cases, social networking and other forms of digital media engagement have the potential to enable new kinds of learning, empowering youth to become a driving force in creating and shaping a shared future in an increasingly interconnected world.  By keeping the spirit of ymex.org focused on positive social change and cross-cultural exchange, we envision ymex.org to be a space where this can happen.

It is important for researchers, practitioners, parents, educators, and policy-makers to understand how young people around the world are currently using and thinking about social networking and digital media, as well as how social networking and digital media can best be used as an instrument for education and social engagement on a global scale. This is a long-term, overarching goal for the field of digital media & learning at-large, but we hope ymex.org can contribute in substantial ways.

• We would love to hear from you! Please give us your feedback, ask questions, and let us know what else you would like to see on ymex.org at memberservices [at] ymex [dot] org
• If something isn't working properly, please let us know at broken [at] ymex [dot] org
• If you are an organization who would like to inquire about becoming a ymex.org content partner, please email our project coordinator, Natalie Rodic, at natalie [at] ymex [dot] org

Youth Media Exchange (ymex.org) is a collaborative project created by TakingITGlobal and Global Kids, in association with Asia Society. It is an online social network for youth interested in using digital media tools to share information on major global issues. Our vision is to create a space where youth:

• link to, embed, or generate the content that inspires them and discuss the global issues that are most important to them.
• reflect on their abilities to create and examine media and use ymex.org and the linked resource as an inspiration and a platform for experimentation to try new tools and improve their skills.
• expand their network of contacts and collaborators outside of their communities and their region of the world to have cross-cultural communication.
• have a blast learning, experimenting, creating, and communicating!
  

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The Jane Goodall Institute-Shanghai is a foreign-affiliated NGO in China. They manage the Roots & Shoots program, a global initiative created by the Jane Goodall Institute. Shanghai Roots & Shoots works, through experiential learning, to empower the youth of China to change their world, making it greener, cleaner and more environmentally friendly. The focus of the activities in China, which are volunteer student groups, is to manage sustainable projects to improve the environment or the human community. JGI-Shanghai has been working in China since 1999.

Visit JGI-Shanghai

The Media That Matters Film Festival is the premiere showcase for short films on the most important topics of the day. Local and global, online and in communities around the world, Media That Matters engages diverse audiences and inspires them to take action. From gay rights to global warming, the jury-selected collection represents the work of a diverse group of independent filmmakers, many of whom are under 21. The films are equally diverse in style and content, with documentaries, music videos, animations, experimental work and everything else in between. What all the films have in common is that they spark debate and action in 12 minutes or less.

Visit The Media That Matters Film Festival