PledgeBank
Encyclopedia
PledgeBank is a website which runs pledge
s on all topics, of the form: "I will do x if y number of people agree to do the same." Such public commitments are a non-coercive way to solve problems of collective action
, especially when the goal is a public good
. PledgeBank was founded by mySociety
and went live June 13, 2005. Though hosted/run by a UK-based nonprofit, PledgeBank has been translated by volunteers into 12 languages in addition to English. The Omidyar Network
has funded outreach efforts for PledgeBank in the U.S.
Notable organisations promoted or started by pledges on PledgeBank include the seed funding for the UK Open Rights Group
and publicity and legal funding for the NO2ID
campaign.
Other creative efforts to raise money for charity are presented. For example, 1,000 people in India donated books to set up a library. Another is looking for small-scale donations for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
.
Pledges in the U.S. have been created to bolster individual efforts, such as saving books from landfills and donating blood, and organizational efforts, such as raising money for an intern and presidential campaigning.
Furthermore, it has been utilized to drum up global support for online protests, most recently by Freeculture.org
to boycott CDs
with DRM
.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair
started a pledge himself, to become patron of a community sports club if 100 notable figures will do the same, which succeeded.
Examples of successful pledges include the current NOMEDIA campaign started by Graham Woods. He pledged to completely boycott all forms of media for two weeks as long as 10 other people do the same, and the textbook for Africa project started by Darren Grover. Another overwhelmingly successful pledge was run by "Big Ed" to stop unnecessarily using plastic grocery bags.
Oath
An oath is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow...
s on all topics, of the form: "I will do x if y number of people agree to do the same." Such public commitments are a non-coercive way to solve problems of collective action
Collective action
Collective action is the pursuit of a goal or set of goals by more than one person. It is a term which has formulations and theories in many areas of the social sciences.-In sociology:...
, especially when the goal is a public good
Public good
In economics, a public good is a good that is non-rival and non-excludable. Non-rivalry means that consumption of the good by one individual does not reduce availability of the good for consumption by others; and non-excludability means that no one can be effectively excluded from using the good...
. PledgeBank was founded by mySociety
MySociety
mySociety is an e-democracy project of the UK-based registered charity named UK Citizens Online Democracy, that aims to build "socially focussed tools with offline impacts". It was founded by Tom Steinberg in September 2003, and started activity after receiving a £250,000 grant in September 2004...
and went live June 13, 2005. Though hosted/run by a UK-based nonprofit, PledgeBank has been translated by volunteers into 12 languages in addition to English. The Omidyar Network
Omidyar Network
Omidyar Network is a philanthrocapitalist investment firm established in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam. To date, Omidyar Network has committed more than $290 million to for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations that foster economic advancement and encourage individual...
has funded outreach efforts for PledgeBank in the U.S.
Notable organisations promoted or started by pledges on PledgeBank include the seed funding for the UK Open Rights Group
Open Rights Group
The Open Rights Group is a UK-based organisation that works to preserve digital rights and freedoms by campaigning on digital rights issues, acting as a media clearinghouse service putting journalists in touch with experts, and by fostering a community of grassroots activists...
and publicity and legal funding for the NO2ID
NO2ID
NO2ID, the public campaign, was formed in 2004 to campaign against the United Kingdom government's plans to introduce UK ID Cards and the associated National Identity Register, which it believes has negative implications for privacy, civil liberties and personal safety.NO2ID is entirely independent...
campaign.
Other creative efforts to raise money for charity are presented. For example, 1,000 people in India donated books to set up a library. Another is looking for small-scale donations for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded in 1962, is a leading pediatric treatment and research facility focused on children's catastrophic diseases. It is located in Memphis, Tennessee. It is a nonprofit medical corporation chartered as a 501 tax-exempt organization under IRS regulations.In...
.
Pledges in the U.S. have been created to bolster individual efforts, such as saving books from landfills and donating blood, and organizational efforts, such as raising money for an intern and presidential campaigning.
Furthermore, it has been utilized to drum up global support for online protests, most recently by Freeculture.org
FreeCulture.org
Students for Free Culture, formerly known as FreeCulture.org, is an international student organization working to promote free culture ideals, such as cultural participation and access to information...
to boycott CDs
CDS
-Computing and electronics:* Cadence Design Systems, American Electronic Design Automation software company* Chromatography data system, software to control chromatography instruments* Cockpit display system* Compact Discs...
with DRM
Digital rights management
Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
started a pledge himself, to become patron of a community sports club if 100 notable figures will do the same, which succeeded.
Examples of successful pledges include the current NOMEDIA campaign started by Graham Woods. He pledged to completely boycott all forms of media for two weeks as long as 10 other people do the same, and the textbook for Africa project started by Darren Grover. Another overwhelmingly successful pledge was run by "Big Ed" to stop unnecessarily using plastic grocery bags.