Registrations Open For yMedia Challenge

Media release

23 June 2008

yMedia Challenge 2008

Registrations are now open for students and non-profit organisations

Registrations are now open for this year's yMedia Challenge. The Challenge brings web generation students together with non-profit organisations to work on media and technology projects that benefit them and the communities they serve.

yMedia Director, Pamela Minett believes that there are many non-profit organisations who could benefit from being more visible on the internet, but many just don't know where to start.

"Non-profit organisations often lack time and resources to develop an online presence. The yMedia Challenge recognises that tertiary students brought up in the web era have innate digital skills that are invaluable to these organisations. In addition to helping out a good cause, these students also gain valuable work experience which can help them get jobs when they graduate," she says.

Initiatives for community groups undertaken last year included Facebook Flyers, Banner advertisements, Bebo pages, YouTube videos, and PayPal donation links for their non-profit organisation. One team developed a website for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome New Zealand (http://www.sids.org.nz).

"We're changing the way that charities think and the way they connect with the people they need to reach. This, more than anything else, can make a difference" says Auckland University of Technology student Leah Royden.

Tertiary students enter the yMedia Challenge in teams and each team chooses a yMedia registered non-profit organisation to work with. The students then have two weeks to create a digital solution that best addresses the individual needs of the organisation.

16 teams will be selected for this year's challenge and each will each receive $1,000 for their two week project.

A series of student and community-focused workshops will also be held before the Challenge, discussing changing technologies and the media landscape. Industry professionals from Chrometoaster, Shift, Terabyte and Xero will present on web 2.0 technologies, digital design & strategy, project management and social media. The workshops give students and community groups the opportunity to collaborate with industry professionals and learn from their experiences.

The workshops run in Auckland and Wellington between June 30th and July 10th.

Non-profit organisation registrations for the yMedia Challenge close on June 29th. Student registrations for the yMedia Challenge close on July 4th. The challenge begins on July 28th.

Non-profit organisations and tertiary students can register for workshops and this year's yMedia Challenge at http://www.ymediachallenge.co.nz.

About yMedia Group

yMedia Group was established in 2007 by Pamela Minett and Adele Barlow. Its goal is to aid worthwhile projects and give people looking to work in the digital media industry some practical experience. Pamela and Adele's vision is to maximise the positive impact of young people as change-makers through the use of media and technology.

Key supporters of the yMedia Group include InternetNZ, Microsoft and The Tindall Foundation.

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