Here’s a couple of large-scale projects that also create some lovely, localised content which should be of interest to hyperlocal publishers out there.
The first is UK Sound Map – a project from the British Library using Audioboo to create ‘the first nationwide sound map’:
Take part by publishing recordings of your surroundings using the free AudioBoo app…When uploading soundscape recordings via Audioboo, add the tag ‘uksm’ and they’ll appear on the SoundMap. Visit the SoundMap and enjoy listening to sounds.
Some lovely AudioBoo’s have been uploaded already that really convey a sense of place – from traffic on a busy Baker Street to the sounds of a Great Tit nest and waves on a Pembrokeshire beach.
If you’re encouraging local people to take part as well as contributing yourself, don’t forget to ask them to tag their AudioBoo’s by your area name/postcode (or a tag of your choosing) as well as ‘uksm’ so you can find them easily to include on your community website. And don’t forget that you can subscribe to AudioBoo’s by tags and download the MP3′s, if you have the time and inclination to have a bit more of a play with them yourself!
Tommy Cooper - from my last 4am Project adventure
The next one is a firm favourite of mine – Karen Strunks’ 4am Project ‘to gather a collection of photos from around the world at the magical time of 4am’ has just announced its next event date: 4am on Sunday 17th October. Taking part is very simple – just upload your photos to the free photo-sharing website Flickr and tag them with the word ’4amproject’.
The 4am Project has already proved to be quite popular with community websites and often groups of local people will meet up to go on a walkabout of the neighbourhood with their cameras.
Try organising a walk in your area – you can embed the above clock onto your website to give readers a count-down. Again – don’t forget to ask local people to tag their Flickr photos by your area name/postcode (or a tag of your choosing) as well as ’4amproject’ so you can include them on your community website.
So there we have it – a couple of projects you can have lots of fun with and encourage other local people to join in and do the same, so together you can make some great creative content for your website as well as contributing to a much bigger picture! Enjoy.
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