<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Rise of the online activists
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Internet opens up avenue for many Singaporeans to champion causes </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Tan Weizhen
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"-->THE Internet has made activists of Singaporeans.
Many see social networking sites, forums, blogs and online videos as ways to champion their causes.
The Straits Times has found more than 30 local causes online run by greenies, geeks and everyone in between.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre said new causes run the gamut from groups supporting the rights of migrant workers to those focusing on specific health issues such as glaucoma.
Blessingsinabag.com, for example, was started by a student wanting to clothe poor Third World children.
And iwant2bike2work.org is run by two men who are promoting cycling.
Cyberspace's many communication tools make it 'a very efficient facilitator of what happens offline', said Mr Tan Tarn How, senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies, who has researched the Internet's impact on society. Read Saturday's edition of The Straits Times for the full report.
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Internet opens up avenue for many Singaporeans to champion causes </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Tan Weizhen
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"-->THE Internet has made activists of Singaporeans.
Many see social networking sites, forums, blogs and online videos as ways to champion their causes.
The Straits Times has found more than 30 local causes online run by greenies, geeks and everyone in between.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre said new causes run the gamut from groups supporting the rights of migrant workers to those focusing on specific health issues such as glaucoma.
Blessingsinabag.com, for example, was started by a student wanting to clothe poor Third World children.
And iwant2bike2work.org is run by two men who are promoting cycling.
Cyberspace's many communication tools make it 'a very efficient facilitator of what happens offline', said Mr Tan Tarn How, senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies, who has researched the Internet's impact on society. Read Saturday's edition of The Straits Times for the full report.