Audience participation was not only encouraged, it was mandatory! We are all peers and none of us is perfect. We had much laughter as we navel-gazed at where we have all gone wrong in ICT and international development.

Yet don’t forget that we are all here to LEARN from failure. Failure is no reason to be ashamed. Failure shows leadership, innovation, and risk-taking in pushing the boundaries of what is possible in scaling ideas from pilots to global programs.

At Fail Faire DC 2012, there was great value in examining our mistakes as we go beyond the easy and the simple. So while we encouraged irreverence and humor, we didn’t forget to learn something too. Fail Faire DC 2012 was hosted by the World Bank on Friday, November 16, in downtown Washington, DC.

Featured Speakers

• Dr. Tessie San Martin, CEO, Plan International USA
• Aleem Walji, Director, Innovation Labs, World Bank Institute
• Patty Mechael, Executive Director, mHealth Alliance
• Sean McDonald, CEO, FrontlineSMS
• Christine Prefontaine, Founder, Facilitating Change
• James Bontempo, Director of ICT & Innovation, JHU-CCP
• Carol Waters, Technical Advisor, Internews
• Merrick Schaefer, Senior Innovation Specialist, World Bank
• Neelley Hicks, Special Projects Manager, United Methodist Communications
• Dustin Homer, Associate, Development Gateway

Event Photos

Wondering how it went? Check out the photo stream from the event.

The post Fail Faire DC 2012 appeared first on Fail Festival.

Projects succeed, projects fail. The successes are reported on, the failures are filed away. Or, in the case of most international development and ICT4D projects, pushed under the proverbial rug. Well, its time to bring out the failures, with a sense of humor, and with an honest look at ourselves. Hence was born Fail Faire.

Fail Faire DC featured projects using ICT in international development that have, to put it simply, been a #FAIL. Busted, kaputt. Tongue firmly in cheek, we take a close look at what didn’t work and why projects fail amidst the ICTD hype.

We believe that only if we understand what DOESN’T WORK in this field and stop pushing our failures under the rug, can we collectively learn and get better, more effective, and have greater impact as we go forward.

Fail Faire DC 2011 happened on October 13th at the World Bank and was brought to you by the World Bank, Development Gateway, Inveneo, and Jphiego.

Featured Speakers

• Dr. Tessie San Martin, CEO, Plan International USA
• Ian Schuler, Internet Freedom Programs, U.S. Department of State
• Erin Mote, Chief of Party, USAID Global Broadband and Innovations Alliance
• Andrea Bosch, ICT Advisor and Chief of Party, TILO Egypt, Creative Associates
• Dr. Harshad Sanghvi, Vice President of Innovations & Medical Director, Jhpiego
• Kristin Peterson, CEO & Co-founder, Inveneo
• Brian Forde, President, Llamadas, S.A.
• Allison Stone, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University
• Peter Bauman, Conflict Specialist, International Relief & Development
• Jacobo Quintanilla, Director of Humanitarian Media, Internews Network
• Ed Anderson, World Bank, on their 70% ICT4D failure rate
• Sean DeWitt, Technology Programs Manager, Grameen Foundation
• Gerhard Pohl, Senior Director, Development Gateway

Post-Event Coverage

The learning was more than just in the room too. Online and in-person, here are several ways to stay in the FailFaireDC theme:

1. Read Plan’s CEO on her experience. Dr. Tessie San Martin has a great write up of her thoughts on FailFaireDc and failure in general.
2. Read the Slate.com article. We had deep coverage, complete with the academic underpinnings to our erstwhile activities.
3. Join Admitting Aid Failure, the second Aid Blog Forum. The aid bloggers are taking our idea to the Internets.
4. Check out the FailFaireDC photos on Flickr. Relive your favorite slides and remember your favorite presenters.
5. Engage via the #FailFaireDC hashtag on Twitter. During and after the event, #FailFaireDC was trending on Twitter as we discussed the larger themes and issues to improve ICT4D
6. Look for a FailFaireNYC. Mobile Active is teaming with Unicef to have a FailFaire in New York City this December.

Most of all, remember to fail in everything you do. Only then are you showing leadership and innovation in pushing the boundaries of what is possible in scaling ICT and international development.

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