Twenty years after the Earth Summit, world leaders, participants from the private sector, NGOs, and other civil society groups came together to discuss sustainable development at Rio+20. Rio+20 or the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Key actors came together to discuss how to reduce poverty, advance social equity and ensure environmental protection. Topics covered included: energy, cities, jobs, food, water, women, health, oceans, and disasters. Amidst this greater conversation, on Tuesday, June 19, 2012, an innovative event and global conversation was held to discuss technology, digital and social media, and how these influence and relate to the Rio+20 conversations.

 

Girls learn how to use computers in a training mobile van parked near their homes in Guna district in Madhya Pradesh, India. The training program is supported by the NGO, Great India Dream Foundation.

© 2010 Anil Gulati, Courtesy of Photoshare

Rio+Social or #RioPlusSocial, brought people together in person and virtually to discuss how we can innovate using new media and technology to produce sustainable development. There was the ability for everyone to share their voice with just a simple tweet. Never before has there been the opportunity to join people together so easily to share ideas and opinions using a simple platform with a simple common hashtag (#RioPlusSocial). 

Throughout the nine-hour day, there were speakers from various sectors: technology, international development, social media, traditional media, and others. One main theme was about collaborating to make change. Using social media and technology is a great way to achieve collaboration, especially working with people in different geographic areas.