Brian Cruikshank
A personal goal in my life is to do all I can do to help social movements develop and thrive. For many years now I’ve thought about and participated in many movements for social change. I’ve wondered a lot about how I could best make a difference. Inequality is rampant everywhere and it doesn’t have to be this way. What can I do to help change things for the better? It is more important now than ever before to really pressure those in power to do the right thing.
The Internet has brought with it a wave of new organizing possibilities. It has never been easier for people to communicate across vast geographic areas. Where we once had one-to-one conversations over the phone and one-to-many conversations through TV, we now have many-to-many conversations happening everywhere and all the time through the Internet. In this way, communications have never been more democratic.
I have found my niche by working to help social movements and organizations utilize this new paradigm and to ultimately bring about a better world for us all. Below you’ll see my resume and some of the skills I’ve picked up along the way.
Skills
Technical:
- WordPress and Drupal site development
- HTML, HTML5, CSS, jQuery, PHP
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Internet marketing
- Website performance, caching, and optimization
- Image editing, especially using Adobe Photoshop
- Website hosting and maintenance
- Git, Subversion (version-control systems)
- Microsoft Office: Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, OneNote
- Operating Systems: Microsoft Windows 98 to 7, Unix / Linux
- Google Apps management
- Democracy in Action’s Salsa platform
- Listserv management
- Producing and editing professional video content
- Recording and streaming events live over the Internet
- Fixing and building new computers
Non-technical:
- Online and Offline Advocacy Campaigning
- Online Marketing and Promotion
- Using Social Media for Advocacy
- Photography and Filming
- Congressional Lobbying
- Making the Most Delicious Fruit Smoothies
Work History
Freelance Web Developer / Social Media Consultant
Aug. 2009 – Present
- Developer of The Occupied Washington Times at owt.occupydc.org
- Developer of guerrilla-drive-in.com
- Developer of humanbannersf.com
- Webmaster of USuncut.org
- Developer of AndrewBoyd.com
- Developer of KochBlocked.com
- Developer of SaySorrySarah.com
- Developer of whatthefuckwouldyoudowith700billiondollars.com
- Developer and webmaster of RepubliCorp.us for MoveOn.org campaign
- Developer and webmaster of DeclareIndependence.org
- Developer and webmaster of Other98.com / TheOther95.com
- Developer and webmaster of BillionairesForWealthcare.com
- Developer of ItCouldHappenToAnyone.com for MoveOn.org campaign
- Developer of NoMoreBrokenHearts.org and ColumbiaVisit.org
- Developer and consultant of social media strategy on many Facebook/Twitter/YouTube pages
Institute for Policy Studies
Tech / Web Production Consultant
Jul. 2009 – Present
- Web consultant of Institute for Policy Studies, Washington, DC and Boston, MA
- Developer of Inequality.org
- Developer of Demilitarize.org
- Developer and webmaster of LocalCircles.org / CommonSecurityClub.org
- Developer of CloseTheBase.org
- Content producer for MinutemanMedia.org
- Developer of Drupal websites including NigerDeltaRising.org, NewEconomyWorkingGroup.org
- Technical assistance in other website projects include IPS-DC.org, IPS’s Facebook page, EarthbeatRadio.org, DIA Salsa administration
- Filmed a pre-G20 event and the Letelier-Moffitt Human Rights Awards
- Filmed and produced 3/9/10 protest video Breaking the Law for Healthcare
- Filmed and produced 5/17/10 protest video K Street Showdown in Washington, DC
Student Trade Justice Campaign
Elected to National Steering Committee
Jun. 2007 – Jul. 2009
Policy / Research Coordinator / Webmaster
- Make high-level decisions on the direction of STJC
- Coordinate and organize national actions and national conferences
- Facilitate and participate in weekly national conference calls
- Developer of TradeActionCamp.com
Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch
Jan. 2008 – Mar. 2008
Internship in Washington, DC
- Create targeted email blasts and sent them to thousands of PC supporters
- Led GTW’s grassroots organizing effort for USW Toxic trade Campaign helping coordinate over 100 events across the Midwest.
- Research assistance for GTW reports and publications
Activities
- Participated in half a dozen congressional lobby visits on a range of issues including trade policy, climate change, and green jobs.
- Attended dozens of conferences and activist trainings around the country including Power Shift ’09, Power Shift ’11, International Forum on Globalization, U.S. Social Forum 2007, U.S. Social Forum 2010, United Students for Fair Trade, and Amnesty International Western Regional’s.
- Affiliations with campus advocacy groups including Students for Peace and Justice, Amnesty International, Students for Sustainability, and Darfur Action Committee.
- Lived and studied in Caracas, Venezuela from June to August 2008.
- Traveled to all 50 states and almost 2 dozen other countries around the world and Antarctica.
Education
Graduated from University of California, Irvine in June 2008
- B.S. in Information & Computer Science
- B.A. in Sociology
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Brian Cruikshank
Location: Washington, DC
Email: brian (at) brianswebstudio.com