Concerns for the death or dismemberment of thousands of noncombatants throughout the world from hidden land mines led in 1992 to the formation of a nongovernmental organization (NGO) to mobilize constituencies toward banning land mines. As one solution to the problem, the new International Campaign to Ban Landmines proposed a multilateral treaty to bind nations. Initially, none of the major nations of the world subscribed. Nevertheless, a grassroots campaign highlighted by the use of online technologies to coordinate many international organizations into an effective network and the savvy use of media networks led to the signing by more than 140 countries to the Mine Ban Treaty. The 1997 Nobel Prize award for this accomplishment went not only to the organizational network but also to Jody Williams, the “coordinator” who utilized the Internet to maximum capacity.
The Rise of NETPOLITIK: How the Internet Is Changing International Politics and Diplomacy