YouSpeak – The Ins and Outs of an Online Debating Community

Presenter: Mihailescu Andrei Iustin, Teodora Graur

Abstract: This presentation will regard the ins and outs of the YouSpeak project – from how one could get funding for an online debating project, website development, persuasion techniques for people to enter the project, marketing techniques for people outside the academic debating community, keeping participants interested in the project throughout the duration of the tournament to designing a special debating format suitable for the internet.

At the time being, YouSpeak will initiate the first of 3 rounds of the debating tournament (the resolutions have been chosen in accordance with the Romanian reality, so-to-say). Approximately 160 teams confirmed their participation in the first round of the tournament.