Say "environmental activism" and a cell phone's probably not likely to be the first thing to pop into your head. But the residents of Xiamen, China, have just demonstrated how effective the now-ubiquitous technology can be in drumming up and focusing community opposition to environmental harm.  When word broke that a new chemical factory was about to be built in their relatively unconaminated coastal city, residents used their cell phones to text warnings to everyone they knew, until they had reached just about everyone in the city. Earlier this week, the city announced that they were halting construction.  Activists say the use of the cell phones allowed them to bypass government controls that would hinder organizine on the internet.

Source: Mitchell Landsberg, Chinese activists turn to cellphones.  Los Angeles Times, June 1.