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In Brief
News and Items of Interest for September
Nonprofit E-learning Survey
Isoph and N-TEN are co-sponsoring the first-ever survey of nonprofit organizations' use of e-learning technologies. They will publicly release the survey results and provide an opportunity for discussion online and at N-TEN's series of regional conferences, and, as further incentive, a randomly chosen respondent will win an Apple iPod. The survey will remain open through September 15, 2004, and we encourage your participation.
Participate in the nonprofit e-learning survey >>
Digital Divide: Technology and Learning in Developing Nations
In “No Excuses: The Power of Knowledge,” Jonathon Levy, senior learning strategist at Monitor Group, asserts creativity can overcome a lack in infrastructure in delivering education online in developing countries. He also argues that addressing technical infrastructure issues is likely more appropriate than re-creating an academic model: “[W]hile much of the thinking around just-in-time learning is aimed at knowledge workers in industrialized nations, such integrated knowledge systems have profound application in less-developed nations as well. There, the need is great, and traditional academic infrastructure cannot move quickly enough to keep up with the demand. An entirely new ‘disruptive model’ of learning--just-in-time learning--can help those nations leapfrog past the industrialized nations, where corporations have huge sunk costs in older technologies that mitigate against imaginative futuristic solutions.”
Read “No Excuses: The Power of Knowledge” (PDF) >>
“Access, Culture and a ‘Hole in the Wall’” looks at bridging the digital divider with just technology--and no instruction. In 1999, the now well known experiment called “hole in the wall” was conducted in New Delhi; a team installed a wired computer kiosk in a wall where many children passed and left it there. A month later, street children in the area had new-found and impressive functional computer literacy, acquired with little to no instruction. There are now 96 computers located in 26 kiosks in India and Cambodia. Sugata Mitra, one of those behind the initial experiment and ongoing work, described this type of learning as “minimally invasive education.” In an interview, Mitra discusses the original experiment, subsequent findings, and implications.
Read the interview at interaction.org >>
Funding the Sector
On August 24, Pierre and Pam Omidyar launched the Omidyar Network, opening http://www.omidyar.net/ to the public. Based on the core belief that “every individual has the power to make a difference,” Omidyar Network will fund for-profit and nonprofit organizations. Since its founding in June, the Omidyar Network has funded efforts in microfinance, bottom-up media, open source, intellectual property, voting, and social software.
Read more about the Omidyar Network on Pierre Omidyar’s blog >>
Daniel Rabuzzi, CEO of the Leader to Leader Institute, explores some relatively new avenues for funding social ventures in “Looking for Likely Allies: New Capital for the Social Sector.” His ideas--and those of others he mentions in the article--include university endowments and state and local economic development agencies.
Read the article at onPhilanthropy.com >>
Accessibility
In “Clear Writing Critical,” Natalie Ames, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University, argues that the literacy level of print materials produced by nonprofits for educational and informational purposes is often higher than that of their primary audiences, creating a significant barrier to accessibility.
Read the full opinion piece in the Philanthropy Journal >>
Thought Leaders
The NonProfit Times has released its annual “Power and Influence Top 50.” When thinking about the sector’s ability to change the world, these people may play an influential role.
Download the list as a PDF from The NonProfit Times >>
Conferences and Events
Blackbaud’s fifth annual “Conference on Philanthropy” will be held in Charleston, SC, October 3 through 6. Cynthia Round, executive vice president of brand strategy and marketing at the United Way of America, will keynote. Isoph staff will be attending the conference and exhibiting--please drop by our table!
Find out more at blackbaud.com >>
From October 7 to 10, the Library & Information Technology Association hosts its national forum in St. Louis, MO. The theme is “10 Years of Connectivity: Libraries, the World Wide Web, and the Next Decade.” Isoph’s chief creative officer will present on a panel on online learning and training for library staff, along with representatives from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and WebJunction.
Read more about the conference agenda at lita.org >>
N-TEN, the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network, is holding two upcoming regional conferences: in Washington, DC, on October 14 and in Chicago October 19. The regional conferences provide an opportunity for those interested in helping nonprofits use technology more effectively to learn from experts in the field, meet their peers, and share information and resources.
For more information and to register, visit nten.org >>
The North Carolina Center for Nonprofits will hold its annual conference, “Engaging People for Change: Nonprofits Take the Lead,” October 28 and 29 in Research Triangle Park.
For more information and to register, visit ncnonprofits.org >>
From November 9 through 11, the Technology Affinity Group will hold a conference, "The Impact of Technology in Today's Philanthropic Organization," at the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City. Bill Tucker, chief knowledge officer at Isoph, will speak on an e-learning panel.
Learn more about the conference at tagtech.org >>
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