Telephone Service Links Interpreters and Doctors
Interpreters who can help doctors communicate with patients who speak Haitian Creole, Somali, Twi, and 150 other languages are just a phone call away, thanks to a nonprofit organization in Portland, Ore. The Institute for Cultural Competency uses a sophisticated telephone routing service to join…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
A small but growing number of charities and advocacy groups are using podcasts, or Internet radio programs, ALSO SEE:Casting Call to discuss issues of interest to nonprofit groups and to get the public interested in their causes. Podcasts are audio files that people can download automatically to…
By PETER PANEPENTO
Contributor
Unicef turns to Internet-based podcasting to communicate with millions of tech-savvy supportersWhen Unicef dispatched relief workers to Congo in December to help those who were uprooted during fighting in the ALSO SEE:Charity Podcasts: a Sampler African country, Unicef’s supporters didn’t have to…
By PETER PANEPENTO
Contributor
Bits: Reuters Digital Vision Program Accepting Applications
The Reuters Digital Vision Program is accepting applications for the 2006-7 academic year. The program at Stanford University supports social entrepreneurs from around the world who seek to use information technology to advance humanitarian, educational, or development goals in the developing…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Searching for Information Produces Benefits for Charity
A new search engine, GoodSearch.com, allows its users to select their favorite charity or school to receive a portion of the advertising revenue the company earns for their searches. The site uses Yahoo search technology. GoodSearch estimates that each search will produce a penny for the user’s…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Major Technology Meeting Scheduled for March
The Nonprofit Technology Conference, which drew nearly 800 charity technology officials, consultants, and companies last year, will take place March 22-24 in Seattle. The meeting is organized by the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network, in San Francisco, with financial help from Network for Good…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Foundations Delay Technology Updates
The rate at which foundations are adopting new technology has slowed in recent years, according to a survey of 336 grant makers conducted by the Technology Affinity Group and the Council on Foundations. The survey’s author attributes the change to the “sluggish” economy, which caused the endowments…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
CompuMentor Offers Free Web Advice
CompuMentor, a technology organization in San Francisco, has started a project to help nonprofit organizations take advantage of a new generation of low-cost Web tools. The centerpiece of the project — TechSoup NetSquared — is a Web site that features profiles of charities using Web 2.0…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
A growing number of nonprofit groups are recruiting people to perform charitable service onlineFive years ago, Ruth Volk, a stay-at-home mother in Eagan, Minn., was eager to find a way to use her free time to ALSO SEE:How Online Service Helps Young and Old help others. But with four young children,…
By Rebecca Gardyn
Contributor
New York organization aims to provide low-cost computer support and train new technical workersNew York As he sits at his desk in midtown Manhattan, William Mejia is providing much-needed help with computer hardware and software to a handful of charities miles away. Mr. Mejia is basically a geek on…
By Michael Anft
Contributor
Bits: Innovation Funders Network Holds “Networks, Innovation, and Social Change” Meeting
Randal D. Pinkett, a consultant in Newark, N.J., who serves as a board member of the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network and is a frequent speaker at nonprofit technology conferences, was the winner on the NBC reality television show The Apprentice. Mr. Pinkett chose to work on the construction…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Eight Youth Programs Win Multimedia Grants
A network of more than 1,000 local technology organizations has awarded grants of $20,000 each to eight charities for their after-school programs. The Community Technology Centers’ Network, in Washington, awarded the money as part of its Youth Visions for Stronger Neighborhoods project, which…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
New Navigation Tools Aid Food Charity
Technology developed by the U.S. Department of Defense to help ships and airplanes with navigation is now being used by the D.C. Central Kitchen to streamline its services. The charity — which collects unserved food from local restaurants and other businesses to prepare 4,000 meals per day for 100…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Caught in the Crossfire of Disaster and War
Charities in Sri Lanka struggle to meet the needs of tsunami victims and those affected by civil conflict Tiriyai, Sri Lanka Arunachalam Sundararajah looks east to the Sri Lankan coastline with a feeling that resembles envy. Many families on the shore live in new houses or own new fishing boats…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Bits: U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Receives $500,000 Grant
Randal D. Pinkett, president of Building Community Technology Partners, in Newark, N.J., and a frequent speaker at nonprofit technology conferences, is a contestant on the NBC reality television show, The Apprentice. For more information: Go to http://www.nbc.com/The_Apprentice_4. The U.S. Hispanic…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Four Organizations Win Internet Awards
The ePhilanthropy Foundation has presented its awards for excellence in nonprofit use of the Internet. The March of Dimes, in White Plains, N.Y., won the award for best “community building, volunteerism, or activism campaign” for its Share Your Story Web site, which allows families of premature…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor