Posts
new tech-inspired social benefit entertainment experience created by Nokia and Heroes creator Tim Kring.Try saying that really quickly!
Excerpt:
By Benjamin Snyder, contributor
"With over 10,000 libraries opened worldwide and 7.4 million books already distributed to children in its 10 years, Room to Read -- a nonprofit that promotes global literacy -- aspires to curb the staggering figure of 759 million illiterate adults living in emerging nations.
"If every charity was run with more of a business focus, the world would be a better place," says John Wood, a former senior executive at Microsoft before founding Room to Read in 2000. "We've created what I consider to be a hybrid organization -- the best of charity merged with the best of business."
The organization's goal is to raise $30 million in 2010. In 2009, Room to Read raised $28.3 million in cash and stock -- well above its $23 million goal and a 28% increase over its 2008 contributions.
Technology is key for the company to achieve its goals. The Salesforce.com Foundation has donated Salesforce CRM licenses to help Room to Read build their Global Solutions Database (GSD), a tracking system for the nonprofit's projects in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Zambia. The GSD keeps tabs on Room to Read's implementation timeline, the number of students and teachers being supported, and the percentage of community contribution. This technology helps the company report figures to its donors.
"Technology has been an invaluable tool that's allowed us to reach out to our current investors as well as introduce ourselves to new supporters," explains Wood. "Twitter has opened the door to an entirely new base of supporters for us -- now almost 430,000 strong -- and we like being able to reach out to them on a real-time basis about our latest news or stories they may find interesting." Room to Read was Twitter's first corporate social innovation sponsor.
Room to Read recently announced involvement with the "Conspiracy for Good" initiative, described as a "new tech-inspired social benefit entertainment experience created by Nokia and Heroes creator Tim Kring." Through this project, Room to Read and Nokia will build five libraries in Zambia, while also funding the education of 50 Zambian girls."
read more:
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/07/14/how-technology-can-help-spread-literacy/
No comments:
Post a Comment