Girls In Tech

Girls in Tech is a proud supporter of the “Boom Boom! Revolution,” which recently launched its Boom Boom! App, allowing iPhone and iPod touch users to easily share the acts of kindness experienced in everyday life. The “Everyday Boom Boom!” (EBB!) is any underground act of guerilla goodness performed by an individual. The Boom Boom! App allows users a platform to acknowledge and celebrate these acts of kindness   while on-the-go.

The Boom Boom! App expands on the online kindness community where “Agents of Altruism” post about their experiences with acts of kindness cards and their everyday encounters with guerilla goodness. After downloading the app, the next time you witness random acts of kindness or are the recipient of someone else’s guerilla goodness, just snap a picture, tell the story of what happened and upload it to the Everyday Boom Boom! stream. This “Good Stream” allows users to stay informed of what’s happening in the world, contribute the good they witness or instigate and be a part of the conversation that’s celebrating what’s right with the world.

To download the free Boom Boom! App and join the uprising of guerilla goodness™, visit: Free app.
To learn more about the physical kindness cards decks, Boom Boom! Cards, visit: Kindness cards decks.

Tags: Adriana Gascoigne, Boom Boom App, girls in tech, iphone, Kindness, Philanthropy, Social Entrepreneurship, women in tech
Posted in Girls In Tech | No Comments »

The Intersection Event, a one-day conference that will provide a select group of participants intimate access to people who are using creativity in business innovation to profoundly change the world, today announced the speakers for its inaugural event, set for Saturday, January 14, 2012 at Pixar Studios in Emeryville, CA. During this unparalleled day-long experience, some of the most respected innovators in the world converge with leading social change agents to tackle some of the greatest issues of our time.

“The Intersection reflects a change in how philanthropy is being delivered to the world,” said Randy Haykin, founder of The Intersection Event. “Rather than following the old model of charitable giving, we will explore new social entrepreneur model where the best of business innovation meets and accelerates social change.

The Intersection Event will forge an “intersection” of ideas and commentary between leading innovators from academia, entrepreneurship, technology and entertainment with the goal of uncovering new ideas, tools, and “intersections” that can be applied to attendees’ personal or professional projects and inspiring the birth of new social impact projects. Speakers will spend the day prior to the event, January 13, 2012, together as a group, considering topics that will be shared with the audience at The Intersection Event.

Headlining this year’s gathering are: actress and UNICEF ambassador, Susan Sarandon, technology expert and CTO of Walt Disney, Greg Brandeau; the entrepreneurial founder of AOL, Steve Case; passionate leader and VP of Google, Marissa Mayer; global change agent and President of Ashoka, Diana Wells; social activist and SVP of Word Vision International, Dr. Chris Pitt; computer scientist and President of Pixar Animation Studios, Dr. Ed Catmull; Executive Director and Founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), Paul Rieckhoff; design connoisseur and CEO of IDEO, Tim Brown; business strategy authority and director of Deloitte Center for the Edge, John Hagel III; education expert and professor at Harvard Business School, Linda Hill; young entrepreneur and Chief Executive Partner of Ashoka Changemakers, Benjamin Wald; innovation facilitator and Chief Solver of KILN, Gregg Fraley; collaboration specialist and author of The Medici Effect, Frans Johansson; teacher, minister and third generation yogi, Guru Singh; and moderator Randy Haykin who is a professor at UC Berkley and UC Cambridge, as well as founder of Haykin Capital, The Intersection Event and The Gratitude Network.

The Intersection Event will be the first of its kind to utilize a format that includes a pre-event for speakers to strategize on the topics to be discussed at the conference, as well as a one-day conference with proceeds from the event being donated to The Gratitude Network, a new foundation that supports social entrepreneurship.

Future announcements about The Intersection Event will be made regarding other guests and event updates.  To learn more about The Intersection Event or The Gratitude Fund, visit www.intersectionevent.com.

Tags: Adriana Gascoigne, girls in tech, Intersection Event, Philanthropy, Social Entrepreneurship, women in tech
Posted in All Chapters, San Francisco | No Comments »

Follow me @MsSonicflare
I had the pleasure to chat with Shari Goetsch, Director of Digital Media Communications from SeeYourImpact. A great non-profit organization of making a difference whether you would like to contribute in a small or large scale.

Tell us more about SeeYourImpact.org, your role and your team?

SeeYourImpact.org is a non-profit that shows donors exactly who they’re helping and how. If you give a $25 home garden to a woman in Rwanda, we’ll email you the photo and story of the real person you helped in just 2 weeks. We want people to know exactly how their donation impacts a life. In fact, we’re so committed to the idea that we ensure 100% of your donation goes to the gift you selected.

We’re a start-up technology organization, which makes us a little different. Our focus is on helping effective non-profits leverage technology to show you who your donations are helping. We let you help people directly in countries all over the world. If you’re passionate about water, $10 will help build a well for a family in Cambodia. Or if you’re passionate about girls’ education, you can cover the monthly tuition of a child in India for $20.

Sometimes, it’s hard for people to believe they can make a tangible difference. My role at the organization is to help empower people to take that first step. We launched last year in September 2010. Our team of volunteers and supporters is growing quickly. Our job as a team is to make your giving experience so unforgettable that you’ll want to tell your friends.

Tell us more about SeeYourImpact and the initiatives you’re currently working on?

Currently, we’re helping people find inventive ways to make philanthropy a part of their every day lives. For example, children like Ellie are dedicating their birthdays to fundraise for people in need. Parents want to raise kids who give back, but it’s usually so hard to teach children what that ethereal concept “philanthropy” is all about. But when a child raises money, and in a matter of days, they see the face of a person they helped, suddenly giving is brought to life. And it’s not just the youngest of the citizen philanthropists who are getting involved. Businesswomen are donating their birthdays. Even couples are dedicating their wedding registries.

One mom whose children are from Ethiopia recently reached out to us. She had been watching the devastating famine in East Africa unfold on the news, and she knew she had to do something. Her adopted children could have been 2 of the many children who have died from hunger. So she launched a campaign called Ask $5 for 5 to deliver life-saving food and water. Over 700 people are already involved! It’s easy to help, and I hope you’ll consider joining us.

Where does SeeYourImpact.org work?

We have over 100 innovative gift solutions in 18 different countries. We’re in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and we’re also partnering with organizations doing powerful work here in the US.

What’s next for SeeYourImpact.org? How can corporations help make a difference?

We tailor partnerships to the vision of the organization. Some companies boost staff morale through employee campaigns. Others provide matching gifts. Still others look for ways to promote our work to their customers. In every case, we look for ways to show the results of the company’s work. Not just in contributions raised, but also by showing how people have been helped.

You’ve mentioned using technology as the means to drive this effort; what type of technologies drives this initiative?

We customize open-source technologies that receive broad developer support. We look for solutions that provide flexibility and stability, in addition to the creativity that comes with an army of free developers. We see social media as content delivery platform that connects our supporters to one another and to their Impact Stories. By using Facebook connect, we can send the updates of which the donor is helping to them through email or to Facebook. When people share their Impact Stories in their news feed, it invites their friends to get involved. And that’s a crucial part of our strategy. We know most organizations spend a lot on fundraising. But we think this is a new era. People don’t want to see organizations spending their donations on fundraising. They want to see their contributions going to work. By integrating with viral platforms, we help people share our work through word-of-mouth recommendations, and that’s the best way someone can hear about us for the first time.

 How can we help spread the word?

1.Go to Seeyourimpact.org and learn more about our work.

2. Women entrepreneurs: look for a way to give back through your company! Contact us, or set up a business page.

3. Upcoming women leaders and entrepreneurs: volunteer! If you’re looking for a way to use your skills to give back, we’d love to connect you with an opportunity to change the world. Email us.

So what are you waiting for? Spread the word and make a difference today!

Follow me @MsSonicFlare

Tags: ivolukas, mssonicflare, nonprofit, Philanthropy, seeyourimpact
Posted in All Chapters, All Chapters, Girls In Tech, Portland | No Comments »

Last Saturday I attended the Craigslist Foundation Bootcamp in Berkeley, California. I honestly didn’t know what to expect, however, was pleasantly surprised with the massive turnout and the caliber of talent and knowledge that was circulating throughout the UC Berkeley campus.

Thousands of passionate people gathered to translate ideas into reality and meet and greet with some of the innovators in the space. The theme was less about the non-profit sector and being philanthropic and more about how to create sustainable, automated change through technology, and even more specifically internet tools and web resources.

My favorite panel was on Social Entrepreneurship presented by Jonathan Greenblatt from the Anderson School and Nora Silver from Haas School of Business. This session provided case studies and information behind brands integrating social good themes within their products appealing to a certain segment of the consumer population.

Interface, Ethos Water, and TOMS, achieve widespread brand recognition and record sales while remaining true to their original principles. The session also integrated a hands-on workshop that enabled us to connect with our neighbors to discuss what social enterprise means to us. My neighbor and I decided that it is the intersection between passion and execution. You can’t have one without the other to succeed in this space.

Another highlight was learning more about the Extraordinaries, which proposes to deliver skills-based volunteer tasks to people whenever and wherever they are available by mobile phone. Essentially it’s crowdsourcing on steroids.

Over 80% of the adult U.S. population carries a mobile phone in his or her pocket and the higher-end of these diminuative devices, so called “smartphones,” are as capable as any laptop computer. Nearly anything that can be done on a personal computer can be done on a smartphone. The Extraordinaries dramatically reduce the barriers to giving back by enabling people to volunteer on-the-spot and on-demand.

I left the Bootcamp inspired and even more amped about what technology can do to help the world around us and those in need.

*photos courtesy of the Craigslist Foundation

Tags: Adriana Gascoigne, Berkeley, Craigslist Foundation, Craigslist Foundation Bootcamp, Extraordinaries, girls in tech, Non-profit, Philanthropy, Social Good, UC Berkeley
Posted in San Francisco | 1 Comment »