Worlds Touch-- the travelertrish branch-- goes on the road in a scant two weeks and I'm still looking for work.
Who plans a ten-month world circumnavigation where the goal is not temples, museums, palaces, interesting handicraft bazaars and camel, elephant, barge and bus rides? I won't be sightseeing, birdwatching, camping along nature trails or mountain climbing, even though I'll be in the foothills of the highest mountains in the world.
What I most want to do is Worlds Touch's mission: help nonprofits working to turn back the tide of poverty to use the technology at their disposal. Most of us realize we only use about ten per cent of our brain power, and roughly about that of our computers' capacity as well. For us in the "developed" world, we are still using our computers as glorified typewriters and adding machines and the internet for our post office. There is, however, a lively and committed group of technology consultants-- call them eRiders, nonprofit techies, community tech workers, eAdvocates, or simply nonprofit geeks-- working passionately to leverage the power of information and communications technology to promote social justice, to encourage and support grassroots communities, to exercise their democratic civic responsibilities.
I discovered these people online myself, twiddling my thumbs in beautiful downtown Kathmandu last summer, while I waited for my dear technophobic friend at the NGO where I volunteered to notice I'd built her a custom database that, elsewhere, would have cost thousands. The activist tech community taught me why I was having so much trouble installing my database, taught me to plan for technological change, and added a whole suitcase of free and inexpensive tools to my bag of techie tricks and tips.
My goal, starting January 10, is to land, find local geeks, find local nonprofits, roll up my sleeves and see what I can contribute. I've got several sources of contacts: I'm a 2006 Rotary International Cultural Ambassador/Scholar, so one of my first stops will be the local Rotary Clubs. I put out a call on the listservs I belong to, the Information Systems Forum, the Interider list for international tech consultants, the Digital Divide network, NTEN (Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network), and the other Riders lists. I also belong to a hospitality and peace organization called Servas, where hosts and their traveling guests create World Peace, one friendship at a time.
The contract: I provide technical assistance in exchange for room and board. I offer these services to nonprofits, nongovernmental organizations and charities working on issues of poverty, microfinance, disability, health, education, housing, and social justice. Here's what I can offer:
Technology inventory
Technology training
Strategic technology planning
Basic computer training in Microsoft Office programs
Database design and construction
Web site design and construction
Internet research and training in internet use
Tricks and tips for maximizing technology impact on the organization's mission
Here's where I'll be:
Jan 12-28: Papeete, Tahiti
Jan 28-Mar 16: Noumea, New Caledonia
Mar 26-May 21: Bangkok, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam (depending on requests for services)
May 28-Aug 12: Kathmandu, Nepal
Aug 15-Nov 15: Darjeeling, India (as Rotary Cultura Scholar, studying the Nepali language)
Email me with introductions, requests for services, invitations to dinner, and suggestions! I'm ready to get to work!
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