Archive for the ‘social responsibility’ Category

How the Government Can Do Good with Less – BusinessWeek

Business Week’s latest feature takes a look at the role government can play in innovating for our future.
This year’s 16 finalists for the Innovations in American Government Awards, given each year since 1986 by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance & Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, illustrate ways [...]

Good to be Green: Walking

I attended the Greener Living Show in Toronto on Friday. It was refreshing to see the different kinds of products and services that can help reduce your impact on the environment. Like most people, I didn’t realise how good it is to live green. From organic cotton underwear to drinking local wine, the Greener Living [...]

Peter Orszag on Blogging

Director of the Office of Management and Budget for President Obama’s administration, Peter Orszag, speaks to the importance of blogging as a means of transparency and immediate reporting.
The guy talks like a huge nerd which, given his role, is a really good thing.

A Word About The Man: Paul Newman

As you may have heard recently, legendary actor and philanthropist, Paul Newman, passed away at the end of September at the ripe age of 83.

Got $10? Stop the spread of Malaria.

We all know little things can make a huge difference. Take microfinancing as an example. Unfortunately, little things can also have devastating effects. Like mosquitos carrying malaria and biting you when you sleep.
Malaria kills more than 1 million children a year.
So what can we do about it? Well recently I heard about Nothing [...]

Give and Get

BusinessWeek reports on the OLPC’s initiative to sell bundles of XO laptops, one for the purchaser and one to be donated, in a two week span this November. The move came after the OLPC group recognized the buzz around the XO and after a few “verbal” deals with developing nations fell through. (Why anyone would [...]

NYT on MIT: Low Technologies, High Aims

If it isn’t apparent by now, I have a soft spot for simple technology being used to assist developing nations.
The New York Times has a great write up on a small but significant group of folks at MIT that use “concrete thinking to improve the lives of the world’s bottom billion, those who live on [...]

OLPC ‘XO’ Wins At Index Awards

dezeen reports that the XO snared the ‘Community’ nomination at the Index awards. You got to love an award showcase that has a zero-emissions car as the winner in the ‘Play’ category.

OLPC XO Laptop Walkthrough

Finally a nice little walk through of this amazing little universal laptop designed for children in developing nations. Key points:

The XO is specifically designed for kids: small keys, trackpad, and size
Manufactured for around $140
They will ship them in orders of 1 million
Includes some overview of the amazing Pentagram-designed software interface
Switch between color and monochromatic display [...]

OLPC Update

Looks like Intel has signed on as a partner and the final round of beta machines have been made. Follow this progress timeline for complete information.