|
Originally published on 05/28/2002
Last week I talked with Ethan Zuckerman, the founder of Geekcorps, the "Peace Corps for Geeks." At the time, Ethan wasn't aware that he was about to receive MIT Technology Review's 2002 award for Technology in the Service of Humanity. The award was given because Geekcorps is bridging a very large digital divide, by bringing technology access to third-world countries.
Fast Facts:
Geekcorps
www.geekcorps.org |
Exec.
director |
Ethan Zuckerman. Previous job: VP R&D at Lycos and Tripod
|
| HQ |
North Adams, MA
|
| Employees |
10
|
| Volunteers |
10 in the field now; about 1,200 in the database
|
| Market |
Nonprofit technology aid
|
| Funding |
$1.1M. Largest contract is from USAID.
|
But it's not like Ethan parachutes into impoverished villages and sets up community iMacs with solar-powered satellite links. Rather, Geekcorps brings technology expertise to businesses in developing metropolitan regions so that those companies can join the global economy. It does this because while we may argue about the true value of the Internet and debate Web services, a company that wants to work within almost any modern trading system simply must connect with other businesses' computer systems and information processes.
Demand for Geekcorps is coming from the "craziest places," Ethan says, like Rwanda. The country is one of the most impoverished in the world. It has been decimated by genocide. Ninety percent of the population is engaged in agriculture, mostly at the subsistence level. Yet the Rwandan government sees IT as critical to the country's recovery; the goal is to set up offshore data processing centers. This will require technology, educational, and economic infrastructures. Each Geekcorps volunteer works one-on-one with a business (like an ISP) to help them with the technology part.
Last August, Geekcorps became a part of International Executive Service Corps, a volunteer organization that places business experts in companies in developing regions.
There are several aid organizations that help communities with basic education, health, housing, and farming. But to truly join the global economy, for better or worse, communities have to connect, not just survive.
- Rafe Needleman
email: rafe-needleman@catchoday.com
|
