Is Your Nonprofit in the Cloud? Transformative Stories from Malaysian and Indonesian Nonprofits Who Made the Move

The invention of cloud computing – the technology that enables people to collaborate with data anywhere, anytime – dates back to the 1960s, but widespread adoption of the technology emerged with the launch of AWS in the early 2000s.

The technology is not new, so it was alarming when social enterprise Infoxchange launched their 2023 Asia-Pacific NGO Digital Capability Report and found that only 27% of respondents reported they had already moved to the cloud.

Cloud-based tools help organisations enhance efficiencies and drive impactful change. Across the last year, a number of Malaysian and Indonesian nonprofits were selected as a part of the Asia-Pacific Digital Transformation Program, with support from Google.org, and TechSoup Asia-Pacific assisted in the process of migrating to the cloud. In this article, we’ll share three case studies of how this technology migration has helped to accelerate impact.


Reef Check Malaysia: Online collaboration to preserve marine biodiversity

 Reef Check Malaysia is dedicated to marine conservation, focusing on protecting coral reefs vital to marine biodiversity and coastal communities. The organisation relies heavily on data collection and analysis to monitor reef health, assess human impact, and guide conservation efforts.

The team underwent a cloud migration process to assist with their ability to report and provide evidence of impact. Before, obtaining this data and evidence involved laborious back and forth via emails with no unified source of information.

“Our team is scattered across islands in Malaysia, so it’s been incredible being able to simply tag staff in a document to respond to different items and not have information get lost. It’s also ensured documents are safer – instead of having one login for our entire drive,” shared Theresa Ng, Chief Operating Officer at Reef Check Malaysia.

For Theresa’s team, moving to the cloud has enabled them to be more strategic in their approach to marine conversation. “We now have a more systematic approach to capturing data and be more evidence focused. For example, we can track how many ghost nets have been removed across different areas where our projects are because we can accurately track that data and make it available to the organisation,” she shared.

Accessing cloud platforms enables integration of various data resources. Once Reef Check Malaysia improves access and visibility of data, this opens the door to powerful analytics capabilities, helping volunteers, staff or even scientists synthesize large datasets to identify threats and trends to coral ecosystems.

And with teams spread widely across islands in different locations, cloud-based tools can facilitate stronger real-time communication and coordination. This ensures project updates, new findings and critical decisions can be shared instantly, enhancing the responsiveness and agility of conservation efforts.

Researchers, local communities and staff can also easily access and contribute to a growing repository of knowledge.


Solar Chapter Indonesia: Improving water access for under-developed communities

Solar Chapter Indonesia focuses on improving access to water for remote communities in Indonesia. Many community members are forced to walk three miles to access clean drinking water. The team at Solar Chapter aims to bring that down to a three minute walk.

With staff located across the country, they faced challenges in collaboration. Many staff were storing information in siloed locations (such as personal Google drives), and the organisation didn’t have one single source of truth for their data.

The team went through a Google Workspace migration process, which allowed them to collaborate in a team account where information is stored in a collective location that can be accessed from anywhere in Indonesia and globally. This helped dramatically improve the team’s ability to collaborate, even when working remotely.

“Moving to the cloud has allowed us to work from anywhere. Now we can work more productively and effectively, with no more issues with drive access because we are now using shared drives,” shared Aini Mutia, Communications Coordinator at Solar Chapter Indonesia.

The team now has more time to grow the project. With a small team, this means they can focus on programmatic activities and community engagement to mitigate the water crisis in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. With a goal to engage more young people in their collaborative movement, they can better communicate the project’s needs using impact data and attract more people to their mission.


Zero Waste Malaysia: Promoting sustainable consumption and waste reduction

Zero Waste Malaysia is an organisation dedicated to reducing waste and promoting sustainable consumption practices. The organisation advocates for policies that support waste reduction, runs educational campaigns, and collaborates with businesses to implement zero-waste strategies.

Zero Waste Malaysia has more than 49,000 people in their online Facebook group, so it’s critical that they can have smooth onboarding processes for people who want to participate in the mission.

Before undergoing a digital transformation program, the team were coordinating via siloed systems, through laborious, time-intensive manual processes.

Introducing a streamlined collaborative environment through a process of cloud migration means that the team were able to equip volunteers and corporate clients with the resources necessary from one convenient location.

“We produce a lot of online educational content for groups, teachers and others. None of our four full-timers have sufficient time to train all volunteers or provide educational resources for our corporate clients. Additionally, none of our team are experts on data security, and we needed a more effective system that takes into account security and access of our educational resources for different groups,” shared Tasha Sabapathy, Senior Programme & Communications Officer.

The team underwent a comprehensive overhaul of their digital platforms through a digital transformation plan involving a migration to fully cloud-based platforms, dramatically reducing the time needed to better focus on their mission.

The process of migration has enabled them to improve collaboration among volunteers, optimise workflows, and increase time available to execute on their advocacy and membership growth, bolstering their impact on waste reduction initiatives.

Cloud collaboration is more than just a technological enhancement; it is a transformative force for nonprofits in the Asia-Pacific region. By enabling efficient data management, real-time communication, and scalable resource sharing, cloud-based tools empower organisations like Reef Check Malaysia, Solar Chapter Indonesia, and Zero Waste Malaysia to maximize their impact.

As these organisations continue to address some of the most challenging environmental and humanitarian issues, cloud collaboration will remain a critical component of their strategy, driving innovation, inclusivity, and sustainable development.


Asia-Pacific Digital Transformation in a glimpse

The aforementioned APAC Digital Transformation Program is a year-long initiative led by Infoxchange, with support from Google.org, the Asian Development Bank and delivered in collaboration with TechSoup Asia-Pacific. Across 12 months, 47 participating organisations underwent assessment-driven initiatives such as building their capacity to better utilise existing tech resources, as well as introducing & implementing new solutions & workflows to build operational efficiencies and security.

TechSoup Partners With Asian Venture Philanthropy Network In Facilitating High Impact Philanthropy Across Asia-Pacific

SAN FRANCISCO, March 9 2023: — TechSoup, a global nonprofit organization and global network, recently formalized a partnership with the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) based in Singapore. The collaboration marks the bridging of a critical intersection of philanthropy and the non-profit sector in an increasingly challenging post-pandemic period. 

A key feature of this partnership is AVPN’s use of TechSoup’s Global Validation Services. TechSoup offers a globally trusted vetting service used by hundreds of grantmakers to validate the eligibility of nonprofit organizations, and to date, has facilitated the vetting of more than 220,000 organizations across hundreds of different kinds of NGOs for the world’s largest and most respected philanthropic and socially responsible corporations. The utilization of this service will allow AVPN to validate the eligibility of nonprofit applicants for AVPN’s pooled philanthropic funds, providing a streamlined vetting service as AVPN continues to scale its philanthropic efforts. 

In addition, TechSoup will support AVPN in its efforts to expand its trust-based philanthropy framework throughout Asia Pacific, so that it may serve a progressively diversified social impact landscape. Leading the partnership from TechSoup is Elizabeth Liew, Global Strategic Partnerships & Project Development Manager, who serves on the AVPN Philanthropic Funds Advisory Board, lending 17 years cross-sector experience to advance AVPN’s capital mobilization and funding strategies. “TechSoup is pleased to partner with AVPN and looks forward to supporting impact organizations and funders in various capacities,” she said. 

“With our strategic alignment and mutual intent to increase access to funding for small to  medium-sized impact organizations, we are confident the partnership will continue to expand trust-based philanthropy in Asia-Pacific,” she added. 

This partnership also welcomes TechSoup as AVPN’s newest addition to AVPN’s 600+ member network, comprising a diverse group of social impact investors,  global foundations, family foundations, private equity ventures, government entities, and bilateral agencies who are invested in transforming the social impact landscape in Asia-Pacific. Through this partnership, TechSoup and AVPN are aiming to address funding gaps faced by impact organizations across Asia and thereby mobilize more capital towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

About AVPN 

AVPN is the world’s largest network of Social Investors in Asia, with over 600+ diverse members across 33 markets. Their mission is to close the SDG gaps in Asia, by enabling their members to increase the flow of financial, human, and intellectual capital towards impact. Through sharing knowledge and innovating collaborations between policy makers, family offices, foundations, and the private sector, AVPN improves the effectiveness of capital deployed; bringing to bear the local field needs, regional expertise, and policy insights.

Improving Digital Equity Through Offline Content

Buffalo, Missouri, is aptly named for the bison that roam the territory. A small group of us at Endless OS Foundation recently visited the land of corn, rice, soybeans, and buffalo. Dallas County, Missouri, a region of nearly 35,000 residents, represents many other places in rural America — small-knit community, home-town pride, and an infrastructure that lacks broadband internet due to complicated features of the terrain. For many of the schoolchildren we visited in the county, electricity, much less the internet, is a luxury. During our visit, we learned that our approach to digital equity through the development of offline content resonated with the school district’s IT administrator, science teacher, and students at the local middle school.

This is one of many stories we’re witnessing in the USA and worldwide.

A Library of Learning Resources

In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, Endless OS formed as a nonprofit organization to double down on the work we’d been doing for nearly a decade. At that time, a third of K-12 United States public school students, or 16 million, were digitally disconnected (PDF). In that same year, we developed the Endless Key, a curated collection of K-12 learning resources from content partners like California Academy of Science, Common Sense Media, Khan Academy, Museum of Science, PBS Kids, and TED-Ed that can be accessed via a USB drive on Windows computers. Our goal was, and still is, to focus on learners who were regularly missed when it came to digital access. With the Endless Key USB, we introduced digitally disconnected learners to educator-reviewed e-books, interactive games, and YouTube videos that were readily available on the internet, with the hopes of lessening the digital divide that existed.

As we heard from urban and rural communities across the United States, we went back to work to further expand access to the Endless Key. Two years later, we developed a prototype of our Endless Key app, a downloadable app that can be accessed offline on Windows and Chromebook devices. For devices with limited data storage, and learners who want access to content that focuses on their interests, the app offering has been a game changer. As we begin to scale our community of learners, a question that keeps coming up from educators and learners, including at our recent visit to Buffalo, is, “Can I download this to my phone?” A great question, and one we’ve been hard at work on as we optimize our app for Android phones.

Screenshots of the Endless Key

Making the Device More Accessible and Affordable

For many of us, when we think of purchasing a computer, we usually just think of the hardware cost and not the productivity tools, apps, learning resources, and connectivity that make the complete package. We’ve been optimizing our operating system, Endless OS, over the past 11 years on a range of devices from low-powered single-board computers like Raspberry Pi to the latest top-of-the-line workstations — and everything in between, including refurbished PCs. With Endless OS, we ensure a sustainable and easy-to-use system, with thoughtfully curated learning resources and productivity tools to support you as you work, play, and learn, regardless of whether or not you have connectivity — and with no hidden software costs.

Native communities like ones served by Cook Inlet Tribal Council in Alaska recently received laptops preinstalled with Endless OS and selected learning resources from Khan Academy, CK-12, Blockly Games, and PhET. GivePower set an ambitious goal of equipping 15 schools across the Bajura region of Nepal with solar-powered computer labs running Endless OS in 2023. During the pandemic, our partnership with Fundación Harp Helú ensured that indigenous communities in Oaxaca, Mexico, were able to include their preselected curriculum within Endless OS.

As part of the open source community, democratizing access to technology means we ensure that users have a system with software tools comparable to, and compatible with, apps like Microsoft Office and Adobe and learning resources that are available offline while also designing safety and privacy controls for families with young learners.

Screenshot of Endless OS

Join Our Community of Learners

As a global organization, we know the need for offline content, an affordable device, and a system that supports the safety and privacy of the users we serve. Whether you already have a device and just need free K-12 learning resources (Endless Key), or you’re looking to install a safe and easy-to-use operating system (Endless OS) that comes with free learning resources and productivity tools, we have a solution for you! We provide these solutions at no cost to the organizations we work with so that they can have as much impact as possible on the communities they serve. If you’re an organization interested in providing our product offerings to your community of users, let’s work together! Please contact us at outreach [at] endlessos [dot] org, and please provide the information about your organization listed below.

  • Nonprofit organization name
  • Contact name
  • Contact email
  • Country
  • Language of the community you serve
  • Short description of how you want to use Endless Key, Endless OS, or both
  • Estimated number of users for Endless Key
  • Estimated number of users for Endless OS

Students on solar-powered laptops with Endless OS at GivePower Nepal

Important Microsoft Changes: 5 things your nonprofit needs to know

In case you have not heard yet, there are important changes to TechSoup’s catalogue of Microsoft desktop/on-premise licenses this coming April 4, 2022.

What are these changes? How will these affect your organization? Moreover, what does this mean to licenses you received before? Let’s dive right into these one-by-one!

1. What’s changing?

By April 4, 2022, the donated on-premise/desktop licenses from Microsoft will no longer be available through TechSoup for minimal admin fees. This change aligns with Microsoft’s growing shift towards a cloud-first strategy and one that would echo in its philanthropic programs as well.

2. Wait, what are donated desktop licenses again?

To fully understand the implications of this, we first need to understand the 3 different kinds of licenses nonprofits can access through TechSoup:

  • Donated licenses are basic desktop titles such as Windows Get Genuine and Office Standard. These are purchased for minimal one-time admin fees and are subject to allocation limits of 50 per title every 2 years.
  • Discounted licenses (or products marked with ‘Discounted’) are basic and enterprise-grade desktop titles whose one-time fees reflect a charity discount (est. 60-75% of commercial rates). While they are relatively pricier than the donated counterpart, they are not subject to allocation limits.
  • Cloud subscriptions, finally, are free and/or discounted nonprofit subscriptions for cloud suites such as Office 365 and Microsoft 365. While they primarily offer cloud applications (i.e. OneDrive, Teams, Exchange Online, etc.), some packages may also include subscription-based licenses for desktop apps such as Office and Windows.

3. What will happen to my existing licenses that I already received from Microsoft?

The changes will primarily affect future access to donated desktop licenses. That said, it will have no impact to licenses you already received. That goes for donated, discounted and cloud subscriptions. They are all fine and will continue to be usable and valid.

However, the brunt of the impact will be felt in your tech planning. If you have an ongoing need or are in the process of planning to procure more desktop licenses such as Windows OS, Office Standard, Windows Server, etc., it would be in your best interest to start securing those before April 4, 2022. Once the changes take effect, the lower price points brought to you by the donated license catalogue will no longer be available.

4. What happens if I need additional desktop licenses after the changes take effect?

Revisiting question 2, it’s worth noting that TechSoup offers 3 different kinds of Microsoft licenses. While the donated licenses will no longer be available by April 4, 2022, the discounted counterparts will remain accessible to all eligible nonprofits through TechSoup. Additionally, depending on your needs/goals, TechSoup’s experts can also help you map your needs to free or discounted cloud subscriptions as well. Additionally, Windows Pro OS will remain available under the donated catalogue even after the changes take effect on April 4, 2022.

5. Is there anything we should do in the meantime?

Plan. Assess your needs and let’s start planning. What you want to ensure on or before April 4, 2022 is that you have a clear understanding of what your potential need for additional desktop licenses would look like. Can any of these be replaced by cloud subscriptions or are you strictly limited to using desktop licenses?


What you want to ensure here is that you have some level of reserved licenses in case that need comes up down the line. You don’t need to stock up, just have some readily available if in case cloud subscriptions aren’t applicable. Alternatively, if you can shift these to the cloud, it would be highly recommended you start that conversation internally to start planning for it. Our experts are here to help as well, if need. What’s important is you start having that conversation.


All in all, I do hope this helped you make sense of the changes ahead. While drastic, TechSoup’s here to help you navigate these. So, as mentioned, do start having that conversation with your team – and us.

How TechSoup Asia-Pacific is Helping the Next Generation of Young ASEAN Leaders

In March, TechSoup Asia-Pacific (APAC), in partnership with Open Contracting Partnership (OCP), held a month-long workshop series for the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Program. Launched in 2013, YSEALI is the U.S. government’s signature program to strengthen youth leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia.

As part of this Program, TechSoup Asia-Pacific helped lead a workshop that connected over 90 youth leaders from across ASEAN to new knowledge and tools to help them advocate for civil liberties and government transparency in their own countries. Some highlights from the workshop include:

  • Youth leaders located in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam attended over 30 sessions stretched throughout the month.
  • Participants had the opportunity to discuss different topics with speakers and experts from varying backgrounds and industries, including technical subject matter experts in anti-corruption and civic engagement; social and political activists, policy makers, and influential change-makers from various sectors of civil society, government and public institutions, and private industries.
  • 10 of the 14 project groups formed during the program were awarded a total of $25,000 in seed grants through a project pitching and panel review process.

In what follows, we’ll take a closer look at this powerful workshop, and illustrate how TechSoup Asia-Pacific along with trusted partners are tackling some of the most pressing issues in the region today.

Preparing New Anti-Corruption ASEAN Leaders
Data collected by Freedom House in 2021 about the health of democracy around the world illustrates how many countries across ASEAN, besides Timor Leste, are seeing a rapid decline in civil liberties. To help strengthen civil society, the workshop enabled youth leaders to promote transparent governance and democracy in their countries by connecting them with like-minded peers, and more than 64 speakers from around the world including passionate anti-corruption and youth activism advocates and dedicated public servants and officials.

Specifically, the plenary included some respected advocates and changemakers like Francesco Checchi of UNODC; Thom of Open Ownership and Bernadine Fernz of Open Contracting Partnership. The national agency that tackles corruption in Malaysia(the one and only such agency in Malaysia) — also shared some of their work on anti-graft busts in that country.

Next Steps Toward Real-World Change
At the end of the Workshop Series, the emerging leaders formed 14 different groups and presented unique project proposals for the chance to win a US$2,500 seed grant to implement their solutions in tackling pressing issues of good governance in their communities. Winning projects aimed to address a variety of challenges:

  • Increase the participation of youth engagement in decision-making on the issue of good governance in Cambodia
  • Engage young leaders on gender-responsive budgeting for a more inclusive government and society
  • Increase young people’s ability of digital advocacy on anti-corruption issues in Indonesia
  • Train young officers to protect their individual welfare in the workplace
  • Nurture a culture of informed and engaged Filipino youth voters
  • Strengthen local democracies by adopting chatbot technology
  • Increase digital literacy to promote good governance practices
  • Improve public participation and awareness in government policy making

About TechSoup Asia-Pacific
As part of the TechSoup Global Network, TechSoup Asia Pacific delivers technology resources, tools, and services to over 45,000 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) across 43 countries in Asia Pacific. TechSoup Asia Pacific works closely with a regional network of X service delivery partners to help small to medium-sized NGOs access necessary technology and solutions. Find out more about how TechSoup Asia Pacific is working to help NGOs leverage technology to better fulfill their missions

Technology for Mental Health

COVID-19 is an absolute game-changer globally, with more than 164 million infections so far and 3.4 million deaths. Before this, mental health cases are growing at around 0.2 to 0.3%, but COVID-19 has expedited this growth to more than 1900%. This means we see close to 6% growth since 2020 and beyond. 

More than 40% of men and 60% of women will have some form of mental illness in their lifetime. Unfortunately, only 25% of them will embark on therapy, while the other 75% will either choose to remain silent or undergo some form of self-therapy. 

Looking at the current mental health trend, Ahealo is founded in 2020 with the mission to aid people with mental health challenges on self and professional therapy through technology. Ahealo has invested a considerable amount of resources, including our team of psychologists, to create technologies based on psychotherapeutic means to aid mental health recoveries. Ahealo believes in the use of technology and psychotherapy will fasten the pace of healing. Besides, Ahealo understand that user may hesitate to disclose their ID during their mental health caring process, actual ID is not mandatory in our platform.

Ahealo differentiates itself from other traditional mental healthcare providers through the use of technology in its self-therapy tools. Additionally, Ahealo also deploys artificial intelligence in its products to better understand the users’ situations and provide better advice to them. 

Self-therapy Technology Tools 

a. Ahealo Journal

In the journey of mental health recovery, self-therapy is a critical aspect of healing. The ability to eliminate negative behavior, thoughts, and emotions is crucial for people to regain their path toward everyday life. And one of the critical aspects of getting rid of such feelings and actions is to purge these unwanted thoughts. So, based on recommendations from our team of psychologists, Ahealo creates a mental health Journal that allows users to write their experiences to expel these negativities. Ahealo is proud to offer our Journal FREE of use to all our users. 

b. Goals Setting

Sometimes, things can be challenging. This happens to everyone. So, setting goals and targets will visualize the actions and effort for recovery.  Ahealo is proud to offer our Goal Setting product FREE for our users. 

Every goal can be further broken down into smaller goals in our Goal Setting product. Every baby step counts toward achieving the primary goal, regardless of the required effort. Every step counts. 

c. Mental Symptom Test

Know your symptoms of mental healthExperiencing mental health issues can be devastating, but it’s not the end. Before the user gets diagnose with a specific mental disorder, it will be much easier to take a simple test for symptoms. Ahealo offers more than 50+ symptoms for selection, with the underlying questionnaire on each symptom. Then, results are computed using T-score methods to determine if the person has mild, moderate, or severe symptoms. Knowing the positive symptoms of mental health will help to direct specific remedial actions to overcome these symptoms. 

Ahealo offers a FREE symptom test for all our users. So, if the person is suffering from some mental health illnesses, check out the symptom test at Ahealo’s website. 

The Ahealo communities

Ahealo allows our users to analyze, get help, and share every Ahealo Journal record. If the Journal record is negative, the user can share the experience and seek advice from other users and therapists on our platform. But if the Journal record is positive, Ahealo encourages our users to share that positivity with others. Thus, the Ahealo communities create the healing force that every user can give and take to recover mental health. 

Being a part of the Ahealo community helps our users for better healing. Because self-therapy and self-healing can be a lonely journey, and having someone with you helps speed up recovery. Ahealo believes in forging mutual encouragements will better overcome the odds. 

Myths of psychotherapy

Talking with someone about mental health problems is an overly simplistic way to describe psychotherapy. The beauty of psychotherapy lies in the very nature of the relationship in which this “talking” happens. A therapeutic relationship is truly unique in that one human being (the therapist) is solely there for the welfare of another human being (the client). 

Unfortunately, most people don’t get that in real life. No matter how loving their partners, parents, and BFFs might be, people with mental health problems inevitably need someone to play some roles for them as well. In real life, most friendships and relationships are based on some implicit social exchange: “I am here for you, but I also need you to be there for me.” This is why feeling judged or misunderstood is a common experience for those who attempted to have this kind of talk with others in real life. 

This is also why friends can sometimes listen to you unconditionally until they feel like their advice is not being heard. The frame of psychotherapy is extraordinary: “Nothing else but you and your wellbeing matter in the therapy room. In here, the person’s inner experience is the absolute priority”. An effective psychotherapist will not shame the person for their actions, invalidate their inner feelings, impose a life lesson, etc. So, what looks like a straightforward conversation takes on a very different form when it happens in a therapeutic relationship.

Psychotherapy at Ahealo

Ahealo has a wide range of psychotherapists of diversified backgrounds and experience to care for people with a wide range of mental health challenges. Our therapists come from different parts of the world. They can provide the therapy required for mental health recovery without personal identification or information, no traveling, competitive rates, 24/7 availability, etc. 

Mindfulness activities

Mindfulness programs have been widely proven to assist people with mental health challenges as self-therapy. Ahealo understands the importance of mindfulness activities and offers different types of mindfulness activities on our platform. Not ordinary mindfulness activities, but specifically targeting various symptoms of mental health challenges. Ahealo believes in precision targeting mental health symptoms will drive better results and speed up mental health recovery. So do check out Ahealo mindfulness programs as a registered user. 

Ahealo is an intelligent mental healthcare provider who utilizes technology and experienced professionals to provide therapies to people seeking recovery. Designed to work as a marketplace for mental healthcare, Ahealo continues to challenge itself through technology and aggregating more highly trained professionals to provide edge-leading services to our clients. 

Ahealo continues to invest substantially in research and development in mental healthcare to ensure more unique ways of aiding mental health recovery are explored to benefit more people. 

*This article is written by Ahealo. Learn more about them here.

Embracing Change with YSEALI Good Governance and Civil Society Workshop

The Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative (YSEALI) program is a program that is very dear to my heart. It is more than a program to me as it helped shape my leadership growth since it was launched in 2013. I had the opportunity to co-develop parts of the program and strategize the outreach and expand its presence in the region for almost five years when I was working in the U.S. Mission to ASEAN. The program provides opportunities for youth to enhance their leadership skills as well as contribute positive ripple of effect in the communities. 

As the only thing constant in life is change, I too have to move on and leave the U.S. Mission to ASEAN to move to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. One year later, I came across the opportunity to work on the YSEALI Good Governance and Civil Society workshop with TechSoup.

I am thankful for another journey with YSEALI – this time as part of the TechSoup Asia Pacific team! Little did I know that the journey will be so different on any of my previous YSEALI experiences.

As the only thing constant in life is change, surely a lot of the situation around the implementation period of the program changed. Political situation in Malaysia changed; a pandemic came and changed the meaning of normal; and I embraced pregnancy and later motherhood. And from change came adjustments, learning points, and a lot of room for growth, both personally and professionally. 

As a team we needed to quickly adjust to the pandemic situation, and we’ve decided to have the workshop to be fully virtual. That decision brought us to different yet exciting experiences and ways to manage the program. We designed activities to engage with participants online, using different tools and platforms. We managed mostly everything without meeting anyone in person, solely relying on our internet bandwidth. 

There were things that changed, but there were also things that stayed the same. Clear communications and strong teamwork are still the best ways to support a successful program, regardless if it’s virtual or in-person. Further, passionate and committed participants was one of the vital parts of a meaningful program, and we were so fortunate that the participants of the workshop were very dedicated to not only attending the workshop sessions, but most of all dedicated to work on the issue of transparency and governance. Participants were committed to bring the knowledge gained from the workshop to contribute positive changes in their communities, and it was shown from their engagement in the sessions and through the conversations and discussion initiated throughout the program.  

The participants’ learning journey and the impact they will bring to their communities are some of the key successes of YSEALI, and one of the main reasons why I am attached to the program. Knowing that you have contributed to something bigger, it’s worth all the time and hard work. At the closing ceremony of the project, ten projects were awarded USD 2,500 each to work on their project ideas on the issues of transparency and governance. These ten teams will implement their project from April to June 2021. I look forward to sharing the impact of the projects to you. Stay tuned!

Written by Nalindra Pelekai, Development Project Manager of TechSoup Asia-Pacific.

Personal: Reflections of Lessons Learned from Liz Liew

A year ago, if you had asked me what I thought of hosting a workshop completely online, I’d have said, “Nope, not interested. Can’t see it happening. I am set on f2f. Come on, COVID isn’t going to be here forever. Get real!”

Not only was I wrong about COVID (like, TOTALLY OFF BASE!!) but I’ve also learned so much since we decided to turn it into a 100% online conference. Of all the lessons I learned, the ones below are the biggest ones worth mentioning: 

Humans love human-centric content
I’ve learned how important it is to create human-centric content – dry topics like corruption can be spiced and laced with case studies, to make it more relatable. People want to learn and take home different things : some want frameworks, others want to be able to understand basic principles, and some want to hear how they can apply these techniques in their activism or engagement strategies. But ultimately we love the same things – to be able to relate to people.

Make it relatable
The issue of resonance also emerged : within the region, despite the countries facing similar problems, I needed to make content relatable across the board. We were a region, but were the pressing issues similar, or similar enough to make it a common denominator? Also, could the different countries relate to one another? Could Laos relate to Thailand, and would Myanmar be able to take democratic reform ideas from Indonesia, to implement them in Yangon, over time?  

Support emotional and mental resilience
I’ve learned that mental and emotional resilience is often taken for granted : our participants in Myanmar were a beacon of inspiration throughout the workshop. They inspired us with their ability to stay tuned in, remain as focused as possible, and participate in the sessions as much as they could. Despite their extremely difficult circumstances, they had one of the highest graduation rates from the workshop.

Do your best
I’ve also learned that in life, we can only do our best, and very often, this means some people won’t be happy. Indeed, when designing the agenda, I am sure I unintentionally upset a few people. Of all the tasks I have undertaken in my career, designing the YSEALI Good Governance Workshop agenda alone was one of the most challenging and complicated tasks I have taken on. I was juggling time zones, speakers’ changing availability, and their personal situations (some of it unforeseen such as deaths in family and contracting COVID); emerging socio -economic issues, and of course, the socio-political climate of Malaysia.

The fragility of the political landscape of Malaysia and ASEAN, especially with recent events, meant that we had to carefully navigate the situation, selecting topics and speakers who could support us in balancing the fine line of speaking up for justice and promoting freedom of expression, while maintaining neutrality in all forms. 

Uphold your moral fortitude

The end goal for me as an individual, and as an organiser, was to uphold integrity and honesty, stay true to my own moral compass, while keeping everyone’s best interests in mind.

At the end of the day, I did not want to create a packed schedule, filling up useless topics, seeking unrelated speakers, just for the sake of checking things off, just for the sake of hosting a workshop.

Through this process, I was reminded to be guided by my own moral compass. 

Versatility is the engine of success
I’ve learned that versatility is one of the key cornerstones of success : being flexible and open to alternatives, in a project like this, is a MUST. 

As organisers, we needed to be mindful of the endless possibilities (beyond tech hiccups), and be able to react calmly, think out of the box, and also be willing (and courageous) to maneuver unfamiliar terrains. 

Exercising compassion
With all the changes and unforeseen circumstances, I learned how crucial it is to be compassionate. A longtime fan of the Dalai Lama and Patanjali’s Sutras, I am grateful for being able to practise Yoga off the mat.

Sutra 1.3 is a clear example of integrating compassion into our daily lives. Whether it was the way I responded to a speaker’s no-shows; or saying ‘no’ in a kind yet firm way because if I relented, it would have caused unnecessary inconveniences for the team and I; or event drawing boundaries for myself to ensure I looked after my own well-being, practising compassion towards others and myself made a world of difference. 

The Art of Communicating Empathy
Perhaps the biggest personal growths in designing and co-running this workshop was learning the art (and the importance) of communicating empathy (online) to both a small, and large group – when participants express their thoughts, share their work, or open up a part of their lives to the audience – snippets of acknowledgement and validation, be it a like, a ‘reaction’, or a response, regardless how small, matter. 

It matters because it is their only connection to you, with you.

It matters because we realised that for many of these young leaders attending our conference, that the bi-weekly sessions became a short staple of their month of March : the connections, laughs, jokes and pokes they shared, were something special, and something they really looked forward to, given the lockdown restrictions in most parts of the region. 

Maybe one day, when travel restrictions are lifted, when physical distancing isn’t the norm, when we have all been vaccinated (against all strains), and can all meet in person again, the little reactions on Zoom will be history in the life of online workshop facilitation.

Written by Liz Liew, Program Development and Strategic Partnerships of TechSoup Asia-Pacific.

Successful YSEALI Regional Workshop

The Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Regional Workshop: Good Governance and Civil Society has officially concluded on March 27, 2021.  This is a program sponsored by the U.S. State Department through funding managed by the U.S. Embassy Kuala Lumpur. This workshop was initially planned to be held in Kuala Lumpur but has shifted to a fully virtual program.

With over 40-hours sessions, the program included a combination of panel discussions, fireside chats, lightning talks, up-close and personal sessions with industry experts, virtual interactive group exercises, hands on activities, virtual networking, reading assignments and group project discussions. A total of 90 participants from Southeast Asia joined the online program and actively engaged in different discussions and conversations on topics related to good governance and transparency. The participants had the opportunity to network with and received mentorships from regional leaders and experts from different sectors of civil society, government and public institutions, and private industries.

Post-Workshop Evaluation Survey
As part of the monitoring and evaluation structure of the program, we asked the participants to fill in a post-workshop evaluation survey to understand participants’ overall learning journey as well as their feedback on different parts of the program, including their experience on each session, logistic arrangements, as well as the utilization and effectiveness of Howspace as an online engagement platform.

Summary of the survey highlights are as follows:
1. The top 3 things participants gained from the workshop:
– Networking with other emerging leaders
– Learn tools to drive positive change in communities
– Develop project ideas to tackle corruption and transparency issues.
2. 100% said they have broadened their understanding on good governance, transparency, and anti-corruption issues.
3. 98% said they have gained new connections and network through the program.

Pitching Competition Project Winners
This pitching competition aimed to support participants to develop and implement project ideas, to share their lessons learned with their communities, and give an opportunity to showcase their passion and commitment as change makers of the region. Each team conceptualized solutions on the issues and carved their project ideas. They submitted an infographic with details of their project ideas, implementation strategy and the impact it will contribute to the community. You can check the project winners here.

Workshop Engagement Awards
For the Aspiration Award, individual participants were asked to send their pledge on good governance and transparency, and the top four most meaningful and creative pledge won an award. For the Creative Team Award, we asked each team to submit a video showcasing their country’s culture as a team. One most creative video won an award. You can check the engagement award winners here.

Through this regional workshop, young Southeast Asian leaders who are working on issues related to good governance and civic engagement, were empowered and equipped with knowledge and techniques, enabling them to promote transparent governance and democracy upon returning to their home countries.