The Macau ICT Forum 2016, co-organized by HKCSS and the Social Work Bureau of Macau Government, is held at Macau on December 14, 2016. The aim of the Forum is to facilitate the understanding of ICT trends and the role of ICT in delivering and advancing social services for NGO coworkers. The Forum includes keynotes, system demonstrations and ICT workshops, and is well-attended by 140 NGO coworkers in Macau.
There is much to learn in Myanmar, a country that has just embraced globalization for the first time in its history.
The TechSoup Asia-Pacific team recently embarked on a short familiarization trip to Myanmar, to meet with stakeholders and understand the social development challenges that the country is facing, having just opened its doors to the world.
With a current estimated Internet penetration rate of 19% (11mil of 58mil pop.) and research indicating that 96% of these users are Facebook users*, technology related issues such as digital literacy, cyber security and the viral spread of fake news on social media, have become a growing concern for civil societies and international organizations in Myanmar.
Matt Jung, TechSoup Asia-Pacific’s Director of Development was invited to speak at fhi360‘s workshop “Strengthening of Civil Society Organizations” for nonprofits in Myanmar. The project was initiated to build the capacity of various nonprofits and community-based organizations in the country.
A key outcome from this session for TechSoup Asia-Pacific was a chance to collaborate with fhi360 in identifying nonprofits’ skills gap and drawing up a customised tech training for these organizations.
The team was also invited to present an overview of TechSoup Asia-Pacific’s development projects at Phandeeyar, a social innovation lab spearheading the development of Myanmar’s tech ecosystem.
The attendees, comprising a range of civil society organizations, grassroots and community-based organizations, were keen to learn how they could benefit from the range of technology software donations and consultancy support that TechSoup offers.
In a country that has endured almost six decades of military rule, where democracy, transparency, and peaceful transition processes are now reliant on technology to advance, TechSoup Asia-Pacific will play an important role in the development of a progressive Myanmar.
*source: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats3.htm
The 2016 Conference encompasses the theme of ‘Advance: 2020’: it is a positive movement forward to 2020 (and beyond) for not-for-profit (NFP) organisations and their use of technology.
By coming together to learn from sector leaders, technology providers and peers, NFP organisations across Australia can be educated and inspired to setup their NFP to flourish until 2020, and well beyond.
The conference is an excellent opportunity for not-for-profit organisations to learn from inspiring international and local speakers, engage and share with other delegates and walk away with new insights to help their organisation drive social change.
This conference will be on 18-20 May at the Hawthorn Arts Centre, Melbourne, and is hosted by TechSoup’s partner, Connecting Up.
SocTech is the abbreviation of Social Tech(nology), a new initiative of the Information Technology Resource Centre (ITRC). SocTech promotes inter-sectoral collaboration between the social and technology sectors, emphasizing the power of technology as a society shaper.
In the mid to long-term, SocTech targets to foster a vibrant and dynamic culture in the Hong Kong community, where grassroot activists, industry leaders, as well as the general public can engage in fruitful discussions to find practical solutions for social challenges.
Earlier this year, DBS Foundation kicked off the inaugural DBS Social Innovators 2016. The HK$2 million program provides funding and incubation support to social innovators to solve various problems through social entrepreneurship.
Over the past three years, DBS Foundation has promoted the development of social enterprises in Hong Kong amounting to HK$6 million. The Foundation works with social enterprises and innovators in Singapore, India, Indonesia, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong on programs ranging from venture challenges, learning forums, intensive incubation, grant support, financing and skilled volunteer mentoring.
The goal of the DBS Social Innovator program is to solve social issues using innovative ideas and technology, a reflection of DBS Foundation’s commitment to support the creative industry.
The DBS Social Incubators Program is divided into three phases, as outlined below:
Phase 1 Programme Milestones:
Phase 2 Programme Milestones:
Phase 3 Programme Milestones:
About DBS Foundation
As a corporate foundation in Asia solely dedicated to championing social entrepreneurship, DBS Foundation contributes towards building a more inclusive society so that those at society’s margins can enjoy productive and rewarding lives. The Foundation is an endeavor from DBS Bank to make an even greater impact in addressing Asia’s evolving social needs. Visit us at: www.dbs.com/dbsfoundation
The Technology for Good Day, formerly known as NGO Day, was a grand success this year. Sixty-two senior executives attended the executive breakfast, and 87 IT managers and front line officers attended the half-day conference.
Fifty-one NGO coworkers attended the two technical workshops. The theme of the event was Cloud Technology – From Theory to Practice.
It served as a good platform for nonprofits to exchange ideas, share best practices and new insights into how to take full advantage of cloud technology.
Microsoft Philanthropies also announced a USD$1 billion donation globally in providing cloud computing resources to nonprofits and university researchers over the next three years.
Information Technology Resource Centre, a limited company wholly owned by HKCSS, will continue to work with Microsoft Hong Kong in the coming months, organizing workshops and trainings to facilitate the utilization of this donation in the nonprofit sector.
For further information, please visit the event webpage (Chinese only).
#WeSpeakCode in Jakarta, March 2015, a week-long series of workshops hosted by Microsoft, the YCAB Foundation and TechSoup Asia, specifically dedicated to introducing coding to students, women and nonprofits
Hosted by TechSoup partner ASSIST in Manila in Oct. 2014, the Digital Summit for Development Strategies brought together 400 Delegates and 55 speakers and thought-leaders to connect and share innovative, tech-related solutions addressing challenges in five main areas:
Key event highlights included:
Beyond being a venue for sharing and connecting, the summit also served as the launching ground for a 3-year technology lab program. This program seeks to provide a platform, both a physical and virtual, where those coming from the developmental sector would be matched with the right professionals that
TechSoup’s Vietnam partner, Vietnet-ICT, hosted the NPOs and Volunteers Connection Day in Saigon. Serving as a venue for the youth of Vietnam to find meaningful opportunities to make an impact, this one-day conference was attended by over 400 youths and 25 different NGOs, and featured a variety of technology training and capacity building workshops that facilitated opportunities to connect and collaborate with one another.
