Bigmouthmedia search engine news: charity

Google expands project to give homeless people phone numbers

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Internet giant Google has revealed it is to partner with shelters in the Californian city of San Francisco to provide homeless people with a phone number and voicemail facility.

The announcement was made at a Project Communications and Respect for Everybody event held recently in the city and is an expansion of a service that was started by GrandCentral, a firm acquired by Google last year.

Under the initiative, the search engine provider aims to provide people without a home with the convenience of personalised telephone access to enable them to pursue employment opportunities, among other things.

The maintenance of the programme and any corresponding accounts will be entirely free for participants.

GrandCentral is an internet service that links customers' phone numbers together, allowing them to be routed to a home, business or mobile phone using a single number.

The Google-owned start-up had already been offering the free service to people in San Francisco through a project entitled Homeless Connect.

Google has now revealed, however, that it is to expand the project and partner directly with homeless shelters that will now be able to give out phone numbers and voicemail accounts to individuals at anytime.

Commenting on the initiative, a Google spokesman said: "When you lose your home, you lose more than your house. You lose a permanent way of staying in touch with family members, employers, and social service providers," CNET News.com reports.

"Being able to give a phone number to people and access voicemail can be a very powerful thing in sustaining quality of life," the spokesman added.

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Google's InStedd project involving Facebook 'set to launch'

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Today (January 17th), a Google-funded global humanitarian technology project involving Facebook is set to launch, CNET News.com reports.

Called Innovative Support to Emergencies, Diseases and Disaster (InStedd), the initiative aims to assist communities across the world affected by natural disasters and public health threats.

The not-for-profit organisation was set up with initial funding from search engine provider Google's philanthropic arm Google.org.

Both Facebook and fellow social networking site Twitter will be used as a means of coordinating rescue responses, according to Eric Rasmussen, president and chief executive officer of InStedd.

Commenting on the use of such sites in the project, he added: "We're not talking about pulling the red phone out of the bottom drawer here.

"We're talking about using ubiquitous, free software that is repurposed when necessary to fit into a humanitarian need."

As well as receiving $5 million from Google, InStedd has been given a further $1 million from the Rockerfeller Foundation and a six-figure sum from a foundation associated with venture capitalist and Google investor John Doerr.

Set up over the course of 2006-07, InStedd describes itself as an "innovative lab" for technologies focused on the improvement of early disease detection and rapid disaster response.

It works with universities, companies, health organisations, humanitarian non-governmental organisations and communities to develop new technologies and share information, stating that "through collaboration, better answers can be found".

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Charity search engine Everyclick.com hoping to increase success

Mon, 07 Jan 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Everyclick.com, a UK-based search engine that raises money for charities each time a user conducts a query, is hoping to significantly increase the amount of money it generates over 2008, the Guardian reports.

Everyclick.com believes the cash it raises may triple this year as a result of expansion in the US and new links with big firms.

The site works in the same way as other search engines, such as Google and Yahoo!, except that each time a user carries out a search, Everyclick.com gives 50p to a charity of that user's choice. Revenue is generated by Everyclick.com's advertisers.

There are more than 170,000 charities to choose from and, so far, the company has raised more than £369,127 for good causes, having processed searches for over 85,268 individuals.

Chief executive of the site Polly Gowers predicted that it will acquire many new fans over the course of 2008.

"This is a free lunch because it doesn't cost anyone anything. It works. You search the web and it generates money," she stated.

Ms Gowers and her colleagues have had to work hard to establish themselves in a market dominated by large multi-national companies and have gained ground by asking businesses and schools to make Everyclick.com their default search engine.

It is now the eighth most popular search engine in the UK and is ranked 18th globally, according to data produced by Hitwise.

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Google involved in Our Stories project

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Search engine giant Google, along with One Laptop per Child (OLPC) and Unicef, has launched a new project to preserve cultural identities around the world.

The portal, named Our Stories, acts as a platform for people across the globe to share their experiences over the internet in the language of their choice.

Additionally, youngsters will be able to use laptops, mobile phones and other devices to record the stories of their friends and family members.

For the project, OLPC will create a digital archive of personal stories by providing children in developing countries with the necessary technology.

According to Ann Veneman, executive director of Unicef, IT can help young people across the world learn more about each other, promote dialogue across borders and cultures and give young people a voice on a range of issues, TechTree reports.

Initially, the Our Stories site will include stories recorded for Unicef by young people in Ghana, Pakistan, Uganda and Tanzania.

Each month, however, stories from more countries will be added to the site.

Commenting on Official Google Blog, Stephen Cho stated: "[The organisations involved] realised that collectively, we had a unique and very real opportunity to leverage our respective strengths to take this idea global and to build together an ability to preserve and share online millions of personal stories from around the world."

There are already around 75 audio recordings available on the site and more are set to be added in the future.

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Environmental campaigners utilise Google Earth

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 12:00:00 GMT

An environmental group which campaigns against coal mining involving the removal of mountaintops is to begin using Google Earth to boost its campaign, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Appalachian Voices, which aims to bring people together to solve problems impacting on the central and southern Appalachian Mountains, is set to use the technology to show internet users images of mountains that have been affected by the mining.

From this Thursday (November 29th), people who visit the group's website will be able to enter their addresses and observe images of specific mountaintops that have been mined to provide coal for their electricity providers and potentially their own homes.

Individuals are also provided with links to protest to their power providers and legislators about the mining.

Commenting on the use of Google's satellite technology, Mary Anne Hitt, Appalachian Voices' executive director, stated: "When you can show people they have a direct connection to [mining], it makes it that much more relevant to their day-to-day life."

Meanwhile, Rebecca Moore, manager of the Google Earth Outreach programme, described the Appalachian Voices service as "very cutting edge", adding that other groups are preparing similar ones.

Google Earth Outreach was developed to assist not-for-profit and public benefit groups interested in utilising Google Earth technology.

According to the search engine provider, the application can get "users engaged and passionate about what [groups are] doing and build support for [their] cause".

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Google announces YouTube boost to non-profit organisations

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Search engine Google has announced that its video-sharing site YouTube is set to help non-profit organisations.

YouTube unveiled its Non-Profit Programme at the Clinton Global Initiative, a non-partisan project aimed at creating a more integrated global community of shared values and responsibilities.

The programme is intended to enable non-profit organisations to connect more easily with the world's online video community.

It will provide such organisations with the opportunity to create dedicated YouTube channels for themselves, making it easier for web users to find and watch their videos.

Product manager at Google Checkout Maryrose Dunton commented: "In the past few years, online video has emerged as a key tool for grassroots organising on the internet. A short, simple video can demonstrate the impact and the needs of an organisation in a uniquely compelling fashion."

There are 13 initial participants of the initiative, including the American Cancer Society, YouthNoise and Friends of the Earth.

Ms Dunton also stated that the YouTube Non-Profit Programme will enable non-profit organisations to collect donations directly through the channels using a new Google Checkout for Non-Profits.

This service, which can be integrated directly into a non-profit organisation's site, is designed to encourage more donations by making it possible for people to contribute more securely and quickly.

Google acquired YouTube in October last year in a stock-for-stock transaction worth $1.65 billion.

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Google announces robotic race to the moon

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Google has announced a robotic race to the Moon, the winner of which will be in for a windfall of $30 million.

The search engine is encouraging private companies from across the world to compete to land a privately funded robotic rover on the satellite that is capable of completing a number of mission objectives.

These objectives include roaming the lunar surface for a minimum of 500m and sending video, data and images back to Earth.

The competition is being run in association with the X Prize Foundation, so far best known for its launch of the $10 million Ansari prize for private suborbital spaceflight.

Commenting on the competition, chairman and chief executive officer of the foundation Dr Peter Diamandis, said: "The Google Lunar X Prize calls on entrepreneurs, engineers and visionaries from around the world to return us to the lunar surface and explore this environment for the benefit of all humanity.

"We are confident that teams from around the world will help develop new robotic and virtual presence technology, which will dramatically reduce the cost of space exploration."

He added that, through funding the race, Google has demonstrated its desire to participate in "breakthrough approaches" and "global participation".

The X Prize Foundation was created in 1995 and is an educational non-profit institute that strives to create radical technological breakthroughs by offering prizes for privately funded projects.

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Charities are struggling with a successful online presence - can Google help?

Fri, 13 Jul 2007 12:00:00 GMT

E-consultancy's second annual UK Charity Website Benchmarks report raises questions about the effectiveness of charities' online presence. The study highlights that charities still have a long way to go to exploit the full potential of the internet to their advantage.

Analysing 120 websites in total, the report evaluates the following seven benchmark metrics: Usability, Accessibility, Communication, Transparency, Responsiveness, Integration and Housekeeping (including search engine optimisation). Social media activities and environmental factors have also been taken into consideration for the first time reflecting the increased importance of these parameters.

The bottom line of the study accentuates that UK charities are still not using the power of the internet effectively and there is huge room for improvement. While organisations generally score well in usability and communication categories, the study found that most websites are lacking transparency and accessibility. Interestingly, the average Google PageRank of 5.62 suggests that websites have a good level of SEO. The top charity sites assessed are Cancer Research UK, WaterAid and the Royal National Institute for Deaf People.

On this note, it is not surprising to hear that Google is taking the bull by the horns by launching various programmes in an attempt to assist non profit organisations use technology more effectively. Google has been engaging in discussions with non profits and recently announced that their Education Edition of Google Apps, which is free for educational institutions, would also be made available to non profit organisations. The programme includes a suite of communication, collaboration and publishing tools and the option to integrate with existing IT systems or third party solutions.

Additionally, Google Earth, Google's virtual globe software, launched an initiative giving organisations access to a variety of tools to make the 3D application available for their purposes. By tailoring maps and satellite images to their stories, charities and other non-profit groups have the option to incorporate valuable geographic context into their websites.

In this way, Google is helping charities and other NPOs to cut costs and improve their IT processes and online presence. On the other hand, the cutting-edge internet giant can take pride in itself for supporting a great variety of good causes. The result: a win-win situation for all parties involved.

It remains to be seen if Google's NPO support efforts hit the spot. The next UK Charity Website Benchmark report will surely be able to shed some light on this question.

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Google Earth Outreach targets non-profit apps

Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Google have introduced yet another new feature to their Google Earth satellite program to help non-profit and charity organisations build applications that highlight their work around the globe.

Entitled Google Earth Outreach, this new free service from Google is designed to add weight to the important work taking place around the globe on non-profit projects. Using a feature called Google Earth layers, each non profit organisation that takes advantage of the service can create compelling stories and guides around their vital contributions.

Available at earth.google.com/outreach/, once they have applied online, organisations that qualify for the Google Outreach program get a grant towards Google Earth Pro software - the main tool that allows the creation of these interactive applications. Not only that, Google will offer technical support to those organisations that need help getting off the ground with their web apps.

With the announcement of this new service, John Hanke, Director of Google Earth and Maps, highlighted three new layers for Google Earth that show off this new initiative. The Global Heritage Fund layer, Earthwatch Expeditions layer and Fair Trade Certified layer have all been created to not only highlight the respective organisations latest work but also have the potential to become proactive elements in mutual research exchange and information amalgamation into one interactive tool that helps all those involved by making data easily shared and publicised.

For Ed Wilson, President and CEO of Earthwatch, the benefits of Google Earth Outreach were instantly clear. He said:

"Google Earth represents a whole new way for us to connect with the world... Not only can we inform people about key environmental issues facing the world today, but we can give them the opportunity to get directly involved".

The technology behind this service is based on Google's proprietary mark-up language, KML, which is already familiar to countless developers around the word as it is based upon the common XML standard. Google is hoping that their Outreach service can entice developers into devoting time to non-profit projects for the greater good of information sharing.

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Google Earth helping charities raise awareness

Fri, 08 Jun 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Non-profit organisations and charities are using Google Earth's three-dimensional maps to raise awareness of environmental concerns.

Issues such as genocide and deforestation are being covered by the groups using the 3D map technology, CNET News has revealed.

Mary Ann Hitt, executive director of non-profit Appalachian Voices, told the IT news group that organisations were drawing attention to the way mining companies were destroying the tops of the Appalachian Mountains.

She revealed that the method allowed the firms to get coal in a faster and cheaper way, but stressed that the impact of the process was detrimental to the environment.

With Google's help, the organisation is raising awareness of the issue, with "before" and "after" aerial shots of the mountains and videos from communities affected by the problem.

Rebecca Moore, a Google maps engineer who works with non-profit organisations in her free time, said during the Digital Earth panel organised by Google: "There are several environmental groups using it... (but) over the next year or two we're going to see a lot of interesting visualisations in Google Earth to educate people about climate change."

Google Earth is proving to be an extremely useful tool for a variety of audiences with different needs and it recently expanded its offerings with the addition of sounds from Wild Sanctuary.

The company released a Google Earth layer that places the collected soundscapes, such as the whoops of howler monkeys in the Amazon basin and other data, on Google's 3D world map so users can get a natural feel for the areas they're exploring.

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