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You Can Help Kick Start One Laptop Per Child
Location: Ottawa, Canada
It's been a great week for the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative, which I've talked about in a previous post. As a Board member of this effort, seeing the XO laptops go into mass production, seeing the first country orders come in, and now with the Give One Get One (G1G1) program at its mid-point, an idea is becoming a reality.
This week, I was on BNN after the market closed, talking about OLPC and, while there are still lots of people who know little about the effort, the fact that major news outlets and media are seeing, touching and understanding the possible impact of this effort is making the long-term vision and mission of the organization -- to use technology to address poverty and education issues in developing countries -- very worthwhile.
I wanted to do a short blog post just to make sure that everyone is aware that you have a chance to help in this effort for the next week (deadline is November 26) by participating in the Give One Get One program. Basically, you make a donation to the OLPC effort. For the $399 you donate (only being done in US and Canada at this time), you are providing a laptop to a child in a target country AND you receive an XO laptop for your own use. As well, you also get a tax receipt and, through a pretty generous donation by T-Mobile, you get a year's hotspot access to their WiFi network. I personally signed up for a few laptops but wanted to take a moment to talk about how one might think about participating in Give One Get One.
First, giving a laptop to a child is just a good thing to do. Hopefully by now -- given all the media around it -- you are aware of the OLPC program and how it is unlike any effort before it. In essence, the program is attempting to improve education levels in the developing world and, with that, the economic and personal opportunity for a billion or more children.
Second, by you getting an XO laptop, you have a chance to do two things. You can become an ambassador for OLPC by simply showing it to people who have never heard of the program. I have had countless experiences in the last few months, as have members of my team, who have had an XO in public (such as in an airport security line) and had fantastic engagement with people about the program, the technology and the need for the developed world and the technology community to help close the economic and educational divide the world has.You also, assuming you like to play with technology, have a tool that will allow you to maybe dust off old programming skills or your creative side (music, content...) to join the OLPC ecosystem of developers and content creators. The more people who add to the ecosystem of tools, content and applications, the more impactful the program can become.
Last, because of the support from sponsors like T-Mobile and the fact that OLPC is a non-profit entity, you get a bonus of free hot-spot access for a year and a tax credit equal to part of the donation. Those are not necessarily critical in my opinion, but certainly a nice bonus for doing something to help a great initiative address a truly important issue.
I've attached a few links to media and press activity on OLPC and the Give One Get One program below. If you like the effort, it's a great way to participate in helping improve the lives of many. Beyond that, being an educated spokesperson for this effort and supporting it with your intellect, innovation and moral support are also welcome and, indeed, are critical activities to make the objectives of OLPC a reality.
Thanks,
John
Here are a few links you might find interesting/useful:
- OLPC YouTube video
- 5-minute TV segment on "Daily Planet," a one-hour-long science magazine show on the Discovery Channel, with Kelly Kannelakis, from my CTO team
- Interview with CFRA talk radio (a CNN affiliate) with Bilel Jamoussi, Nortel's OLPC project manager
- Give Many: In addition to the individual giving through the G1G1, generous donors or organizations can purchase a group of XO laptops to be sent to a specific location. If you or your organization is interested in donating 100 or more XO laptops, OLPC would love to help you. Please call 1-800-379-7017, and you will be assisted by a consultant.
- OLPC Pictures, Videos, and News
- Rwanda's Gov't to Buy into OLPC project
- Uruguay buys 100,000 OLPC laptops
[…] my surprise, both have written blog posts that aren’t Nortel-centric. Roese, for example, has a post on the One Laptop Per Child program that appears to be gaining some […]
November 20th, 2007 at 4:49 pm from All About Nortel » Blog Archive » The Other Nortel Bloggers