USAID innovation contest yields new tools -- FCW

USAID innovation contest yields new tools -- FCW: Smartphone software that keeps communication intact in the face of infrastructure damage received first place for the communication category in the Tech Challenge for Atrocity Prevention contest, which was inspired by a White House initiative. The U.S. Agency for International Development and Humanity United are co-sponsors of this rolling contest, and announced the latest batch of winners on July 10.

Nonprofit Trends: Technology and Transformational Change | Marc Chardon

Nonprofit Trends: Technology and Transformational Change | Marc Chardon: f we're connected in all these ways, then why shouldn't we also be connected to the nonprofits we either support or rely on for services? We can. Today, mobile computing is enabling nonprofits to always be present to those who care about them and to be more efficient in how they engage donors and customers by giving them anytime/anywhere access through their phones, iPads and so on. This access helps the donor feel connected to the cause, on his or her own terms, not the nonprofit's. And it helps the customer or recipient of a nonprofit's services see that the organization is really there for them, all the time. And in terms of nonprofit management, mobile technology is equipping staff members to stay in the loop wherever they are -- at home, on an errand or on the road. It's empowering them to step away from the computer and be more effective in the field.

New technologies can dramatically improve fundraising efforts | TMA Resources

New technologies can dramatically improve fundraising efforts | TMA Resources: A recent study by j2 Global has found that savvy nonprofits are looking to cloud services to ensure staff is more connected and to drive productivity. The "State of the Nonprofit Sector" survey found that following years of economic hardship and budgetary issues

Charity register aims to boost transparency | ACNC | Susan Pascoe

Charity register aims to boost transparency | ACNC | Susan Pascoe: An online charity register allowing Australians to compare and contrast the ways their donations are spent will improve transparency and may help mend a national reluctance to give to lesser-known charities, according to the sector's new regulator.

Yes, Kickstarter raises more money for artists than the NEA. Here’s why that’s not really surprising

Yes, Kickstarter raises more money for artists than the NEA. Here’s why that’s not really surprising: During a session at the Aspen Ideas Festival, Aspen Institute president Walter Isaacson asked Perry Chen, founder of Kickstarter, whether it was true that Kickstarter now funds more arts-related projects than the National Endowment for the Arts.

The crowdfunding site has, Chen told Isaacson, funded over $600 million in arts projects. “And,” said Isaacson, “that might be now more than the federal government spent on the arts in a given year?” adding a bit later that “in some ways… you’ve invented something that does what the NEA used to do and can’t quite do now.