Why #CharityTuesday is Important

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Anyone who knows me knows that I have a huge love for technology, and in today’s world, we are surrounded by tech. While some see technology as a nuisance, I see it as a vast opportunity for our society to become as advanced and efficient as possible. The advancement of technology has given birth to another equally admired and hated sector of society: social media. And even though social media has seen its fair share of detractors, it has, much like technology itself, paved the way for some tremendous advancements and causes. One such cause is #CharityTuesday.

What is #CharityTuesday?

#CharityTuesday was started by LoveBox, a voluntary organization. Apparently, on a Monday afternoon, LoveBox’s founder wanted to create a worldwide awareness for charities of all kinds and so, the idea for #CharityTuesday was born. In the world of social media, hashtags (#) are a way of organizing keywords and topics in order to ease search queries. Once the hashtag #CharityTuesday began, it became something of an instant hit. Currently, several hundred charities use the hashtag on popular social media networks in order to promote awareness for their particular cause.

Why is it Important?
#CharityTuesday is important because it changes the way that charitable organizations and institutions can fundraise. It takes less pressure off of individuals and increases the odds of volunteers and contributions. For example, most charities, in order to raise funds, awareness or attract volunteers, make phone calls or stand outside of businesses and buildings, often directly asking citizens for help. This can create a sense of pressure on people, thus making them more reluctant. However, by utilizing social media profiles and using hashtags and calls to action, there is far less pressure, and people are far more likely to contribute to the cause, whatever it may be.

And all of this is possible through social media. In most cases, hashtags in social media consist of trending celebrities and world news; however, with #CharityTuesday, once the hashtag is picked up by Twitter or Instagram or Facebook, it can reach a worldwide audience in a matter of minutes, thus creating the ultimate awareness level. It’s incredibly important to continue to utilize technology in methods such as these.

Since today is Tuesday, why not get on social media and see what charities you can give to today?

The Dawn of Smart Contacts

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Living with diabetes is difficult. 29.1 million Americans have to deal with the reality of the disease every day. One of the most difficult aspects of the disease is the constant need to monitor blood sugar levels. Currently, the most effective, and common, way of monitoring one’s blood sugar is by drawing blood from a finger, and placing the sample into a monitor. Recently, however, scientists and researchers have been developing newer and less intrusive methods of blood sugar monitoring. From fully automated pancreases to implantable glucose monitoring chips, the race to find a better way to monitor glucose levels is heating up. And the most unobtrusive method may be coming soon: smart contact lenses.

 

According to Gizmodo, researchers from Oregon State University have created a transparent biosensor that can be implanted into contact lenses which can detect sudden changes in blood sugar levels, among other health issues. According to the Gizmodo article, the lead scientist behind the project, Gregory Herman, was looking for a far safer and more practical method of monitoring blood glucose levels, as the current means can be painful and inconvenient.

 

The project came to be after Herman and his colleagues developed a semiconductor made out of gallium zinc oxide; this would be the foundation of the smart contact lenses. In short, the biosensor is engineered in such a way that when it comes in contact with glucose, it oxidizes blood sugar, which allows for noticeable changes in the body. While the technology is still new, Herman hopes that it can be developed to measure any number of diseases.

 

“There is a fair amount of information that can be monitored in a teardrop,” Herman stated in an interview with Gizmodo. “Of course, there is glucose, but also lactate, dopamine, urea, and proteins. Our goal is to expand from a single sensor to multiple sensors.”
If Herman and his group can hone the technology and mass produce it, they could potentially change the way that diabetics live their lives. Hopefully, the lenses will not only take off, but become a standard in blood sugar monitoring and even help detect other diseases.

A GO Kart in Every Hospital

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Video games are a large part of my life. And when anybody takes video games and uses them to make the world a better place, that’s a banner day in my opinion. And that’s exactly what the Gamers Outreach Foundation is setting out to accomplish.

The Gamers Outreach Foundation was founded in 2007 after Saline High School student Zach Wigal’s local video game tournament was canceled by a police officer who believed that video games were corrupting America’s youth. Wigal, determined to prove that gamers can do good, created the Gamers For Giving charity event in 2008, in which gamers get together to play video games for charity. The event still goes on to this day, with this year’s tournament taking place on April 1st and 2nd.

Then, in 2009, Gamers Outreach approached C. S. Mott Children’s Hospital to collaborate by offering the sick children video games to play. The tremendous positive impact that the video games had on the hospital morale was quickly evident. And, within 6 months, GO created their first “GO Kart.” The GO Kart is a specially designed portable, medical-grade gaming center created specifically to bring video games to children who could not leave their hospital bed. The GO Kart Project, along with the Gamers For Giving events, is the foundation’s main point of focus, looking to get the karts in as many hospitals as possible.

And while some may not exactly see how the GO Kart can help, the benefits are certainly quantifiable. Not only do the karts help make the hospital a less lonely and scary experience for the children, but they can actually have positive physical effects on the children. For example, an article from Engadget describes a young boy who would need multiple nurses to hold him down in order to change the dressings on his arm due to the pain. However, once he was introduced to the Go Kart, the young boy was able to focus on the video game, playing with one hand while nurses tended to his arm. The process went from an hour long ordeal to a 20 minute process because of the GO Kart.

The organization has grown since its humble beginnings, earning media attention from news outlets and even industry executives, such as Xbox’s Head of Marketing, Aaron Greenberg. With Greenberg’s help, GO was able to raise several tens of thousands of dollars to fund the creation of more GO Karts.

Again, I personally appreciate seeing an industry that I’m so attached to do good for the community. Hopefully GO can continue to thrive and get a GO Kart in every children’s hospital in the country.

UK’s Tech Startups Giving Back

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Tech startups have taken the world by storm over the past few years. It stands to reason seeing as how the world is in the midst of a technological revolution. It seems as if all of the major aspects of our lives are getting smarter each day with phones, houses and cars receiving major tech upgrades. The UK in particular has seen a major uptick in tech companies, with a 92% increase in startups over the past three years. Tech companies also employ 1.56 million people in the UK.

These new companies come with the standard and expected benefit of creating new and exciting jobs. They also provide new technology that several other industries can use and benefit from, such as cloud computing and artificial intelligence.

These new tech startups are also contributing to an unexpected industry in an extremely positive way. Startups have an intense passion for philanthropic work. More than 50 companies have joined the Pledge 1% movement in the UK, which sees businesses allocate 1% of time, product and equity to charitable contributions. And most of those businesses are related to the tech industry.

So why do UK’s tech startups want to give back so much? One reason has to do with the millennial mentality. Millennial’s are focused on using technology and making the world a better place. After conducting a survey, research company Achieve found that 84% of millennials donate to charity and 70% volunteer.

Millennials are also very picky about their job choices. According to a millennial survey conducted by Deloitte last year, the factors ‘a sense of meaning from my work’ and ‘the impact it has on society’ were the highest ranking factors for millennials when deciding on job offers.

And technology, for the most part, is synonymous with improving or helping the lives of human beings, so it makes sense that those working with technology enjoy charity.

It’s great to see these tech startups with the mindset of helping out your fellow man. Hopefully other industries will take notice and begin to implement philanthropic efforts into their business models.

How the Cloud is Helping In the Fight Against AIDS

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Most people view the Cloud as a mysterious entity that knows all, but nobody can truly understand. Several tech companies (like Google, Apple and Microsoft) all have their own version of the Cloud. And while the Cloud may be a bit confusing to many (and incredibly complex), it is actually being used for a tremendous cause: the fight against AIDS.

Since its discovery in 1981, AIDS has affected 1.2 million U.S. citizens, 18,000 of which were diagnosed just last year. It is an extremely sensitive and serious issue that has claimed the lives of an estimated 35 million people worldwide since its discovery.

One of the world’s leading organizations dead set on fighting to end AIDS is (RED). In a recent report from Fox Business, Deb Dugan, CEO of (RED), mentioned that she believes that the Cloud can be used with great effect in their efforts, saying, “the Cloud has made us smarter and more efficient. It’s a game changer.” The Cloud’s biggest contribution is its ability to pinpoint exactly where companies like (RED) are most effective. What’s most impressive is that it manages to do this in real time, giving extremely accurate and up-to-date statistics. Another one of the Cloud’s features is that it simplifies the process of delivering and storing documents and files, allowing for easy access to important information.

Founded in 2006 by U2 lead singer Bono and philanthropist Bobby Shriver, (RED) is dedicated to eradicating AIDS in Africa. To this day, (RED) has earned over $360 million dollars for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS.

After the Cloud-based customer relationship management software company Salesforce helped to install the Cloud-based programs that (RED) currently uses, (RED) is now able to seamlessly manage several aspects of their organization with ease. Some of the services provided through (RED)’s Cloud software include: analytics, sales and marketing.

The implementation of the Cloud in (RED)’s services has impacted the company tremendously. By using the Cloud, staff at (RED) can now access information at any time, in any place, giving them much more freedom of travel. They can also share their real time statistics with their large corporate partners, in order to show them just how important their work is in places that need it.

(RED) is also very active on social media, and has used the Cloud to their benefit. “We use the marketing cloud loudly and feverishly,” says Dugan. “We want to deepen our relationships and reach our engaged community and share information.”

With the rapid acceptance of technology and Cloud computing, (RED) is hoping to end mother-child transmission of AIDS by 2020, and to completely eradicate the syndrome by 2030.

If you are interested in helping stop AIDS in Africa, visit (RED)’s website by clicking here and donating.