key insights from the mashable/ 92y social good summit

8/3/2019 Key Insights from the Mashable/ 92Y Social Good Summit

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Key insights from

the Mashable/92

Social Good

Summi


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Mashable and the 92ndStreet Y, in partnership

with the United Nations

Foundation, present the

Social Good SummitOver the course of four days earlier this year, Mashable, the 92Y, and the United

Nations Foundation teamed up to gather some of the most enterprising nonprofit

tech start-ups in the world to share best practices and ideas at one of the most

unique events of its kind: the Social Good Summit. At the summit, we learned

about the inspiring work that these organizations are doing and how brands and

advertisers can help them help the world.

The summit featured presentations and speakers from all walks of life; from

passionate celebrities with their own charitable platforms like Edward Norton and

media executives like Ted Turner to startups such as Jumo, Wine to Water, Kiva,

and Project Zero. In addition, other companies that attended the event included

PBS, Skype, One Laptop Per Child, MTV Networks, among others.

While all of the nonprofits that attended were linked by their passion to solve

problems, they also all used technology and social media to engage donors and

volunteers in surprising and innovative ways.

By following these innovations, marketers can gain insights into how to turn online

passion into offline action.


3/18All images credits: Insider


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Go MobileMany of the nongovernmental organizations, or NGOs, that presented

were working in developing nations with limited access to technology. This

challenge has forced NGOs to get creative when leveraging digital solutions

within these emerging economies. Increasingly to address this, nonprofits

are using mobile technology to reach people and help them collaborate with

one another to affect social change.

One such organization is Refugees United, which helps family and friends

find one another for free through its safe and secure platform. For many

of the 43 million displaced refugees living in Kenya, Uganda, Kampala and

other countries, there are no landlines or access to the Internet, which

makes it incredibly difficult to find missing loved ones. Many refugees

however, still have mobile phones. Through Refugees United, people can

create a profile, search and connect directly through SMS.

Champions for Children is using mobile technology to eradicate malnutritionamong children in the Horn of Africa. Specifically, they are enabling adults to

use mobile texting to report on nutritional problems in their villages.

In addition to its applications by NGOs in developing nations, mobile is

proving to be an effective marketing tool for social causes in developed

markets. An example of this is nonprofits using mobile texting as a way

to engage the youth segmenta demographic that does not have ready

access to high-priced smartphones but leverages texting as a core mode

of communication among their peer groups. DoSomething.org, a nonprofit

that focuses on young people and social change, successfully engages

teens and gains volunteers via SMS. In one campaign, they enjoyed a 20%

response rate in nine minutes with less than a 0.1% drop-off rate.


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It is so important to provide everything we canusing technology to empower them, to help

them connectthey need support andtechnology is one of the most important

instruments we have to mitigate their plight.Antnio Guterres, UN HighCommissioner for Refugees


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Social GamingThroughout the social media-fueled digital space, social gaming has taken

off. Gamings ability to engage users and connect them with other friends on

platforms like Facebook has inspired many nonprots to add a game layer to

their platforms. By doing so, organizations have also realized gamings potential

as a medium that can incentivize people to take action by donating their time

and money.

Sparked is a volunteering website that puts social gaming to good use by

encouraging microvolunteering for busy people looking for a convenient and

fun way to lend a hand to a variety of causes. For Sparkeds microvolunteers,

helping others is fun, social and easy. Companies like Google, LinkedIn and SAP

have dedicated pages for their employees to volunteer in micro-increments.

Another start-up harnessing the power of social gaming in a unique way is

Simple Energy. Utility companies already spend $11 billion a year engaging their

customers to cut back on energy use. Simple Energys goal is to help peoplelower their energy usewhich helps the environment as well as saves money

by connecting users through Facebook Connect, where they can see their

energy consumption score and compare it with friends. Users with the lowest

scores are rewarded with gaming systems, electronics, and other prizes.

Gaming is also being used in the classroom to help teachers provide children

with the tools they need to learn in remote villages where access to materials

is often scarce. Games for Change leverages game mechanics to teach gender

equality to school children by developing simple games for mobile devices. The

games also help children learn valuable information about pregnancy, infections

and more.


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If we took just the people that useFarmVille everyday and got them to

spend ten minutes more volunteering,

we could literally double capacity for thenonprofit sector in the United States

Sparked


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Our problems are all

connected, but we are not. Idealist.org


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BuildConnections

and NetworksWithout question, the recent growth of social networking has enabled friends to connect

and new friendships to be forged over common interests. Recognizing this, social good

platforms are tapping the potential of social networking to connect passionate volunteers

with worthy nonprots and to build communities centered on giving and volunteering.

Idealist.org works to connect people, organizations and resources to break down

the barriers that make it difcult for people to help one another. Idealist creates local

networks to help solve local problems with local expertise. There are now over 70,000

organizations and 100,000 daily visitors who interact on Idealists website.

Fundly is a social fundraising platform for nonprots and a variety of other organizations

seeking donations. With the knowledge that friends are 10 times more likely to donate when

asked by a friend than by an organization, Fundly believes that leveraging the power of

social media will bring in greater donations for those who need it the most. And its thesis is

proving correct; Fundly has quickly become the number one online fundraising platform.

Livestrong has built community online in another way by sharing rsthand interviews with

cancer survivors on their website. Livestrong found that many more people were willing

to get tested and cope with cancer by hearing rsthand testimonials. Their culture of

storytelling helps people share more often and save the lives of others.

Womens health is yet another issue that has been tackled, in part, by social networking.

ABC News and the United Nations Foundation used the power of connecting people to

address womens health crises by launching an online community called the Million Moms

Challenge. The effort was part of a campaign that engages women online on maternal

health issues.


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One of the goals of the Social Good Summit was to explore how to solve problems

through innovative digital solutions; specically, problems that traditional methods

have been unable to handle. One successful example of this is micronancing.

Micro-nancing addresses a pervasive problem: poor people who want to start

their own business or better their lives cannot receive a loan from a traditional bank

without collateral. Digitally enabled micronancing solutions make it possible for

strangers to grant small loans to people who need them, even if the lender and

borrower are on opposite sides of the world. Nobel Prize winner Dr. Muhammad

Yunus spoke at the summit about how microloans are changing lives and proving to

be a simple solution to a complex problem.

By focusing on the barriers to entry that many low-income people face, social

entrepreneurs can leverage digital innovations to circumvent these barriers and

allow people to create better lives for themselves.

Microfnancing

In a world where you need a dollar tocatch a dollar you need to have

something to help the people at the

bottom lift themselves up.Dr. Muhammad Yunus


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Dr. MuhammYunus of GraBank speaksthe Social GSummit, in NYork. (Gary HInsider ImagUnited NatioFoundation)


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CheaperTechnology

Will Changethe WorldAs One Laptop per Child has shown, bringing cheap technology

to developing nations can transform lives in fantastic ways.

Organizations like One Laptop per Child know that providing

$100 laptops doesnt just mean affordable access to technology,

it means access to education and reading that can change the

course of lives and entire countries.

Another nonprot that is making big changes with low-cost

technology is SunSaluter. The SunSaluter is a low-cost nonelectrical

rotator for solar panels that generates more electricity from the sun.

The SunSaluter helps solar panels be 40% more efcient, giving

electricity to people who need it most for less.


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With the introduction of their $100

tablet, One Laptop per Child hopesto teach 70 million children to read.Nicholas Negroponte, Chairman

and Founder, One Laptop per Child

Credit: One Laptop Per Child


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From left, United Nation Foundations Robert Skinner, One Day on Earth co-founder and executive producer Brandon Litman and Boaz Paldi, head of videounit at the United Nations Development Programme, speak at the Social Good Summit, in New York. (Gary He/Insider Images for United Nations Foundatio


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Other KeyTakeaways

The Social Good Summit also taught us that

We need to empower the individual as a

consumer/client rather than a recipient of an

organizations charitable deeds.

Multilingual content is an increasingly important

way to reach a broader spectrum of people.

Digital tools should be used to encourage

Internet users to take their support into the real

world; turning intentions into actions.

Organizations need to prove how donations

have helped lives. Charity Water allows donors

to track where their money goes, through

Google Maps, and sends pictures when a

project has been completed.

Social entrepreneurs should focus on

alternative clean-energy resources as

entrepreneurial opportunities.


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Creatinga Culture

o ActivismThe Social Good Summit proved a seminal showcase

on how worthy causes and nonprot organizations are

harnessing the power of the digital revolution to create

revolutions of their own. The amazing ingenuity and

creative innovation put on display by these entrepreneurial

organizations and catalysts for change can set an example

for brands. The summit shows us how digital can be

so much more than a new way to communicate with

consumersit can be used as a way to inspire passion,

teach, connect, and ultimately inspire people to take action

and create movements.


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WRITTEN BY

SHAWN CHENG

CHELSEA LO PINTO

EDITED BY

EDWIN PHILOGENE

key insights from the mashable/ 92y social good summit

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