How to Use Text Messaging as an Effective Behaviour Change Campaigning Tool data sheet 1284 Views
Author:
Text to Change and FrontlineSMS
Publication Date:
Mar 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
SMS can be an effective campaigning tool, helping to drive positive social change by increasing awareness of key issues and giving people the information they need to take their well-being into their own hands. SMS is ideal for these types of campaigns in many ways: it is immediate and intimate, coming straight to a device you carry with you most of the time; it works even in places where other digital communications channels fail; and, if received at the right time, it can provide an incredibly meaningful intervention.
However, getting SMS campaigns right is not simple. This white paper seeks to introduce some key points to think about when planning to use SMS for behavioral change campaigning. The right content, delivered at the right time in the right context, is critical. Adding the right kind of interaction to campaigns can make them more engaging, and increase their power in encouraging positive change. Positive behavior change campaigns should also ideally be measurable.
Editor's Note: Mairead Heffron is the guest author of this post. She is a former staffer at UNDP on other projects, but reviewed the report in her personal capacity. We appreciate her guest contribution!
A report, recently published by UNDP, on mobile technologies and human development, “Mobile Technologies and Empowerment: Enhancing Human Development through Participation and Innovation”, does a good job of summarizing the many ways in which mobile technologies are being used successfully as tools for stimulating development. It's intended to provide information and ideas for development practitioners on how mobile technologies and applications can be used appropriately and effectively in international development projects. The aim is not to employ technology-based solutions as an end in themselves, but rather as the means to achieving desired development outcomes.
The report begins by examining trends in mobile usage in developing countries. Predictably In Sub-Saharan Africa, only a few countries register 100% or higher penetration (percentage of SIM cards per capita). By the end of 2012, it's estimated that these countries, South Africa, Botswana, and Gabon, will all have mobile penetration rates on a par or slightly higher than that of GermanyFigures for countries on the lower end of the human development index are substantially lower, but still show a massive difference between fixed line subscription penetration and mobile penetration. Witness Mozambique, for example, with 35% mobile penetration, and a dismal 0.3% fixed line penetration (prediction, end of 2011).
The ubiquitous nature of mobile technology has undoubtedly impacted development initiatives across the globe. The Caribbean region in particular has demonstrated high penetration of mobile devices in all facets of society. The integration of mobile devices, adaptive technologies and services into the lives of once marginalized communities thus makes a strong case for outreach and inclusion. The mFisheries initiative focuses its attention on the Caribbean small scale fishing industry, with particular emphasis on Trinidad and Tobago.
mFisheries aims to develop capacity in the Caribbean to pursue opportunities arising from the provision of innovative mobile-enabled services for its poor communities, and to provide related empirical data and analysis to inform Caribbean policy and regulation.
mFisheries is a suite of mobile applications developed for persons involved in fisheries such as small scale fisher-folk, processors, retailers, wholesalers and consumers.
Although mFisheries was originally designed solely for use on Google's Android operating system, due to widespread regional interest, versions have been developed for all smart phone platforms.
Tool Category:
App resides and runs on a mobile phone
Key Features :
mFisheries has been hard at work at giving access to a wider range of pariticpants through the use of mobile ICT and is proud to present the following open source application versions:
mFisheries Full - This is a smart phone version built for Android operating systems. This version includes a virtual fisheries market place, daily fish market prices, GPS navigation, a compass, first aid companions, SOS emergency signal and more. This application is designed to work in Trinidad and initiaties at sea tracking once the phone is outside Trinidad's land boundary
mFisheries Web - This is an online website version built for persons who may prefer to use a computer such as retail stores, wholesalers and consumers. This version includes a virtual fisheries market place, daily fish market prices and more
mFisheries Mobile Browser - This version is accessible from the mobile web browser of most smart phones. It gives users access to a virtual fisheries market place and daily fish market prices
mFisheries Blackberry - This version is built specifically for the Blackberry operating system. It will give users access to a virtual fisherier market place and daily fish market prices. This version is available for download in Blackberry App World
Main Services:
Location-Specific Services and GIS
Mobile Social Network/Peer-to-peer
Information Resources/Information Databases
Stand-alone Application
Display tool in profile:
Yes
Tool Maturity:
Currently deployed
Release Date:
2011-03
Platforms:
Android
Blackberry/RIM
All phones/Mobile Browser
Current Version:
1
Program/Code Language:
Java/Android
Organizations Using the Tool:
The University of the West Indies and Fisher-folk associations in Trinidad
March 8th is International Women's Day and to mark the occasion, the GSMA mWomen Programme has released a study called "Striving and Surviving – Exploring the Lives of Women at the Base of the Pyramid." Drawn from 2,500 interviews with women (aged 16-64 in both rural and urban areas) living on less that $2 a day in Egypt, India, Papua New Guinea, and Uganda, the report looks at how mobile technology influences the way women approach health, economic development, and family relationships, and what mobile operators can do to reach more low-income women.
The report is divided into three parts; part one looks at the social, cultural, and economic factors that women at the base of the economic pyramid face in their daily lives, part two looks at the role of mobile technology in their lives, and part three looks at how technology can be used to further reach low-income women.
Some of the statistics pulled from the report show that when asked what the key benefits of mobile would be: [quoted from report]
Striving and Surviving: Exploring the Lives of Women at the Base of the Pyramid data sheet 838 Views
Author:
GSMA mWomen Programme
Publication Date:
Mar 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
Striving and Surviving reveals that for most BoP [base of the pyramid] women, the main priority in life is simple survival. Better housing, family healthcare and a more stable income were also among the greatest priorities. If the mobile industry provides practical and affordable solutions to address these priorities, they are likely to find a receptive audience who stand to gain much from mobile ownership.
This report also identifies unique social, cultural and economic factors within each country which shape women’s needs and their attitude towards mobile ownership; the mobile industry will need to understand these factors if they are to develop services that will reach most BoP women. For example, in Uganda four out of five non-mobile users would be interested in owning a mobile, but in Southern India, this figure is less than 6%, due to factors such as cost or the disapproval of husbands. Only by understanding specific social attitudes and market factors will the mobile industry successfully realise the market potential of BoP women.
Such information will be revealed in greater depth in a series of reports that GSMA mWomen will release throughout 2012, examining each country in further detail, as well as focusing on specific needs such as health and education.
For now, Striving and Surviving aims to provide an overview which shines a light on BoP women’s lives, exploring the serious challenges they face, as well as their hopes and aspirations for the future. The report looks into the social and economic context in which they live, their priorities in life, their current mobile technology use, and how mobile operators and the international development community may help them to benefit from mobile in the future.
Portraits: A Glimpse into the Lives of Women at the Base of the Pyramid data sheet 658 Views
Author:
GSMA mWomen
Publication Date:
Feb 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
“I will ensure that my kids get proper education. They will be able to get jobs, have better money. They will not suffer.” Woman, rural North India
“Before I had a mobile phone it was very difficult to know what was happening with my relatives in the village… my husband could only give me permission twice a year to visit them… now I feel closer to them since I can talk to them…” Woman, Uganda
Above are the voices of just two of the more than 2,500 women who took part in Striving and Surviving – Exploring the Lives of Women at the Base of the Pyramid, GSMA mWomen’s new research report exploring the lives of women at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP), those living on less than two US dollars a day. Portraits is a brief version of that report, designed to be as accessible and information-rich as possible.
The mobile industry – and indeed much of the world – knows little about the lives, struggles and aspirations of women at the BoP. Yet these women represent one of the largest opportunities for new users for the mobile industry, while also being the most likely to see real and substantial improvements in their lives through mobile services which could, for example, provide crucial healthcare information or give them the tools to set up businesses to move out of poverty.
This report highlights the critical potential of mobile technologies for improved public governance, as well as for economic and social progress in achieving the internationally agreed development goals including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The report also provides an in-depth analysis of the prerequisites for m-government, its main benefits and challenges, the value-chain and key stakeholders, and the checklist of concrete actions to sustain policy makers in monitoring and updating their knowledge on m-government.
Ready for some mobile tech and social change events? This month has a little something for everyone – whether you're looking for a developing-focused convention, a discussion about open source solutions, or a women-oriented mobile tech night, March events have what you want. Read on for upcoming events:
Mobile Monday is an loosely organized, international community based around interest in mobile technology. Chapters hold get-togethers to discuss a variety of topics; here is a sampling of some of this month's events:
5 March (Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania)This is a women-only event based around the theme “Social Media and What it Can Do for You.” There will be female bloggers, entrepreneurs, and students discussing how social media technology can be used for professional and personal uses.
19 March (Sydney, Australia) If you're interested in monetizing your mobile work, check out this presentation from the Google Australia group.
19 March (Washington, D.C., USA) This Mobile Monday event will focus on mobile opportunities in education.
We have an in-depth new case study that focuses on evaluating mobile health interventions. Written by Kate Otto, the case study looks at testing the efficacy of using mobile phones in health care in Ethiopia. A team of researchers from The World Bank and Addis Ababa University developed a mobile tool that enables rural community health workers to improve antenatal care and delivery services, improve vaccination coverage, and facilitate emergency referrals. The team is taking the evaluation process beyond the usual survey method and are instead rigorously testing the mobile phone effects through more rigorous research.
The researchers randomly selected three Ethiopian districts and applied the tool in three ways:
Connectivity: How Mobile Phones, Computers and the Internet Can Catalyze Women's Entrepreneurship data sheet 1737 Views
Author:
Malhotra, Anju, Anjala Kanesathasan, Payal Patel
Publication Date:
Feb 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
The right technology in the hands of a woman entrepreneur yields economic and social benefits for not just her, but her family, community and country. Information and communications technologies (ICTs), such as mobiles, computers and the Internet, can catalyze women’s economic advancement by promoting entrepreneurial activity, improving business practices, and breaking traditional gender barriers at home and in the marketplace. But the private sector is only just beginning to see women as consumers; it has not yet realized the potential women entrepreneurs hold as a vibrant business market. The question remains, then: How can ICTs create and revolutionize entrepreneurial opportunities for women?
To better understand how ICTs are fostering women’s entrepreneurship, our primary research centered on in-depth studies of four initiatives that illustrate how mobile phones, the Internet and computers can increase women’s ability to generate income. These studies also explore the opportunities and challenges of these initiatives and the impact on women’s businesses, their lives and their communities.
Mobile Technologies and Empowerment: Enhancing Human Development Through Participation and Innovation data sheet 1792 Views
Author:
Zambrano, Raúl, Ruhiya Kristine Seward
Publication Date:
Feb 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
The simplicity of new mobile platforms requiring only a basic mobile phone with SMS capacity has allowed their adoption all over the world — from South Africa, to India, to Mexico — to monitor elections, track violence and crime, provide logistical support in natural disasters, and oversee inventories. The portability and ubiquity of mobile phones have helped them become an important tool for civil society, enabling local mobilization and networking among geographically dispersed people.
This report looks at early evidence of the role mobile technologies can play in developing countries, particularly related to democratic governance. Within mGovernance, the report analyzes mobile technology in inclusive participation, responsive institutions, poverty reduction, the environment and energy. The report analyzes ways to create a fruitful environment for the growth of mobile technologies for mGovernance. Points are further illustrated through case studies.
Advancing the Dialogue On Mobile Finance and Mobile Health data sheet 1251 Views
Author:
Gence, Menekse, Jody Ranc.
Publication Date:
Mar 2012
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
In the coming years the global health community will turn more attention to the issue of universal health coverage, and new micro-savings and micro-insurance products are likely to enter developing country markets, often facilitated through the use of mobile money. The case studies of emerging business models presented in this paper could act as a launching point for a community of practice and global discussion on new business models in mHealth / Mobile Finance Services (MFS) and the contribution they can make to enhance access to health systems and extend the reach of insurance to the poor.
The objectives of this second report are to:
1. Identify the newest MFS and mHealth intersection use cases that have been, or will be, implemented in the near term that could provide significant value to health system strengthening including those associated with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of reducing child mortality rates and improving maternal health;
2. Highlight the characteristics of key markets that have the foundational prerequisites in place to reap the benefits of leveraging MFS for facilitating universal health coverage and enhanced access to health care; and
3. Identify key challenges faced and future trends that will reduce existing barriers for future implementations.
This paper aims to provide further guidance and spur implementation initiatives in emerging markets by health service providers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), mobile money operators, and government health policy workers that seek to enhance health systems for the poor through the use of MFS.
Do m-Health Tools Really Work? Testing The Impact of Mobile Technology on Maternal and Child Health Care data sheet 3960 Views
(The following case study was written by Kate Otto of The World Bank; it is reprinted here with permission.)
With the proliferation of innovative mHealth tools across the developing world, there comes an inspiring enthusiasm for health system reform. But mHealth raises a critical question as well: how do we know mHealth tools are actually changing health outcomes for the better?
I work with the World Bank and Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia on the evaluation of an mHealth intervention that enables rural community health workers to improve the quality and reach of their maternal and child health care services. We have set out to see if this tool is just a very cool device, or if it actually improves maternal health and decreases maternal and infant mortality.
You may be used to reading about the development and testing of mHealth tools aimed at scaling up to farther-reaching implementation. Our work, however, is a bit different: we built a tool on which we will do no further development, and instead rigorously test the impact of this tool on health outcomes of rural mothers and children through a randomized evaluation.
Basically, we are searching for hard evidence first, and leave a discussion of scale-up for once we have the data.
Since our final results will not be available until early 2013, I’ll share with you today a bit about our research design and the key question we are investigating: Does the use of a mobile phone-based tool for patient registration, appointment reminders, and inventory management in the hands of community health workers result in improved maternal and child health outcomes in a rural Ethiopian setting?
Do m-Health Tools Really Work? Testing The Impact of Mobile Technology on Maternal and Child Health Care Locations
If you are looking for a job in the field of mobile tech for social change and development, the MobileActive Discuss list and the MobileActive newsletter are great resources not only for talking about the latest issues and topics in the ICT4D world, but also for jobs. Here's a sampling of some of the recent openings posted:
A new effort focused on mobile security is looking for a number of ethical hackers. The organization is currently hiring for a Tech Researcher for a mobile security lab, and a Mobile Application Developer for open source/security applications. Based in either New York City or Washington, D.C., no deadline listed.
The New America Foundation is hiring! From policy research to mobile development, there are many Washington, D.C. opportunities available.
Want to help develop a new mobile tool to promote democratic organizing, civil society, and free speech? For this Mobile Developer opening, applicant must have least 3 years of professional programming experience, preferably in mobile applications. (This deadline is fast approaching – a resume, cover letter, and three references are due by Feb. 29th)
Southern Innovator Magazine, Issue 1: Mobile Phones and Information Technology data sheet 892 Views
Author:
Gitta, Cosmas; Editor
Publication Date:
May 2011
Publication Type:
Magazine or newspaper article
Abstract:
These success stories culled from across South America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East profile entrepreneurs, public private partnerships and civil society efforts to meet the challenges of life in the modern world from the perspective of the developing world. This first issue of Southern Innovator showcases the transformative role that mobile phones and information technology have played in the developing world over the past decade.
In searching out these stories of development progress that span the globe, we have seen instances where home-grown ingenuity and technologies to solve every-day problems offer real solutions, as in the case of Maker Faire Africa. We are also looking for those stories that have far-reaching applicability, as in the case of Ushahidi—a crisis-mapping technology developed in Kenya that has gone global. These snapshots of Southern triumphs also show a generation concerned about meeting the Millennium Development Goals and it is our hope that they spur others to action.
The election in Senegal has been contentious with election monitors reporting numerous violations at the polling stations but also noting where the process went well. A new online system, SeneVote2012, developed by One World, maps incidences and poll reports by the accredited election reporters of the Coalition of Civil Society Organizations for Elections (COSCE).
According to One World, COSCE, the on-the-ground partner, deployed 500 trained observers reporting on the voting process at 1500 polling stations around the country. The observers sent data directly from the polling stations via SMS. By the time of this writing there we more than a 1,000 reports, both indicating peaceful conduct at the polls as well as irregularities. COSCE is an independent election monitoring colaition that regularly publishes its findings in order to help strengthen the electoral process. COSCE election monitors are accredited by the Senegalese Election Commission.
SMS-powered election monitoring has been deployed numerous times, most recently in Nigeria where 8,000 trained monitors systematically reported on the conduct and results of the election via SMS.
What is new here is the close-to real-time mapping of the monitor's reports.
As One World points out, the COSCE reports and map should not be confussed with citizen reporting:
(The New America Foundation recently hosted "Mobile Disconnect: Can Mobile Solutions Really Combat Global Poverty?", an examination of the potential benefits and pitfalls of mobile technology in the developing world. The following is a guest post from Kevin Donovan touching on issues raised during the very lively discussion. It is reposted here with permission.)
The unprecedented diffusion of mobile connectivity around the globe has caused much excitement from development practitioners, especially those seeking to advance financial inclusion. And as with any excitement, there is bound to be detractors. Jamie M. Zimmerman and Sascha Meinrath of the New America Foundation have put a forceful stake down in that camp with regard to mobile money. They have sparked undoubtedly a useful debate but their cautionary piece on why mobile money “is hurting huge swaths of the developing world” ultimately missteps.
Zimmerman and Meinrath argue that despite having significant benefits to users, mobile money is out of reach for broad swaths of the world’s poor because (a) connectivity is not universal and (b) mobile money has “remarkably high fees”. Taking Kenya as one of the countries on the avant garde of mobile money availability and adoption, they fear that mobile money “may, in fact, be driving a new wealth divide… leaving [Kenya’s] poor in even more dire straits.”
However, their well-intentioned but dour speculation misses key features of the financial landscape in developing countries and misinterprets fundamental characteristics of mobile money.
A lot is happening right now with media development in Afghanistan (and no one seems to be writing about it.)
For instance, a project between iMedia Associates and Media Support Partnership Afghanistan (MSPA) aims to enhance the interactivity and access of audio news programs via mobile phone. Users call in to a local short code, hang up, then receive a call back and can navigate and listen to top news stories, in Pashto, via an integrated voice response (IVR) system.
When we first spoke with Emrys Schoemaker of iMedia in September 2011, the Mobile Mahaal project was set to launch. Now, five months later, the kinks have been worked out, and the service has received nearly 300,000 incoming calls from about 25,000 unique users between October 2011 and January 2012.
Schoemaker describes the media landscape in Afghanistan as increasingly rich. “We wanted to explore the viability and interactivity in using mobile to reach and engage listeners and explore how people react to the medium,” he said.
After a disaster or humanitarian crisis, people often leave affected areas and resettle elsewhere. These population shifts can strain infrastructure and make it difficult to coordinate relief efforts when no one knows exactly where displaced individuals have gone. After the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, more than one million Haitians were left homeless; in the ensuing months the country was hit by a cholera outbreak that has now killed roughly 7000 people. Two years after the earthquake, there are still nearly 500,000 people living in displacement camps across the country.
We’ve written and shared much on mobile banking, including case studies on M-PESA, research on branchless banking, and issues of security in mobile banking. Success in mobile banking servicces have varied with some highly successful, and others less so. We also observed that services are highly dependent on many factors, including: reach, reliability, user retention, ease of use, approach with agents or operators, number of customers, geography, mobile infrastructure and landscape, technology used, language, cost, and regulatory issues.
In this newest MobileActive.org case study, we hear from Bill Barhydt, CEO of m-Via, the company behind new mobile banking service Boom. Boom allows people in the U.S., Mexico, Haiti, and Guatemala to create bank accounts, and send and access money via a basic mobile phone. It is targeting especially the diaspora and remittance payment from the US to other countries in the Americas. According to the World Bank a staggering $61 billion was sent from the US to Latin America in 2011 in remittances, with intra-regional remittances within Latin America growing as well.
While Barhydt was unable to disclose numbers (of Boom users, transactions, and total amount of transactions) since the service launched in November 2011, we do learn more about how Boom works when it comes to sending and receiving remittances across the Americas.
Cheaper and Easier Remittances in the Americas? Boom Mobile Banking data sheet 3468 Views
When it comes to mobile money, the hype is on these days. There are more and more mobile money services in an increasing number of countries. Success is highly dependent on many factors, including: reach, reliability, user retention, ease of use, the availability of agents, number of customers, geography, mobile infrastructure and landscape, technology used, language, cost, and banking and telco regulations. Here, we hear from Bill Barhydt, CEO of m-Via, the company behind the new mobile banking service Boom. Boom allows people in the U.S., Mexico, Haiti, and Guatemala to create bank accounts, and send and access money via a basic mobile phone.
While Barhydt did not disclose numbers of Boom users, transactions, and total amount of transactions since the service formally launched in November 2011, we do learn more about how Boom works across the Americas.
What is Boom?
Boom taps into a market of remittances sent from the U.S. to Mexico, Haiti, and Guatemala. Traditionally, remittances - payments from diaspora back to the home country - are often made via wire transfer, check cashing, or payday loan services, all of which incur additional fees for the sender. Boom enables people in the U.S. to send any increment of money via a mobile phone. “To my knowledge, it’s the first cross-border mobile banking service in the U.S,” Barhydt says. “We’re replacing this cash-based world with a bank-based world, and the right way to do this is via mobile phones.”
Barhydt says that Boom addresses a number of problems associated with remittances currently: It lowers the cost of sending money between immigrants and their families, and it improves their safety by reducing the risks of handling cash. It also creates new commerce capabilities, as users can receive payment for signing up others for the service.
Cheaper and Easier Remittances in the Americas? Boom Mobile Banking Locations
Improved Response to Disasters and Outbreaks by Tracking Population Movements with Mobile Phone Network Data: A Post-Earthquake Geospatial Study in Haiti data sheet 1368 Views
Author:
Linus Bengtsson, Xin Lu, Anna Thorson, Richard Garfield, Johan von Schreeb
Publication Date:
Aug 2011
Publication Type:
Report/White paper
Abstract:
Background
Population movements following disasters can cause important increases in morbidity and mortality. Without knowledge of the locations of affected people, relief assistance is compromised. No rapid and accurate method exists to track population movements after disasters. We used position data of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards from the largest mobile phone company in Haiti (Digicel) to estimate the magnitude and trends of population movements following the Haiti 2010 earthquake and cholera outbreak.
Methods and Findings
Geographic positions of SIM cards were determined by the location of the mobile phone tower through which each SIM card connects when calling. We followed daily positions of SIM cards 42 days before the earthquake and 158 days after. To exclude inactivated SIM cards, we included only the 1.9 million SIM cards that made at least one call both pre-earthquake and during the last month of study. In Port-au-Prince there were 3.2 persons per included SIM card. We used this ratio to extrapolate from the number of moving SIM cards to the number of moving persons. Cholera outbreak analyses covered 8 days and tracked 138,560 SIM cards.
An estimated 630,000 persons (197,484 Digicel SIM cards), present in Port-au-Prince on the day of the earthquake, had left 19 days post-earthquake. Estimated net outflow of people (outflow minus inflow) corresponded to 20% of the Port-au-Prince pre-earthquake population. Geographic distribution of population movements from Port-au-Prince corresponded well with results from a large retrospective, population-based UN survey. To demonstrate feasibility of rapid estimates and to identify areas at potentially increased risk of outbreaks, we produced reports on SIM card movements from a cholera outbreak area at its immediate onset and within 12 hours of receiving data.
Conclusions
Results suggest that estimates of population movements during disasters and outbreaks can be delivered rapidly and with potentially high validity in areas with high mobile phone use.
Mobile education projects haven't replaced face-to-face teaching, but they can be a valuable addition to lessons. The Mobile Learning Toolkit, written by Jenni Parker and developed for my.coop (an organization that teaches agricultural cooperative management techniques to people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America), is an adaptable work that outlines techniques for using mobile technology in educational training systems.
The Mobile Learning Toolkit is broken down into four sections, focusing on Delivering Content, Gathering Feedback, Assigning Tasks, and Providing Support. Although the toolkit was designed for agricultural training sessions, it is open source and can be adapted to other areas that would benefit from using mobile technology to connect with beneficiaries before, during, and after on-location training sessions.
An important point reiterated throughout the toolkit is the importance of face-to-face trainings, and how mobile technology is not a replacement for face-to-face education, but rather an enhancement to it. Many of the SMS, voice, and photo-based modules ask participants to report on and gather data from their daily experiences before attending face-to-face sessions, and the trainings are built around content that comes directly from participants. Making the m-learning sessions more about learning and less about mobile helps training leaders understand what participants want and need, and shifts the focus back to locally relevant education.
February may be the shortest month, but there's no shortage of upcoming mobile events. Read on to find out what's happening this month in the mobile world, and please add in your own events in the comments!
7-9 February, BlackBerry DevCon Europe (Amsterdam, Netherlands) If you're curious about what's involved in developing for the BlackBerry market, check out the BlackBerry DevCon. The event features demonstrations, hands-on labs, and discussion panels to show attendees how to build for the BlackBerry platform.
9 February, Mobile Disconnect (Washington, D.C., USA) Mobile Disconnect examines the hype around mobile technology and its role in combatting global poverty and social issues. The panel will discuss the potential and limitations of mobile technology for social change and development.
10 February, mEducation Alliance Seminar (Washington, D.C., USA) USAID and the mEducation Alliance are hosting another event in their seminar series. This month's seminar features a discussion with One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) on the new XO 3 tablet and learning. You can register to attend virtually by RSVPing to mobilesforeducation@gmail.com
Natural disasters and humanitarian crises can damage infrastructure, redistribute populations, and make it difficult for relief organizations to do their work; in these situations, mobile communications can be the best way to organize disaster relief efforts and provide early warning systems.
The GSMA has released finalists for the Global Mobile Awards (Editor's Disclosure: MobileActive's Katrin Verclas is a judge for the awards in the category focused on mobile programs for "Underserved Communities.")
