For the past few months I’ve been working on apathy to action, a project that aims to help people move from feeling overwhelmed by global crises to taking meaningful, emotionally grounded action. The idea is simple but powerful – combine behavioural science, mindfulness and modern technology to help people reconnect, re-engage and rediscover their agency in … Continue reading Looking for a visionary partner
Category: Mobile apps development
Ken Banks on mobile app development for social impact: practical lessons on building, funding and sustaining apps for the developing world.
Due diligence? We need an app for that.
The ubiquity of mobile phones, the reach of the Internet, the shear number of problems facing the planet, competitions and challenges galore, pots of money and strong media interest in tech-for-good projects has today created the perfect storm. Not a day goes by without the release of an app hoping to solve something, and the fact so many … Continue reading Due diligence? We need an app for that.
1995. 2005. 2015. Two decades of code
Precisely ten years ago this morning I sat down at a kitchen table in Finland and started coding. Armed with a Visual Basic.net manual, a laptop and GSM modem, a couple of SIMs and a Nokia 6100 and cable – and plenty of coffee – I delved into the world of Windows programming for the … Continue reading 1995. 2005. 2015. Two decades of code
An inconvenient truth?
Exactly ten years ago this month I was preparing for my first ever piece of work in mobile, two years of work which would lead to the development of an innovative conservation service in 2003 – wildlive! – and the release of one of the earliest reports [PDF] on the application of mobile technology in … Continue reading An inconvenient truth?
In search of an ICT4D mantra
In many sectors of international development it’s hard to imagine how you’d have much impact if you weren’t out in the field. After all, teachers want to be in-class. Doctors want to be in-clinic. And conservationists want to be in-situ. There’s only so much any of them can do when they’re not. Getting ‘stuck in’ … Continue reading In search of an ICT4D mantra
What if Apple worked in ICT4D? Reflections on the possible
“Two weeks ago, I was staying at a working dairy farm sixty kilometers north of Bogotá, Colombia. I was fiddling around with my iPad when one of the kids that worked in the stables came up to me and started staring at it. He couldn’t have been more than six years old, and I’d bet … Continue reading What if Apple worked in ICT4D? Reflections on the possible
Building mobile applications for social good
“If you were thinking of designing or building a website, you’d be in luck. If you were thinking of writing a suite of financial management tools, you’d be in luck. If you were even thinking of creating the next big video game, you’d be in luck. Visit any good bookstore and the selection of self-help … Continue reading Building mobile applications for social good
Putting data integrity on the map
We were excited to join colleagues and friends in Washington, DC, on Tuesday 9th August to release the first edition of our “User Guide on Data Integrity”, a tool that will help FrontlineSMS users around the world better understand the flow of information into and out of the platform, the risks and vulnerabilities to that … Continue reading Putting data integrity on the map
Taking the social mobile “taste test”
“After all is said and done, a lot more will be said than done” – Unknown author Twitter has been abuzz lately with fascinating snippets of advice on how to succeed, how not to fail, what makes a good social venture, what makes a good mobile project or how to be a successful social entrepreneur. … Continue reading Taking the social mobile “taste test”
Video: Mobile Phones for Development
Date: Monday 20th September, 2010 Venue: London School of Economics Speakers: Dr Jenny Aker, Ken Banks, Dawn Haig-Thomas Chair: Diane Coyle IGC Growth Week 2010 Public Discussion “Mobile phones have the potential to contribute significantly to economic growth in the developing world, in both the private and public sector. From improving market information for fish … Continue reading Video: Mobile Phones for Development
Dissecting “m4d”: Back to basics
Do the majority of people working in “mobiles for development” work in mobile, or development? It may seem like an odd question, but how people approach “m4d” may have more of an impact on success or failure than we think. The world of social mobile isn’t short of anecdotes. “Put the user first”, “Consider the … Continue reading Dissecting “m4d”: Back to basics
Mobile Design. Sans Frontieres.
Although I find myself intrigued by the convergence of computer science, human computer interaction (HCI) design and international development, it’s not often that I find myself in a room of experts. They’re just not places I tend to mix, most likely because I have no professional IT qualifications, let alone a computer science degree, and … Continue reading Mobile Design. Sans Frontieres.
Social mobile gets its own “roadmap”
After three workshops on three continents, conversations and meetings with countless NGOs, academics, researchers and technologists, and many hours of conference calls, W3C this week released their “Mobile Web for Social Development Roadmap”, a comprehensive document which sits at the heart of the wider work of the Mobile Web for Development Interest Group (MW4D). According … Continue reading Social mobile gets its own “roadmap”
Development best practice for beginners. #5
Find more in the best practice series here
“Inappropriate” appropriate technology?
For some time things have been hotting up in the mobile for development space, and new tools are emerging all the time. But while these solutions extend all the way across the technological spectrum, almost all claim to be “appropriate” in one way or another. Clearly something isn’t right. For a while it was “scale”, … Continue reading “Inappropriate” appropriate technology?