April 12, 2004
At the April 2 Cool Tools for Change workshop, Professor Lodis Rhodes and political consultant Glen Maxey participate in a panel discussion on the future of public access. The panel was led by LBJ School student Laura Kolstad.
Community building through technology
LBJ School connects nonprofits
with affordable IT tools
Contrary to conventional wisdom, nonprofit organizations don’t have to have a lot of money or technical expertise to benefit from the latest wave of information technology (IT) tools. Over the past few years, inexpensive – and sometimes free -- technologies have emerged as a viable alternative to "enterprise" computing. Open Source software, new wireless networks and low-cost computers are creating new opportunities for community organizations to strengthen their networks, raise funds and streamline their operations while staying within their financial means.
While the initial setup of these new technologies can pose a technical hurdle for many community organizations, once they are in place they are simple to use and require little technical expertise. As part of a yearlong policy research project (PRP) at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, a group of students is working to help low-budget organizations—including nonprofits, schools, libraries, and small governmental units—overcome this hurdle and reap the benefits of new low-cost technologies.
Led by LBJ School faculty members Gary Chapman and Lodis Rhodes, the Community Informatics PRP team has launched a series of initiatives designed to help community organizations implement these new IT tools.
“We want to introduce nonprofit groups to free tools and help them get the technical assistance they need to set up the programs,” said PRP team member Kevin Williams. “But a long-term goal is to start a conversation between nonprofits and tool developers to complete the cycle.”
The idea is that with feedback from nonprofits software developers can innovate their tools to better meet their needs, said Williams.
In addition to working directly with numerous Austin-area community organizations, the PRP team hosts a “blog” or web log, www.communitynetworking.org, designed to inform nonprofit groups around the world about new developments in the field of computer networking. In addition to regularly updated news, the website contains background material and tutorials on some of the technologies that seem particularly useful to low-budget, community-based groups, including wireless networks, the "LAMP" software suite and blogs.
The Community Informatics team is also devising ways to bring together tech savvy organizations with nonprofit groups who need technical assistance. On April 2 the team hosted “Cool Tools for Change,” a free one-day workshop featuring presentations, panel discussions, and hands-on computer sessions with UT students and nonprofits. Representatives from more than 100 organizations attended the workshop, highlighting the demand for information and assistance.
“We're very pleased with the Cool Tools for Change workshop, and we now have lots more interesting work to do,” said Chapman. “We've applied for a University of Texas Utopia Project grant to develop some basic tutorials about the concepts and tools discussed at the workshop, for people who need to know some introductory information.”
Another spinoff of the Community Informatics PRP has been an initiative to bring technology-related student groups at UT together for a new type of community service focusing on helping nonprofits achieve an effective and sustainable IT strategy.
“The idea is that participating student groups will leverage the technical expertise of their members and provide rotating volunteers for small consulting teams assigned to help a particular nonprofit group,” said LBJ School student Joe Laufer. “We are still in the early stages but have so far sent a team of four students from the UT Austin College of Engineering, School of Business, and the LBJ School to consult with the Austin Learning Academy, and we were encouraged by the results.”
Plans are underway to formalize the structure of the IT community service program and develop IT tools that will make it easier for student groups to participate, collaborate with each other, document team visits, and share experiences. In addition, the group plans to organize a technology zone as part of UT Austin's annual Forty Acres Fest on April 24, 2004 to promote the initiative and recruit additional volunteers.
Supported by the Beaumont Foundation, the underlying mission of the Community Informatics PRP is to build and strengthen communities by narrowing the “digital divide.” The project is a continuation of a series of PRPs conducted at the LBJ School over the past decade that have explored the dimensions of the "digital divide" and public access to information technologies and the Internet. Previous projects include an evaluation of the Texas Telecommunication Infrastructure Fund Community Networking initiative and a project investigating the deployment of broadband Internet connections in rural Texas.
Closing the gap between the technology and nonprofit sectors will help nonprofits better serve the needs of their communities.
“Technology should serve the public good,” said Professor Rhodes. “Used widely, it can ease injustice and poverty.”
Related Links
Cool
tools for change
Free and low cost resources for new online services
Lonestar
Broadband
Connectivity Toolkit for underserved Texas communities
The Beaumont Foundation of America
Technology
as a tool for real global change
By Gary Chapman (March 10, 2004)
Measuring the impact of the Internet: Ph.D. grad John Horrigan analyzes technology’s role in society (February 3, 2004)
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12 April 2004
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