Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MARCH 8, 2017

Last night I received a Facebook friend request from an old friend and accepted it. Within a minute or two, a FB Messenger chat started up about the UN and the Sustainable Development Goals. So, I of course kept the conversation going. Until it quickly became a classic advance fee scam conversation (originally made famous by folks in Nigeria with faxes).

Facebook 186

Facebook Nigeria Amazon Government 186

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MARCH 3, 2016

The United States Senate has a terrific opportunity to expand opportunity The United States Senate has just been presented with the ratification package for the Marrakesh Treaty. We are joining with our peers in the disability and library community in a joint statement to strongly encourage the Senate to ratify the treaty and for Congress to implement the minor legislative changes recommended as part of the package.

United States 100

United States Language Copyright Library 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MARCH 1, 2016

Silicon Valley has a problem. In our quest to build better products and better meet the needs of the world for information, we built the most amazing system for effortless government surveillance as a byproduct. It is now incumbent on Silicon Valley to remedy this situation. Forcing tech companies to weaken their products through compelling the creation of backdoors would be a massive step backwards.

Develop 100

Develop Government United States Africa 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 3, 2016

If you can buy a book, you can’t borrow it. That’s the lobbying position of some companies in the intellectual property field when implementing the new Marrakesh Copyright Treaty. Marrakesh is intended to end the book famine for people who can’t read regular books because of their disability. Libraries for people who are blind or dyslexic are the primary source of accessible books in audio, large print or braille.

Copyright 100

Copyright United States Library eBook 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 5, 2016

I just read the new book from Sally Osberg, President and CEO of the Skoll Foundation, and strategy guru Roger Martin, Getting Beyond Better: How Social Entrepreneurship Works. Even though I’m a Skoll Award winner, it really made me think about my organization, Benetech, and what we are trying to accomplish. The book is an expanded version of their seminal article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review from 2007, “Social Entrepreneurship: The Case for Definition.

Change 100

Change eBook United States Conservancy 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

'Social enterprise. Technology. Contemplation. I just spent several stimulating days in Boulder, Colorado, thanks to an invitation from my longtime friend and social sector leader, Chuck Lief. Chuck is the president of Naropa University , but we first met when he was leading the Greyston Foundation, a pioneering social enterprise known for originally making brownies for Ben ‘n Jerry’s ice cream while employing formerly incarcerated individuals as the primary workforce.

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Impact Colorado Social San Francisco 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

DECEMBER 1, 2014

'Our networked world has advanced to a point where information technology is touching all aspects of society. The cost of prototyping and deploying new technology tools is now extremely low and data has the potential to accelerate social progress in areas ranging from poverty to human rights, education, health, and the environment. However, we have yet to come to grips with what is ethical and what the laws should be in relation to rapidly changing technologies.

Technology 192

Technology Open Source Data Exercise 192

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 26, 2014

'Kevin Leong was in kindergarten when he experienced an organic brain injury that forced him to relearn everything from walking to using the bathroom. For several years, he struggled in school because his vision was blurry and reading normal size print was grueling. He could no longer keep up with his peers in the classroom. In the United States, there are all too many students like Kevin, who are denied equal opportunity to engage in the same curriculum as their peers without disabilities.

eBook 203

eBook Accessibility United States Student 203

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 11, 2014

'The world is undergoing a data revolution, and the social sector is no exception. Mobile devices are breaking down the barriers to direct connections to staff, volunteers, clients, partners, communities, and the general public. Social enterprises are collecting more and more data: data about social problems; data about intervention outcomes; data for collective impact; data for learning; data for dashboards to better operate their enterprises; data for funders; and the list goes on.

Data 187

Data Impact Open Source Mobile 187

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 4, 2014

'Adopting an open source philosophy has proven to be quite effective for us at Benetech in our work furthering technology-for-good. I recently had the opportunity to give an interview for Red Hat’s online magazine, Opensource.com , and discuss Benetech’s culture of “open.” I describe the open source tools Benetech builds; clarify why it is important that cybersecurity tools in particular are open; explain how Benetech’s culture of “open” shapes its product development as well as broadly serves i

Open Source 165

Open Source Open Social Interview 165

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 28, 2014

'The Benetech team has just bid goodbye to VP of Engineering Gerardo Capiel, who is moving on to his next adventure. A passionate technology-for-good advocate, Gerardo has made major contributions to Benetech’s social mission since he joined us over four years ago. As we are getting ready to welcome a new VP of Engineering, I’d like to acknowledge and thank Gerardo for his many contributions and their lasting impact on the lives of the people we serve.

Open Source 184

Open Source Literacy eBook Empowerment 184

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 19, 2014

'On rare occasions, I choose to share something personal on my blog, which focuses normally on Benetech, technology for good and social entrepreneurship. Two weeks ago, I wrote the following to friends and family: Our beloved Australian shepherd, Calypso, turned 14 years old today. I just took her on a walk around the block. It was bittersweet. Time has been kind to her looks, but not her mind.

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Flash Picture Analytics Feeds 184

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 12, 2014

'Two days ago, on Tuesday, June 10, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York made a major ruling that emphasizes the legality of fair use for book digitization. In Authors Guild v. HathiTrust, a unanimous three-judge panel concluded that digitizing books in order to enhance research and provide access to individuals with print disabilities is lawful on the grounds of fair use —that is, a limitation and exception to the exclusive rights granted by copyright law to the author of a creative

Accessibility 205

Accessibility Copyright Law Library 205

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 9, 2014

'Investing in education has an incredible multiplier effect as it leads to increased prosperity not just for individuals, but also for their communities and societies. It provides returns for decades. This topic was center-stage at this year’s Global Philanthropy Forum. The Forum, which has been bringing philanthropists as well as political and social sector leaders from around the world to Silicon Valley since 2001, hosted the Presidents of two foundations: Robert Gallucci of the MacArthur Foun

Education 164

Education Philanthropy Africa Foundation 164

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

APRIL 3, 2014

'One of the joys of my role is meeting other social sector leaders: people with a powerful passion for good. We learn from each other, and try to help each other when we can. Jamila Hassoune Ten years ago, I started corresponding with a fascinating woman from Morocco, Jamila Hassoune. Over time, I learned more and more about her work and background.

Morocco 199

Morocco Literacy Europe History 199

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MARCH 28, 2014

'I just returned from a spectacular week at this year’s TED conference in Vancouver, Canada. TED gives me the chance to brainstorm with loads of people who gather to discuss ways to change the world through technology and design. Beyond debating the stimulating topics of major talks—such as Edward Snowden’s appearance by telepresence robot and t he response to it by Rick Ledgett , the Deputy Director of the NSA—I spent much of my time speaking about my favorite topic: technology for social good.

Ideas 223

Ideas Kenya Brain Software 223

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MARCH 19, 2014

'Snowden taught us that governments are vacuuming up every shred of communications they can. As techies, we need to first do no harm. As we collect sensitive information about health, ethnicity, LGBT identity, refugee status, experience of violence, we need to encrypt that information, to avoid making the people we serve, targets or victims by current or future governments!

Open Source 137

Open Source Government Reflection Software 137

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

'I’m thrilled to announce that Benetech has filled two key positions: Nadine Apelian Dobbs as Communications Director and Elaine Wallace as General Counsel. I think they will both make big contributions to building Benetech’s ability to deliver greater impact in the technology-for-good field. For more than a decade, Nadine has worked at the intersection of policy and media in major markets including New York, Chicago and Washington, DC.

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Team Los Angeles Chicago San Francisco 167

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 31, 2014

'Last September, I wrote a Beneblog post: Objecting to Accessibility Weaseling , about Amazon and other ebook reader makers trying to dodge out on making their devices accessible. This is an update on that fight. It''s always been highly ironic to me that the most natural buyers of ebooks, people with disabilities that make regular print useless, are constantly blocked in getting digital content that will talk to them, show up enlarged or in Braille!

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Amazon eBook Accessibility Grant 199

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 17, 2014

'The next time you set your digital device of choice to record your favorite show so you can watch it whenever you want, take a moment to be thankful that you’re protected from lawsuits from the entertainment industry. For on January 17, 1984, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that consumers could tape their favorite TV shows and watch them later without the copyright holder’s consent.

Copyright 196

Copyright Law Accessibility Library 196

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 27, 2013

'You may already know that I plan in earnest to provide my personal President’s Updates as quarterly informal reports, but that all too often I fall behind on this well-intended schedule—as is the case with the update you’re reading now! Don’t get me wrong: I love writing my updates. However, technology is transforming innovation at its core and our team at Benetech does quite well in leveraging this “innovation at warp speed” for social good.

India 142

India Literacy Global Accessibility 142

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 25, 2013

'This blog originally appeared on the Huffington Post In December 1981 soldiers of the Salvadoran Army’s Atlacatl Battalion entered the village of El Mozote, where they murdered hundreds of men, women and children. Although reports of the massacre appeared in the United States, Salvadoran army and government leaders denied them and, all too soon, El Mozote was forgotten.

Burma 168

Burma Analysis Guatemala Law 168

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 19, 2013

'“Mobilizing for Impact.” That was the theme of the ninth Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting that President Bill Clinton, Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton recently convened in New York City last month. At CGI Annual Meetings, leaders from across sectors do more than just developing new ideas or getting inspired: they come together to take real action to address pressing global challenges.

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Global India Mobile Impact 134

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 15, 2013

'The U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimated earlier this year that about 3 million veterans, or 14 percent of the total veteran population, had a service-connected disability. For veterans with visual impairments, traumatic brain injuries or other disabilities, reading standard print is difficult, if not impossible. For them, Bookshare —Benetech’s Global Literacy initiative and the world’s largest accessible digital library for people with print disabilities—opens up

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Support United States Literacy Brain 179

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

'No, we’re not being sued (and we want to keep it that way). However, the time has come when we need a really smart attorney to join Benetech and help us navigate the intersection of technology and social good. Benetech has some of the juiciest and most exciting range of legal challenges I can imagine: the great majority of our legal work concerns intellectual property and human rights.

United States 134

United States Library Copyright License 134

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 7, 2013

'The View from an Authorized Entity Many Bookshare users (and potential Bookshare users!) have been asking about the Treaty of Marrakesh (formal name: The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities. What’s in it; what does it mean; how does it affect Bookshare members? In the popular online acronym, IANAL (I am not a lawyer).

Copyright 158

Copyright Law United States Library 158

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 19, 2013

'Benetech, my nonprofit organization operates Bookshare, the largest online library dedicated to serving blind and print disabled people. We have 197,000 books available in the United States today, and serve 250,000 people , mainly in the United States, but also in 40 other countries. Our library is made possible both by a domestic copyright exception that makes it possible for us to add any book requested by a blind person to our library, as well as strong cooperation with publishers who provid

Library 203

Library United States Copyright Accessibility 203

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 22, 2013

'Why Circumvention for the Purposes of Access is Crucial A Bookshare Briefing Paper Prepared for the Diplomatic Conference for Visually Impaired Persons The distributors of digital content often use technological protection measures (TPMs) to discourage the making of unauthorized copies. Unfortunately, these TPMs create collateral damage in the form of disabling or hindering activities that are generally permitted.

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Measure Technology Audio eBook 181

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 28, 2013

'To the Diplomatic Conference in Plenary on June 27, 2013 On the Adoption of the Treaty of Marrakech This is an excellent Treaty. The Benetech team is delighted by its adoption today. We have the technology, we have the content, and now we have the legal framework to make it possible for every person with a print disability on the planet to get access to the books they need for education, employment and social inclusion!

Library 225

Library Government United States Accessibility 225

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 3, 2013

'Guest Beneblog by Betsy Beaumon, VP and General Manager, Benetech’s Global Literacy Program. Betsy Beaumon I recently had the honor to speak at the first-ever Braille Summit , hosted on June 19-21, 2013 by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) and Perkins School for the Blind. With the goal of promoting braille literacy, this landmark meeting brought together braille experts from around the world to Perkins’ campus in Watertown, Massachusetts.

Literacy 208

Literacy eBook Images Accessibility 208

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 11, 2013

'This post originally appeared on CSRwire Talkback. The staff at Benetech , the nonprofit tech company I lead, recently came together to answer this question: “What values define our identity and drive our work?” It was a very meaningful exercise for our entire team, resulting in what we call “ The Seven Benetech Truths.” Among them are truths like “We Get Stuff Done” and “Value Flexibility” — highlighting that we focus intensely on results and upholding our commitments, while also being flexibl

Open Source 118

Open Source Lesson Tech Project 118

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 5, 2013

'I’ve been actively advocating for an international copyright exception model that would greatly benefit people with disabilities, as anyone who has read my blog over the years can attest! My passion at Benetech for the last twenty-five years has been making technology tools to meet the reading needs of people who are blind, dyslexic or have other print disabilities.

Morocco 127

Morocco United States Copyright Library 127

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 6, 2013

'Imagine someone offered you $1 to leave the house an hour earlier in the morning so as to shift your commute to an off-peak train. Will you do it? If you’re like most people, you will say no. Now imagine you’d be offered a 1-in-100 chance of winning $100. You might find this offer much more enticing. You may even end up gladly altering your commuting habit.

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Singapore Game Training Train 129

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MAY 7, 2013

'The Obama Administration is turning its back on people with disabilities--and I''m outraged. I''m an engineer and social entrepreneur, trying to make the world a better place for people with disabilities, and I rarely step into the role of vocal advocate. But when you see behavior that is so unjust, you just have to speak out against it. Here is what is happening.

United States 166

United States Law Copyright India 166

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

APRIL 20, 2013

'Earlier today, I attended the American Foundation for the Blind’s (AFB) National Leadership Conference in Chicago where I received the 2013 Migel Medal. The Migel Medal, often called the highest honor in the blindness field, is awarded annually to one or two individuals whose careers exemplify exceptional accomplishments in the field. It was named for the first board chair of AFB, M.C.

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eBook Award Copyright Syria 221

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

APRIL 10, 2013

'This post originally appeared as part of an online debate about How Big Data Can Have a Social Impact, which the Harvard Business Review Blog Network hosted jointly with the Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship. Right now I''m in Oxford, England, for the annual Skoll World Forum! Big Data is all the rage in Silicon Valley. From Facebook to Netflix, companies are tracking and analyzing our searches, our purchases, and just about every other online activity that will give them more insigh

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Profit Data SWF Syria 171

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 1, 2013

Last November, Mayrie ReNae, a beloved colleague and part of our Bookshare extended community, passed away after a battle with cancer. Mayrie was a Bookshare member, volunteer and staff person, who contributed hundreds of books to the Bookshare collection and provided invaluable guidance to our volunteer crew for many years. This week, in remembrance of her birthday, we are pleased to announce the creation of the Mayrie ReNae Annual Valentine's Day Scholarship.

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Teen Cancer Volunteer Accessibility 129