Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

APRIL 20, 2013

The other recipient this year was Kay Ferrell, Professor of Special Education at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, who won the Medal for her tremendous work with and on behalf of children and youth who are blind and visually impaired. I especially want to acknowledge two people who helped make this award possible. Washington?

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Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 28, 2014

A passionate technology-for-good advocate, Gerardo has made major contributions to Benetech’s social mission since he joined us over four years ago. He oversaw the development of numerous products and services that allow us to drive social empowerment through technology across all our programs.

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Open Source Literacy eBook Empowerment 184

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 18, 2019

The nonprofit Benetech team built the revolutionary Bookshare library for this community, all online, and based on the powerfully flexible ebook. You can take an ebook, push a button and make it Braille. This results in an ebook, which can be shared by Bookshare legally with many thousands of other disabled readers.

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Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017

They lack the books they need for education, employment, and social inclusion. I have good news: For $5 million a year, we can build a global library that provides tens of millions of people around the world who are blind, low vision, or dyslexic free access to books that will work for them. We have the technology.

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Global eBook Library United States 109

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 8, 2015

Guest post by Betsy Beaumon, President, Benetech We are seeking visionary leaders to join Benetech in applying technology to advance the rights of disadvantaged people around the world. We operate at the intersection of technology and social impact, and therefore our ideal candidates will demonstrate these dual interests and experiences.

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Technology Literacy Social Uganda 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JULY 3, 2013

One of the biggest reasons is that among people who are blind, braille literacy has been linked with higher education levels, higher likelihood of employment and higher income. At Benetech, we want to ensure that in this brave new world of digital content, braille is as available as any other ebook format to those who want it.

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Literacy eBook Images Accessibility 208

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

At Benetech, we always ask ourselves how our existing successful programs can reach more people who need our services and how we can apply technology in new ways to enrich and improve more lives. a11y accessibility Bookshare Braille DAISY ebooks Global Literacy print disabilities Reading' The majority of our members are U.S.

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Literacy eBook Global Audio 129

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 10, 2014

It became a burden to his family and caregivers to constantly drop what they were doing to turn a page, so he began seeking out ebooks. This reality changed when Frank found out about Benetech’s Bookshare accessible digital library for people with print disabilities. To continue this work, we depend on the support of generous donors.

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Life Gift eBook France 147

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JUNE 23, 2014

How can we use technology in a new way to improve people’s lives that is an order of magnitude better? Can we help stimulate the creation of far more technology-for-good ventures? Technology currently serves privileged groups through tools that provide access to education, literacy, health, and justice.

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Literacy eBook United Kingdom Accessibility 158

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 5, 2015

Twelve years ago, the Fund made its first grant to Benetech, in support of the then newly launched Bookshare , our accessible online library for people with disabilities that get in the way of reading print, including visual impairments and dyslexia. This pilot paved the way for our work in the education field.

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Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 7, 2012

People with print disabilities around the world have a right to high-quality ebooks that they can read with assistive technology. Benetech’s Bookshare library continues to expand its international service providing accessible books and publications to members in more than 30 countries.

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Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 16, 2011

I just attended two days of meetings in Washington DC on the first year of the DIAGRAM Center , held at the Office of Special Education Programs in the Department of Education. But, it’s turned out to be one of the best surveys of assistive technology we’ve ever seen. We’ve also engaged in a major technical standards issue.

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Images Alternative Student Accessibility 194

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 11, 2013

Creating the World’s Largest Collection of Accessible Arabic eBooks Access to knowledge is the critical first step on the path to economic, educational, and social development. In 2011, we began collaborating with the Mada Center (Qatar Assistive Technology Center) to create accessible Arabic-language digital books.

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United Arab Emirates Qatar eBook Language 162

Saleforce Nonprofit

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

Currently, only 16% of adults with autism are in some form of employment, so a major focus of the organisation’s work is helping people overcome the barriers they face and progress towards employment, education, or further training. Staff can now access the information they need through mobile apps instead of having to return to the office.

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Process Personal Support Service 120

Tech Soup

JULY 22, 2014

Technology, especially, can be difficult to stay on top of with constantly updating operating systems and new versions of software. Thankfully, there are many free or inexpensive training programs that can help you polish your technology skills. Did you know that you can get access to discounted training programs through TechSoup?

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Training Train Resource Technology 87

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Libraries for people who are blind or dyslexic are the primary source of accessible books in audio, large print or braille. Wouldn’t it make more sense to make it easier for people with disabilities to get access to the books they need for education and employment? exception model works well here.

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Copyright United States Library eBook 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 6, 2011

Gerardo Capiel, Benetech's VP Engineering, just sent me a couple of exciting screen shots on our Read2Go iOS application for accessible reading of ebooks. The first one shows the Special Education category on iTunes, with the Read2Go logo being used to represent the Literacy and Learning section.

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Literacy Chart eBook Application 133

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 7, 2013

While we’re extremely proud of our achievements in the field of accessibility and disability rights, we know that we’ve just scratched the surface of what we could possibly do to bolster parity of access to information by people with disabilities. We’re making securing new funding for Bookshare’s international expansion a top priority!

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India Literacy United Kingdom United States 225

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 26, 2014

One of their main challenges is that they do not have adequate access to educational materials that are necessary to learn and succeed in school. In 2004, the United States passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act , requiring schools to provide special education services to eligible students.

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eBook Accessibility United States Student 203

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

OCTOBER 15, 2012

With technology, you can do incredible things, but with a galvanized community of supporters who work together toward a greater good, we can do anything. By partnering with all these stakeholders, we reinvented the traditional library for people with print disabilities and brought modern ebook technology to this underserved community.

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Library Student eBook Accessibility 164

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 4, 2013

The Year That Was and the New Year Ahead Guest Beneblog by Betsy Beaumon, Benetech's VP and General Manager of the Literacy Program 2012 was a year of titanic shifts in the fields of consumer technology, education, and publishing, along with the requisite challenges brought about by such rapid change. Thanks again!

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Literacy Program United Arab Emirates Student 166

Connection Cafe

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

We all live in a world filled with technology, which can prove to be a help and hinderance to our work and personal lives. Furthermore, for those of us in the nonprofit world who rely on technology every day to do our jobs, the efficiencies gained by this technology can make a significant impact in the funds we deliver to improve social good.

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Data Technology Community eBook 37

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 7, 2013

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. Ultimately, this community should have equal access to all of the books that are needed for education, employment and social inclusion.

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Copyright Law United States Library 158

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

DECEMBER 17, 2015

Access to information and knowledge is a basic human right and a necessary first step towards personal, economic, and social development. The good news is that there are now unprecedented opportunities to transform the lives of these millions by removing barriers of access to information  —   and this is where you can help.

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Copyright Law Library eBook 100

Cloud 4 Good

DECEMBER 7, 2021

This comes at a time when many nonprofit organizations are in the middle of their end-of-year giving campaigns; and while you will still be able to access old Crystal Reports through your Custom Reports section, you’ll need to find a new option to edit or create new reports. . How to Best Break Away From the Rest – Tableau.

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Blackbaud Report Chart Analytics 94

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

MAY 2, 2012

Betsy Beaumon, Benetech VP and General Manager of Bookshare During the event, our Bookshare staff offered demos of our Bookshare library and our Go Read accessible ebook reader for Android. A little over 4 years ago, we won a competitive contract award from the US Department of Education which took a bold risk on Bookshare.

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Celebrate Google Literacy Library 145

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

JANUARY 17, 2014

It also underscores just how critical a balanced copyright law is for technology innovation. As a different kind of Silicon Valley tech company—a nonprofit with a pure focus on social good—our goal is to see that the best of technology gets applied to social needs left unaddressed by for-profit businesses.

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Copyright Law Accessibility Library 196

Saleforce Nonprofit

JULY 16, 2021

It is nonprofit technology for use cases like constituent management, fundraising, marketing and communications, and program management. The platform also provides the ability to secure that data to ensure that anyone who logs in will only get access to information they need access to. Get a 360-Degree View of Constituents.

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Tips Mongolia Product Platform 122

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 21, 2012

The deal was: help people with disabilities that can't access books and don't hurt the economic interests of the publishers (and authors). Ensure that only people with qualifying disabilities get access to these books. Department of Education). Educate and inform schools and our users about the qualifications.

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Copyright Social Law Student 158

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

FEBRUARY 27, 2013

In my contribution to Ron’s book, I discuss the framework that guides us at Benetech, the technology nonprofit I lead. When I first started pursuing the idea of using technology to solve challenging social problems, it was a pretty radical idea. Converting and delivering these accessible books was expensive and time consuming.

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Develop Social Library eBook 144

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 27, 2012

The first issue is that the treaty would not permit direct access by consumers to international authorized entities. Everyone who is not disabled globally can directly access Amazon.com and order books. Being silent on the big issue of circumvention would lead to a world where accessibility could be prohibited by contract.

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Qgiv

FEBRUARY 20, 2024

As technology evolves, there are new ways nonprofits like yours can take advantage of advancements to save time and raise more money. At the forefront of these new technologies is artificial intelligence (AI). Check out this eBook to help you get started on your AI journey.

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Fundraising Nonprofit Analysis Donor 97

AccelEvents

NOVEMBER 3, 2020

Keep it simple, and try to educate at timely points so that the information gets to them when they need it. . Sign up for an account that grants them access to the program. If they need to download a program onto their computer, make sure that they know how to access that program and what the hardware and software requirements are. .

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Virtual Audience Conference Software 80

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

AUGUST 5, 2009

We have been very lucky to continue to partner more closely with the publishing industry, as a major segment of educational publishers come on board with Bookshare: the university presses. We're delighted to be working with these top university presses to meet this crucial need through Bookshare.

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Press University Chicago eBook 114

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

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. The DMCA 1201 ruling on ebook access through DRM circumvention was clearly aimed at us: should we take up the challenge? No, we’re not being sued (and we want to keep it that way).

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United States Library Copyright License 134

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

OCTOBER 20, 2015

We use digital ebooks at Bookshare’s core, which can easily be turned into braille, large print or digital audio (using synthetic speech technology). We had just won a large contract to deliver high-quality accessible textbooks to students with disabilities in the U.S., and we needed more help.

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Kenya Social Student India 100

Beneblog: Technology Meets Society

NOVEMBER 18, 2007

The milestones are going to be coming ever faster, now that we have the Bookshare.org for Education project (funded by the Office of Special Education Programs of the U.S. Department of Education). We also met with many other groups, such as publishers, lobbyists, educational researchers and state education agency leaders.

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Guam Washington eBook Student 100