100 Tech4Good Resources
June 22, 2020
12 minute read
This is part 3 of a 3-part series on Tech4Good. Would love to know what you think — and follow me to get updates about the next installments!
We are stuck with technology when what we really want is just stuff that works. — Douglas Adams
UPDATE: You can see this article on my own blog with logos/icons here.
It’s one thing to look at “technology“ at an abstract level, and to consider how and where to look for best practices, methodologies, and approaches to interventions — and a completely separate issue to look at the specific tool areas where you’re actually going to be doing the work.
I’ve been running the OpenTech4Good (formerly the ICT4DGuide.org) site for a little over three years now, and have been adding items to the list as I go, including getting some tremendous feedback from folks on what to add and where. It’s also a lot at this time — over 500 descriptive links! I wanted to shrink those down to just some of the most notable “must-know” resources, so I’ve chosen 50 organizations, and 50 products/services/platforms. Obviously some subjectivity here, so your mileage may vary.
This three-part series has been fun to work on — I’m actually fairly close to finishing a broader offering of these articles, the links/resources, and more into an accessible guidebook format. More news on this soon!
In no particular order…
50 Organizations
Digital Green — (Agriculture & Environment) — Global agriculture development organization that focuses on smallholder farmers leveraging technology and grassroots-level partnerships.
Practical Action — (Agriculture & Environment) — UK-based charity, hosts a resource library of over 2,000 online resources, including technical briefs and drawings, and audios and videos, on a range of topics and subtopics, and in different languages.
WRI - World Resources Institute — (Agriculture & Environment) — Non-governmental global research organization which seeks to create equity and prosperity through sustainable natural resource management.
Aiddata — (Data Science) — Research and innovation lab that seeks to improve development outcomes by making development finance data more accessible and actionable.
DataKind — (Data Science) — Global nonprofit that uses data science in the service of humanity.
Development Seed — (Data Science) — DC-based organization that builds mapping and data visualization tools to help teams communicate.
DevResults — (Data Science) — DC-based technology company with M&E-focused web application dashboard software suite.
Feedback Labs — (Data Science) — nonprofit focused on feedback loops between citizens, NGOs, funders, and governments.
IPA - Innovations for Poverty Action — (Data Science) — Nonprofit research and policy organization — famous for conducting randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in a lot of environments.
The Engine Room — (Data Science) — International NGO that helps activists, organizations, and other social change agents make the most of data and technology to increase their impact.
IREX — (Education) — International nonprofit organization with a focus on education.
Counterpart International — (Entrepreneurship) — Nonprofit that builds the capacity of leaders, organizations, and social sector networks.
HOTOSM - Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team — (GIS and Mapping) — International team that provides map data for disaster management.
Ushahidi — (GIS and Mapping) — Global nonprofit technology company with a focus on mapping, data collection, and mobile services in Africa.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — (Global Health) — One of the world’s largest private foundations, focuses on enhancing healthcare and reducing extreme poverty.
Clinton Foundation — (Global Health) — Partnerships of great purpose to find solutions that last. Most famous of which is the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI).
Dimagi — (Global Health) — Boston-based digital services firm focusing on mobile services in the developing world, particularly in global health with their flagship product CommCare.
Global Digital Health Network — (Global Health) — A 3000+ person-strong networking forum for members from 108 countries to share information, engage with the broader community, and provide leadership in digital health for global public health.
PATH International — (Global Health) — International, nonprofit global health organization based in Seattle.
Rockefeller Foundation — (Global Health) — Foundation to promote the wellbeing of humanity catalyzes and scales innovations, create partnerships take risks.
CRS - Catholic Relief Services — (Humanitarian Response) — International humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States — has long been a strong player in the Tech4Good / ICT4D space.
InterAction — (Humanitarian Response) — Alliance of international and domestic NGOs to think and act collectively around humanitarian work.
IRC - International Rescue Committee — (Humanitarian Response) — Organization focusing on humanitarian crises and helping people to survive and rebuild their lives.
Mercy Corps — (Humanitarian Response) — Global humanitarian aid agency engaged in transitional environments.
Center for Global Development — (International Development) — Washington DC-based nonprofit think tank that focuses on international development.
Chemonics — (International Development) — International development firm that works for bilateral and multilateral donors and the private sector to manage projects in developing countries.
Development Gateway — (International Development) — International development consultancy of international development professionals, governments, and citizens with the knowledge they need to improve lives.
GlobalGiving — (International Development) — Global crowdfunding community, connecting nonprofits, donors, and companies in many countries.
ODI - Overseas Development Institute — (International Development) — UK-based think tank with a focus on global development.
Oxfam — (International Development) — UK-based global organization that addresses the structural causes of poverty and related injustice and work primarily through local accountable organizations, seeking to enhance their effectiveness.
Peace Corps — (International Development) — Independent federal agency that sends American volunteers overseas across 60 countries to work in education, global health, agriculture, the environment, community development, and more.
Save the Children — (International Development) — International non-governmental organization that promotes children’s rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries.
SID - Society for International Development — (International Development) — Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit committed to stimulating dialogue and cooperation on global development issues, enhancing skills, knowledge and understanding among development practitioners, and providing a network for individuals and organizations working in various sectors of international development.
World Bank — (International Development) — International financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of poorer countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. It comprises two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the International Development Association.
Devex — (Media & Communications) — The media platform for the global development community.
FrontlineSMS — (Mobile Services) — Organization behind the flagship product (of the same name) — a free open-source software to distribute and collect information via text messaging (SMS).
GSMA — Mobile for Development — (Mobile Services) — Group within GSMA that brings together mobile operator members, the wider mobile industry and the development community to drive commercial mobile services for underserved people in emerging markets.
Praekelt Foundation — (Mobile Services) — South Africa-based foundation that works in ICT4D, using open source technologies to deliver essential information and inclusive services to millions of people around the world, especially in Africa.
Viamo — (Mobile Services) — Mobile services company with data collection (DataWinners), SMS communication (3–2–1 Service), IVR, and increasingly smartphone services and chatbots. Created as a merger with HNI and Voto Mobile in 2017. Key Stats: Viamo in 26 countries. 3–2–1- Short-code service is available in 15 countries.
Abt Associates — (Tech4Good) — Consulting, research, and professional services firm based in Rockville, Maryland (suburb of Washington, DC), with both international development (largely technical assistance & implementation) projects and domestic (largely on surveys and impact evaluation) projects for the federal government.
Benetech — (Tech4Good) — Silicon Valley nonprofit started by Jim Fruchterman with a focus on developing software for social good.
BRCK — (Tech4Good) — Kenyan-based technology startup that develops products and services to increase digital connectivity, particularly the BRCK connectivity device.
CAST — Centre for Acceleration of Social Technology — (Tech4Good) — UK-based nonprofit focused on tech for good.
DIAL — Digital Impact Alliance — (Tech4Good) — Partnership of UN Foundation, USAID, the Gates Foundation, and the Swedish Government to support digital development projects, including the Principles of Digital Development.
Digital Square — (Tech4Good) — Consortium of more than 40 global health organizations and countries working to create and sustain digital health systems in emerging economies.
Kopernik — (Tech4Good) — Nonprofit using technology to reach and support the last-mile of the developing world.
Nethope — (Tech4Good) — Social enterprise that acts as an international NGO catalyst for productive collaboration, innovation and problem-solving to reimagine how technology can improve the world.
Tech Salons — (Tech4Good) — Host of regular meetings on technology and international development topics in different cities.
TechChange — (Tech4Good) — Washington, DC-based education tech startup that provides online professional development in technology and social change.
TechSoup — (Tech4Good) — International network of 53 partner NGOs in Africa, the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East that leverages technology to build NGO capacity towards solving social problems in local communities and fostering global social change.
50 Blogs, Products, Services, and Platforms
ICTWorks — (Tech4Good) — One of the most well-known blogs for all things ICT.
Civic Tech Field Guide — (Civil Society) — Collaboration to try and organize the civic tech field by compiling and grouping hundreds of civic technologies and grouping them to see what patterns emerge.
Humanitarian Innovation Guide — (Civil Society) — Online resource to help individuals and organizations define humanitarian problems and successfully develop innovative solutions.
Digital Impact — (Data Responsibility) — Initiative of the Digital Civil Society Lab at the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (Stanford PACS) to improve the digital infrastructure for civil society and help social sector practitioners and policymakers use digital resources safely, ethically, and effectively for maximum impact.
HDX Tools — (Data Responsibility) — Save time cleaning and visualizing your data with easy-to-use tools that work with the Humanitarian Exchange Language (HXL) standard.
Security in-a-Box — (Data Responsibility) — Blog and guide to digital security for activists and human rights fieldworkers, from the Tactical Technology Collective.
XYZ — (Data Responsibility) — A space for practical tools to navigate digital security and privacy from a gender perspective, learn from each other’s activism, inspire one another and co-create.
IATA Registry — (Data Science) — IATI (International Aid Transparency Initiative) registry initiative.
UNDP Projects — United Nations Development Programme — (Dataset) — Information on the UNDP’s 6,000+ development projects in 177 countries and territories worldwide.
USAID DDL — Development Data Library — (Dataset) — USAID’s public repository of Agency-funded, machine readable data.
USAID DEC — Development Experience Clearinghouse — (Dataset) — USAID-funded technical and program documentation, more than 155,000 documents over 50 years.
USAID Foreign Aid Explorer — (Dataset) — Dashboard of U.S. foreign assistance.
USAID IDEA — International Data & Economic Analysis — (Dataset) — 10, 000 data series from over 100 sources, cleaned and organized by USAID.
Demographic and Health Surveys — (Global Health) — Analyzes and distributes survey results regarding health, nutrition, HIV for over 75 countries.
Digital Health Atlas — (Global Health) — WHO global technology registry platform aiming to strengthen the value and impact of digital health investments, improve coordination, and facilitate institutionalization and scale.
USAID — Self-Reliance Roadmaps — (International Development) — USAID’s country-specific roadmaps for self-reliance, featuring indexes across multiple criteria.
Design Gigs for Good — (Jobs) — Routine updates of job and consulting listings with a skew towards social impact roles.
Idealist.org — (Jobs) — Well-known job board with many social impact and nonprofit organizations.
Tech for Good — (Jobs) — UK-based community group entrepreneur community group focusing on employing technology for social impact and ethical production, founded by Bethnal Green Ventures.
Tech Jobs for Good — (Jobs) — Tech jobs at social impact organizations.
Visualising Information for Advocacy — (Media & Communications) — How advocates and activists use visual elements in their campaigns.
Digital Investment Principles — (Tech4Good) — Set of principles launched at the World Health Summit 2018 for donors to align their investments to country digital health strategies that are in support of national health strategies.
Digital Principles of Development — (Tech4Good) — Guidelines that can help development practitioners integrate established best practices into technology-enabled program — written by and for international development donors, multilateral organizations, and implementing partners, and they are freely available for use by all.
Engineering for Change — (Tech4Good) — A forum to connect, collaborate, solve challenges and share knowledge among a growing community of engineers, technologists, social scientists, NGOs, local governments and community advocates, who are dedicated to improving the quality of life all over the world.
Global Innovation Exchange — (Tech4Good) — Global portal for innovations, funding, insights, resources and conversations, built by USAID.
GSMA Mobile Connectivity Index — (Tech4Good) — Connectivity map of telecoms companies throughout the world.
ImpactTrackerTech — (Tech4Good) — Feature comparison from popular digital data collection tools.
NetHope Solutions Center — (Tech4Good) — Catalog of technology solutions, products, and services.
Global Forest Watch — (Agriculture & Environment) — Interactive online forest monitoring and alert system that provides satellite and other layers of datasets.
DemTools — (Civil Society) — Free, open-source software to provide civic organizations, legislatures, and political parties with the capabilities to effectively engage 21st century citizens and build better democracies.
Commcare — (Data Collection) — Well-known and field-tested data collection app focused on health interventions in developing countries, from Dimagi.
Enketo — (Data Collection) — Open-source form engine that uses the ODK Xforms specification, and is built into many popular existing data collection mobile apps in international development.
Kobotoolbox — (Data Collection) — Drag-and-drop interface, built on top of OpenDataKit.
Magpi — (Data Collection) — Polished mobile data collection and visualization platform from company of the same name.
ODK — Open Data Kit — (Data Collection) — Open-source suite of tools built for mobile data collection, and is the core of many global technology mobile data collection platforms.
Ona — (Data Collection) — Kenya-based data collection platform with mobile apps.
Data Detox Kit — (Data Responsibility) — Guide for digital privacy, security, and wellbeing.
Guardian Project — (Data Responsibility) — Open-source apps and software aimed at protecting privacy and security for users.
Security Checklist — (Data Responsibility) — Open source checklist of digital security resources.
D3 — (Data Visualization) — Data-Driven Documents JavaScript library.
Infogram — (Data Visualization) — Infographics, reports, and maps.
Tableau — (Data Visualization) — Data visualization and business intelligence platform, with desktop and web-based services for both viewers and creators.
iFixit — (Gear) — Repair guide wiki with lots of different tutorials directed at all levels.
RACHEL — Remote Area Community Hotspot for Education & Learning — (Gear) — Collection of tools and offline digital content curated for the Global South educational environment — versions use a Raspberry Pi computer or USB drive.
Carto — (GIS and Mapping) — Browser-based mapping and analysis of location data.
QGIS — (GIS and Mapping) — Open-source cross-platform desktop geographic information system (GIS) application that supports viewing, editing, and analysis of geospatial data.
TechChange Platform — (Learning) — Online tech training for social good.
Twilio — (Mobile Services) — Cloud service providing many tools and services for text messaging and SMS — thorough documentation, history of projects.
Chandoo — (Monitoring & Evaluation) — Learn Excel, Power BI, Charting, Dashboards and VBA online.
Zenysis — (Monitoring & Evaluation) — Analytics web platform focused on data integration, interoperability, analytics, quality, and automation; developed and maintained by Zenysis.
