Dear all,
As we enter the holiday season and the year comes to a close, we'd like to wish you a peaceful and joyous holiday, and also extend our gratitude for your support and commitment to local communities around the world. It's been said before but bears repeating: NABUUR is not possible without the dedication and energy of each of you - Thank You!
Before heading out to your holiday plans, take a minute to read the latest happening at NABUUR.
Stories
To see just what kind of a year it's been, have a look at these inspiring stories featuring developments in villages during the past year.
What's new and what's coming up in 2009
You may have seen some of the changes on NABUUR.com, and you're probably asking yourself what's coming up in 2009...Here's your chance to get the latest scoop. And please let us know what you think by contributing to the online discussion.
Last but not least...
NABUUR is happy to announce its first Volunteer of the Year Contest, and we're inviting you to take part in nominating and selecting the winner. Find out more, and post your nomination here! Nominations will be accepted until January 15, so get yours in today!
Happy Holidays, everyone!
the NABUUR Team
Wednesday 24 December 2008
Thursday 18 December 2008
Webmaster wanted for www.kabondopoverty.org
You may have come across the amazing website put together by volunteers to raise awareness for the Kabondo Orphan Care Project.
Now this website is in urgent need of a webmaster: a dedicated and thorough volunteer who can write content and update the website as needed. If this sounds like you, read on for a message from Barb Briggs, facilitator of the Kabondo project, outlining the full description of the voluntary duties you'd be undertaking.
Webmaster Needed!
In order to attract potential donors, increase awareness and promote Kabondo, and allow for 'online' donation a website was developed at www.kabondopoverty.org.
We have webhosting for 2 years but now require a webmaster.
Duties include:
- Writing content for the website
- Posting updates at least monthly, but preferably every week
- Posting photos, videos and other links
- Maintaining a list of registered users that sign up on the site
- Developing new pages as the site grows
- Minimum 6 month commitment
Expertise or skills required:
- Experience in working with Joomla
- Experience writing
- Strong English writing skills
- Excellent internet skills
- Ability to add photos, videos and other resources to the site
- Experience in updating a website
- Able to maintain a spreadsheet
If interested, do let them know! Leave a message on the Kabondo discussion board here.
Now this website is in urgent need of a webmaster: a dedicated and thorough volunteer who can write content and update the website as needed. If this sounds like you, read on for a message from Barb Briggs, facilitator of the Kabondo project, outlining the full description of the voluntary duties you'd be undertaking.
Webmaster Needed!
In order to attract potential donors, increase awareness and promote Kabondo, and allow for 'online' donation a website was developed at www.kabondopoverty.org.
We have webhosting for 2 years but now require a webmaster.
Duties include:
- Writing content for the website
- Posting updates at least monthly, but preferably every week
- Posting photos, videos and other links
- Maintaining a list of registered users that sign up on the site
- Developing new pages as the site grows
- Minimum 6 month commitment
Expertise or skills required:
- Experience in working with Joomla
- Experience writing
- Strong English writing skills
- Excellent internet skills
- Ability to add photos, videos and other resources to the site
- Experience in updating a website
- Able to maintain a spreadsheet
If interested, do let them know! Leave a message on the Kabondo discussion board here.
Wednesday 17 December 2008
Next step
Two years ago, on June 2006, I started at NABUUR.
Then NABUUR was an Internet site on which 5,000 online volunteers (Neighbours) collaborated with the population of 60 local communities (Villages) from Africa, Asia and Latin America to find new solutions for local problems.
Now, at the end of 2008 NABUUR is an open platform where soon 20,000 Neighbours from 152 different countries will assist the population in 200 Villages with projects which are linked with the millennium goals.
NABUUR became a self-organising platform and as a result the team of employees and thereby the operational costs can be much lower. Moreover NABUUR is well on it’s way to secure a group of committed partners and financial supporters and with that it has been insured a stable future.
I am glad that I have made my contribution to this growth in the previous years. There were turbulent, sometimes uncertain times in which I have cooperated gladly with colleagues and partners and above all have learned much from the local representatives and the volunteers.
Your feeling for justice, commitment, perseverance and allegiance is infinite and will continue to inspire me both in work and private life!
As of 1 January I will start working at‘’de Baak’’ (www.baakblue.nl). Last autumn NABUUR hosted the Dutch Innovation seminar (organised by the Baakblue). There I experienced the work area and got to know the people. From the first meeting I felt like a fish in water and realised that I in my next job I want more personal contact and variety in subjects and organisations. That is what the Baakblue can offer me.
NABUUR `gets under your skin'' and that’s why I want to conclude with stories of developments reached in the Villages the previous years:
http://www.nabuur.com/news/stories
I hope that this only beginning ...... Thank you very much for cooperation!
Gerdie Schreuders
Then NABUUR was an Internet site on which 5,000 online volunteers (Neighbours) collaborated with the population of 60 local communities (Villages) from Africa, Asia and Latin America to find new solutions for local problems.
Now, at the end of 2008 NABUUR is an open platform where soon 20,000 Neighbours from 152 different countries will assist the population in 200 Villages with projects which are linked with the millennium goals.
NABUUR became a self-organising platform and as a result the team of employees and thereby the operational costs can be much lower. Moreover NABUUR is well on it’s way to secure a group of committed partners and financial supporters and with that it has been insured a stable future.
I am glad that I have made my contribution to this growth in the previous years. There were turbulent, sometimes uncertain times in which I have cooperated gladly with colleagues and partners and above all have learned much from the local representatives and the volunteers.
Your feeling for justice, commitment, perseverance and allegiance is infinite and will continue to inspire me both in work and private life!
As of 1 January I will start working at‘’de Baak’’ (www.baakblue.nl). Last autumn NABUUR hosted the Dutch Innovation seminar (organised by the Baakblue). There I experienced the work area and got to know the people. From the first meeting I felt like a fish in water and realised that I in my next job I want more personal contact and variety in subjects and organisations. That is what the Baakblue can offer me.
NABUUR `gets under your skin'' and that’s why I want to conclude with stories of developments reached in the Villages the previous years:
http://www.nabuur.com/news/stories
I hope that this only beginning ...... Thank you very much for cooperation!
Gerdie Schreuders
Tuesday 16 December 2008
Projects, projects and more projects - How do You Choose One?
With hundreds of online projects on NABUUR.com, how do you decide which one to help? Some volunteers have their mind made up as soon as they register, beelining it for the project of their choice.
But many of us are grateful for a little time to peruse what's available - so, if you've asked yourself the question 'how do I choose a NABUUR project?' you're in luck as today, we bring you some tips to make sure you start off your NABUUR experience on the right foot from the get-go.
1. A quick way to select an online project is by browsing the Villages tab. On that page you'll see villages and projects categorized by topic and location. Pick at your heart's content!
2. You can't beat a search engine! Type in your chosen keywords (skills, interests, location, task names, etc.) and find your way to quick results in seconds.
3. Peers know best. Chat with your fellow Neighbours: they are the ones with the pulse on all the latest happening on NABUUR, and they'll likely know of a project where your skills and interests would fit right in.
4. Stay on top of the NABUUR news! Opportunities for help within villages and projects are often advertised by the news items, so don't miss one bit!
5. Contact info[at]nabuur.com if you'd like some guidance on where to start. Don't forget to tell us a bit about yourself (your preferences for a volunteering opportunity; your work/academic experience; your likes/dislikes) and we'll help match you up with a project of your choice.
If you're not quite ready to dive into a project, no worries, there's heaps more you can do: check out the '10 Things You can do' page. We know there's something in there that's bound to get your full attention!
We hope you find this information useful in helping you get started - Have a great day everyone!
But many of us are grateful for a little time to peruse what's available - so, if you've asked yourself the question 'how do I choose a NABUUR project?' you're in luck as today, we bring you some tips to make sure you start off your NABUUR experience on the right foot from the get-go.
1. A quick way to select an online project is by browsing the Villages tab. On that page you'll see villages and projects categorized by topic and location. Pick at your heart's content!
2. You can't beat a search engine! Type in your chosen keywords (skills, interests, location, task names, etc.) and find your way to quick results in seconds.
3. Peers know best. Chat with your fellow Neighbours: they are the ones with the pulse on all the latest happening on NABUUR, and they'll likely know of a project where your skills and interests would fit right in.
4. Stay on top of the NABUUR news! Opportunities for help within villages and projects are often advertised by the news items, so don't miss one bit!
5. Contact info[at]nabuur.com if you'd like some guidance on where to start. Don't forget to tell us a bit about yourself (your preferences for a volunteering opportunity; your work/academic experience; your likes/dislikes) and we'll help match you up with a project of your choice.
If you're not quite ready to dive into a project, no worries, there's heaps more you can do: check out the '10 Things You can do' page. We know there's something in there that's bound to get your full attention!
We hope you find this information useful in helping you get started - Have a great day everyone!
Friday 12 December 2008
Two ways that you can help the Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre
It's been a long time since we showcased available volunteering opportunities, so today we bring you a project - and concrete ways that you can help - that we hope will catch your attention.
A few months ago we introduced you to the Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre when we proudly announced that the centre had earned its NGO status, and was now formally and legally recognized as an organization. This time we visit the project and give you ways to help out - without setting foot in the community, and simply by sitting behind your computer and spending some time on the Internet.
For those who didn't read the previous post on NESC, here's a quick recap of the project, explained by the project's facilitator Lynley MacKay:
"HIV/AIDS in Nairobi-Eastlands is spreading at an alarming rate, and with high rates of substance and poor health, the community needs access to affordable health care.
The community has established a health care and support centre. The centre will provide both medical and counselling services." (A more detailed overview on the project can be found here.)
While a lot has been accomplished, thanks to the tireless work of the project's team, there are a couple of urgent tasks that would welcome your offer to help.
1. Sort and Prioritize Resources: NESC has a large bank of potential funding and support organizations listed in the project room's resources. These organizations were selected partly because they have a similar focus to NESC, but now they need to be revised and prioritized according to their potential/likelihood to fund NESC.
If you can help with this task, which shouldn't take up more than 2 hours, please drop your name in the discussion thread.
2. Write a Funding Proposal: NESC has a mission statement, aims and objectives set out, a project and business plan, a proposed budget, a logo, and a web page. All it is missing is for a few volunteers to collaborate together on a proposal/funding document which will be submitted as the main source of information when applying for funding opportunities.
Sounds like something that you could do? Let the team know here.
There you have it: two concrete ways to offer your assistance to a crucial and inspiring project in Nairobi. Feel free to browse around the project's other tasks, and join in the conversation. See you online.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
A few months ago we introduced you to the Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre when we proudly announced that the centre had earned its NGO status, and was now formally and legally recognized as an organization. This time we visit the project and give you ways to help out - without setting foot in the community, and simply by sitting behind your computer and spending some time on the Internet.
For those who didn't read the previous post on NESC, here's a quick recap of the project, explained by the project's facilitator Lynley MacKay:
"HIV/AIDS in Nairobi-Eastlands is spreading at an alarming rate, and with high rates of substance and poor health, the community needs access to affordable health care.
The community has established a health care and support centre. The centre will provide both medical and counselling services." (A more detailed overview on the project can be found here.)
While a lot has been accomplished, thanks to the tireless work of the project's team, there are a couple of urgent tasks that would welcome your offer to help.
1. Sort and Prioritize Resources: NESC has a large bank of potential funding and support organizations listed in the project room's resources. These organizations were selected partly because they have a similar focus to NESC, but now they need to be revised and prioritized according to their potential/likelihood to fund NESC.
If you can help with this task, which shouldn't take up more than 2 hours, please drop your name in the discussion thread.
2. Write a Funding Proposal: NESC has a mission statement, aims and objectives set out, a project and business plan, a proposed budget, a logo, and a web page. All it is missing is for a few volunteers to collaborate together on a proposal/funding document which will be submitted as the main source of information when applying for funding opportunities.
Sounds like something that you could do? Let the team know here.
There you have it: two concrete ways to offer your assistance to a crucial and inspiring project in Nairobi. Feel free to browse around the project's other tasks, and join in the conversation. See you online.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Friday 5 December 2008
Happy International Volunteer Day from all of us at NABUUR!
Dear NABUUR Volunteers,
Today, December 5, is International Volunteer Day; a day which celebrates the collective spirit and work of volunteers around the world.
To mark this day, the team at NABUUR would like to take a moment and honour the commitment you have made to help local communities around the world achieve their goals and dreams.
The core of NABUUR – our online neighbour network - would not function without the work put in by each and everyone one of you, and we say a heartfelt Thank You to everyone involved.
As a means to celebrate your achievements, we have compiled a few stories that represent the tremendous efforts made this past year by NABUUR neighbours, facilitators, and local representatives. We invite you to read the stories and please don't hesitate to share them with friends and family. Enjoy!
With gratitude, we wish you a Happy International Volunteer Day – You wholeheartedly deserve it.
The NABUUR team
Today, December 5, is International Volunteer Day; a day which celebrates the collective spirit and work of volunteers around the world.
To mark this day, the team at NABUUR would like to take a moment and honour the commitment you have made to help local communities around the world achieve their goals and dreams.
The core of NABUUR – our online neighbour network - would not function without the work put in by each and everyone one of you, and we say a heartfelt Thank You to everyone involved.
As a means to celebrate your achievements, we have compiled a few stories that represent the tremendous efforts made this past year by NABUUR neighbours, facilitators, and local representatives. We invite you to read the stories and please don't hesitate to share them with friends and family. Enjoy!
With gratitude, we wish you a Happy International Volunteer Day – You wholeheartedly deserve it.
The NABUUR team
Tuesday 25 November 2008
Give a Gift with Meaning: The Kyomya Calendars are now on sale!
The holidays are fast approaching, and what better gift to give than one that will have a lasting impact on a community in a developing country.
To raise funds to build a school and further other projects in Kyomya, Uganda, two NABUUR volunteers, Barb Briggs and Raul Alberto Caceres, have put together a calendar with stunning photographs taken from their travels this year to the community of Kyomya East. The calendar is now on sale, and eagerly waiting for your orders!
The price of the calendar has been reduced to $15 USD with a new printer on board. Your calendar will come with a white envelope to ship it on as a gift to a friend.
Postage in the US is no more than $2.50. If you can afford to, please round it up to $20. For more than one calendar, the postage on priority mail that can hold up to 6 calendars is $11.95 USD.
Postage to Canada, Australia and Europe is a flat rate of $11.95 USD, which can hold up to 6 calendars delivered in 6-10 days.
To place your orders just send an email to kyomyacalendar@gmail.com with the number of calendars you wish to order and the delivery address.
You will receive an email with instructions on how to process a secure payment using Paypal. Once the payment is confirmed the calendars will be delivered to the address specified in the email.
Make sure to order yours today!
And if you'd like to be a part of the Kyomya online team, click here to see what else the team is working on - and how you can contribute.
To raise funds to build a school and further other projects in Kyomya, Uganda, two NABUUR volunteers, Barb Briggs and Raul Alberto Caceres, have put together a calendar with stunning photographs taken from their travels this year to the community of Kyomya East. The calendar is now on sale, and eagerly waiting for your orders!
The price of the calendar has been reduced to $15 USD with a new printer on board. Your calendar will come with a white envelope to ship it on as a gift to a friend.
Postage in the US is no more than $2.50. If you can afford to, please round it up to $20. For more than one calendar, the postage on priority mail that can hold up to 6 calendars is $11.95 USD.
Postage to Canada, Australia and Europe is a flat rate of $11.95 USD, which can hold up to 6 calendars delivered in 6-10 days.
To place your orders just send an email to kyomyacalendar@gmail.com with the number of calendars you wish to order and the delivery address.
You will receive an email with instructions on how to process a secure payment using Paypal. Once the payment is confirmed the calendars will be delivered to the address specified in the email.
Make sure to order yours today!
And if you'd like to be a part of the Kyomya online team, click here to see what else the team is working on - and how you can contribute.
Thursday 20 November 2008
There's always a story to tell at NABUUR - Why not be the person telling it?
If you're a journalist, a writer, or someone with an interest or talent for storytelling, you're in luck as today we present you with a new and exciting volunteering opportunity.
There is always something cooking in NABUUR Villages. When you're participating in the Villages as a Neighbour and are right smack in the middle of the action, your volunteer time is better filled with researching solutions for the project, making contact with organisations, working on the assigned tasks, etc. All these efforts may not leave much time for other things, but there are Neighbours who may wish to take on a reporting role and write stories about the developments taking place in the Villages.
This is the reason why NABUUR is looking for volunteer storytellers. Each storyteller will get 20 Villages to monitor (check the news, stay on top of the results, get an update from the Facilitator and the Local Representative) and will write updates about the developments in this Village.
As storyteller, you will to act as the Village reporter and create stories (within a given format most of the time). If you like to keep a blog or post your stories outside NABUUR you are more than welcome as well.
If you can spend 5 hours a week, whenever it suits you, for the next 6 months, join us in the storytelling group where you'll find all you need to know on getting started as a NABUUR storyteller.
There is always something cooking in NABUUR Villages. When you're participating in the Villages as a Neighbour and are right smack in the middle of the action, your volunteer time is better filled with researching solutions for the project, making contact with organisations, working on the assigned tasks, etc. All these efforts may not leave much time for other things, but there are Neighbours who may wish to take on a reporting role and write stories about the developments taking place in the Villages.
This is the reason why NABUUR is looking for volunteer storytellers. Each storyteller will get 20 Villages to monitor (check the news, stay on top of the results, get an update from the Facilitator and the Local Representative) and will write updates about the developments in this Village.
As storyteller, you will to act as the Village reporter and create stories (within a given format most of the time). If you like to keep a blog or post your stories outside NABUUR you are more than welcome as well.
If you can spend 5 hours a week, whenever it suits you, for the next 6 months, join us in the storytelling group where you'll find all you need to know on getting started as a NABUUR storyteller.
Tuesday 18 November 2008
Preview page: 10 Things you can do on NABUUR
A very interesting discussion is taking shape on the Social Actions website on the topic of engaging volunteers.
Some excellent suggestions were brought forward and we have incorporated these into a brand new feature that will allow new and existing Nabuur volunteers to quickly get a sense of how they can start contributing.
A page has been created with a '10 things you can do' list. You'll find the things on the page range from becoming a Neighbour to taking on bigger tasks like becoming a Facilitator. The page is not live yet, and it's still a work in progress, but we wanted to give you a preview and would love to hear if you think this page will work for new volunteers to get started:
Visit the page here.
Let us know your thoughts, and if you feel inclined, join us on Social Actions to continue the discussion!
Some excellent suggestions were brought forward and we have incorporated these into a brand new feature that will allow new and existing Nabuur volunteers to quickly get a sense of how they can start contributing.
A page has been created with a '10 things you can do' list. You'll find the things on the page range from becoming a Neighbour to taking on bigger tasks like becoming a Facilitator. The page is not live yet, and it's still a work in progress, but we wanted to give you a preview and would love to hear if you think this page will work for new volunteers to get started:
Visit the page here.
Let us know your thoughts, and if you feel inclined, join us on Social Actions to continue the discussion!
Thursday 13 November 2008
154 Votes on Give Meaning...and Counting!
Remember a few days ago when we shared with you the efforts of Yoshinkel and Gamauli to raise votes on Give Meaning? It seems quite a lot of you were listening, and took swift action to make sure that the vote count rose through the GM roof!
Within 48 hours, the goal of 100 votes was reached - and the votes are still coming in...Now showing 153...154...
Talk about fast and furious teamwork! We saw lots of promo links being posted on NABUUR users' Facebook accounts and other social networks; announcements sent on Twitter channels; emails being forwarded to friends and acquaintances asking to please vote, etc.
You ALL did it! Virtual high-fives going out to all of you! :)
Now onto the fundraising part...But if the voting phase is any indication of how quickly this team can get to its goal, raising funds will be a piece of cake.
Want to get in on the action? Here's how to do it.
Within 48 hours, the goal of 100 votes was reached - and the votes are still coming in...Now showing 153...154...
Talk about fast and furious teamwork! We saw lots of promo links being posted on NABUUR users' Facebook accounts and other social networks; announcements sent on Twitter channels; emails being forwarded to friends and acquaintances asking to please vote, etc.
You ALL did it! Virtual high-fives going out to all of you! :)
Now onto the fundraising part...But if the voting phase is any indication of how quickly this team can get to its goal, raising funds will be a piece of cake.
Want to get in on the action? Here's how to do it.
Sunday 9 November 2008
How your Vote can help school children in Nepal
Now here's a great way to start the week off...Take a minute or two and vote on Givemeaning.com for a NABUUR project aimed at providing winter clothes to school children in Nepal.
Angelika, facilitator for Yoshinkel, tells us more below.
"Your vote on Givemeaning.com goes out to both the women of Yoshinkhel and the children of Gamauli today :) the two Nabuur villages have entered into a partnership to provide the needy children of Gamauli with winter clothes.
Our neighbour Jennifer has posted information about our proposed project and partnership to Givemeaning.com. In order for the project to "go live" and fundraising to begin, we need to first secure 100 votes. I am asking that all of our volunteers here please visit the Givemeaning.com site and cast your vote.
Click here to go to the project:
http://www.givemeaning.com/proposal/gamauli
Please get your friends to vote as well! Voting closes December 8th. The sooner we can get to 100 votes the better.
And if you do feel that this is a worthwhile cooperation, please do consider funding as well: You can buy a set of clothes for a child for EUR 5 / USD 6 already, ensuring that that child can attend school over winter! And of course the women and children in Yoshinkhel benefit too, as the women are paid for their work on the products."
---
There, easy as it looks. A couple of minutes to register an account on GiveMeaning and a quick click of the Vote button. Please pass this on to your friends and acquaintances before the deadline.
I voted - Have you?
Angelika, facilitator for Yoshinkel, tells us more below.
"Your vote on Givemeaning.com goes out to both the women of Yoshinkhel and the children of Gamauli today :) the two Nabuur villages have entered into a partnership to provide the needy children of Gamauli with winter clothes.
Our neighbour Jennifer has posted information about our proposed project and partnership to Givemeaning.com. In order for the project to "go live" and fundraising to begin, we need to first secure 100 votes. I am asking that all of our volunteers here please visit the Givemeaning.com site and cast your vote.
Click here to go to the project:
http://www.givemeaning.com/proposal/gamauli
Please get your friends to vote as well! Voting closes December 8th. The sooner we can get to 100 votes the better.
And if you do feel that this is a worthwhile cooperation, please do consider funding as well: You can buy a set of clothes for a child for EUR 5 / USD 6 already, ensuring that that child can attend school over winter! And of course the women and children in Yoshinkhel benefit too, as the women are paid for their work on the products."
---
There, easy as it looks. A couple of minutes to register an account on GiveMeaning and a quick click of the Vote button. Please pass this on to your friends and acquaintances before the deadline.
I voted - Have you?
Tuesday 4 November 2008
The Stephen Lewis Foundation Visits Kabondo
NABUUR woke up today to some heartening news from the project in Kabondo, Kenya.
Here's Eric Ochanji, local representative of Kabondo, to share with you the exciting news.
"Dr. Lucy Steinitz visited Kabondo on 1st and 2nd November to carry out an assesment visit for possible funding on behalf of the Stephen Leiws Foundation. Dr. Steinitz is co-founder of Catholic AIDS Action in Namibia and co-founder and chairperson of the board of CAFO; The Church Alliance for Orphans. She also works with Family Health International.
It is the policy of The Stephen Lewis Foundation to send a representative to any project they are actively considering for funding. We were privileged to host her to meet the board, asses the management and financial systems in place and also visit the beneficiaries of the project. The visit took 2 days and a report will be forwaded to SLF to help them make a final decision.
Dr. Lucy visited children supported by the project and a widow who is struggling with a small business that earns her less than a dollar a day (KShs 50) to feed her four children and help her provide the basic necessities. Though she is semi literate, Dr. Lucy was inspired and moved by Mrs Benter Owino's courage and strategic plan and donated KShs 5,000 of her own monwy to help her expand her business capacity to be able to make at least KShs 300 a day.
We thank Lucy for helping Kabondo Poverty Alleviation Organization(KPAO) reach out to one widow who has shown the way that hard work and determination can help the poor make great strides away from dependence."
Eric
Local Representative of Kabondo
Here's Eric Ochanji, local representative of Kabondo, to share with you the exciting news.
"Dr. Lucy Steinitz visited Kabondo on 1st and 2nd November to carry out an assesment visit for possible funding on behalf of the Stephen Leiws Foundation. Dr. Steinitz is co-founder of Catholic AIDS Action in Namibia and co-founder and chairperson of the board of CAFO; The Church Alliance for Orphans. She also works with Family Health International.
It is the policy of The Stephen Lewis Foundation to send a representative to any project they are actively considering for funding. We were privileged to host her to meet the board, asses the management and financial systems in place and also visit the beneficiaries of the project. The visit took 2 days and a report will be forwaded to SLF to help them make a final decision.
Dr. Lucy visited children supported by the project and a widow who is struggling with a small business that earns her less than a dollar a day (KShs 50) to feed her four children and help her provide the basic necessities. Though she is semi literate, Dr. Lucy was inspired and moved by Mrs Benter Owino's courage and strategic plan and donated KShs 5,000 of her own monwy to help her expand her business capacity to be able to make at least KShs 300 a day.
We thank Lucy for helping Kabondo Poverty Alleviation Organization(KPAO) reach out to one widow who has shown the way that hard work and determination can help the poor make great strides away from dependence."
Eric
Local Representative of Kabondo
Tuesday 28 October 2008
Running the Mumbai Marathon to raise funds for a school in India
Creativity and resourcefulness are two qualities that can aptly describe NABUUR volunteers - Jegan, local representative for the community of Koliyonkulam in India, is a perfect example of these attributes being used to the max when it comes to finding solutions for the projects.
To address the lack of education for children in the village, an evening school has been set up where children are taught English and other subjects, helping them prepare for a better future.
The HELP (Human Education and Liberation for the Poor) school runs on minimum resources and seeks donations or partners that will allow it to improve its services.
When registration for the Mumbai marathon came up, Jegan immediately saw an opportunity and signed up...
"Jegan is showing his commitment to the evening school and his genuine intent to help the children through HELP evening school! He is running in the Mumbai marathon (on January 18, 2009), Asia's biggest charity event for NGOs. He is participating in the Half-Marathon. He is pledging funds and he has created a website to promote his effort. Here is a great opportunity to sponsor the evening school."
Tanja (online volunteer in Koliyonkulam)
We invite you to check out the website for more information and to make a pledge to help the school. (All pledges will be overseen by the United Way Mumbai.)
Best of luck Jegan - We know you'll make everyone proud!
Students at the HELP School in Koliyonkulam
To address the lack of education for children in the village, an evening school has been set up where children are taught English and other subjects, helping them prepare for a better future.
The HELP (Human Education and Liberation for the Poor) school runs on minimum resources and seeks donations or partners that will allow it to improve its services.
When registration for the Mumbai marathon came up, Jegan immediately saw an opportunity and signed up...
"Jegan is showing his commitment to the evening school and his genuine intent to help the children through HELP evening school! He is running in the Mumbai marathon (on January 18, 2009), Asia's biggest charity event for NGOs. He is participating in the Half-Marathon. He is pledging funds and he has created a website to promote his effort. Here is a great opportunity to sponsor the evening school."
Tanja (online volunteer in Koliyonkulam)
We invite you to check out the website for more information and to make a pledge to help the school. (All pledges will be overseen by the United Way Mumbai.)
Best of luck Jegan - We know you'll make everyone proud!
Students at the HELP School in Koliyonkulam
Wednesday 22 October 2008
A Shout-out to the Yoshinkel Project Team
The artisan women of Yoshinkel (Nepal) needed a catalogue to showcase their beautiful knitted wear, and to present to Third World Craft to be included in that organization's order plan for this fiscal year.
The Neighbours in the Village, led by facilitator Angelika, and supported on site by the local community representative Sabina, have stepped up to the plate and made everyone's head spin with the speed and progress the task has made in mere weeks.
We'd like to give the team at Yoshinkel a NABUUR shout-out and say Thank You for the fantastic teamwork. The team exemplifies what NABUUR is truly about; the Global Neighbour Network.
Kudos to all - We can't wait to see the final product!
[Check out the discussion - and see samples of the catalogue - here. And don't forget you too can join the project and help out. For more opportunities within the Yoshinkel project, visit their project room.]
The catalogue-making team
The Neighbours in the Village, led by facilitator Angelika, and supported on site by the local community representative Sabina, have stepped up to the plate and made everyone's head spin with the speed and progress the task has made in mere weeks.
We'd like to give the team at Yoshinkel a NABUUR shout-out and say Thank You for the fantastic teamwork. The team exemplifies what NABUUR is truly about; the Global Neighbour Network.
Kudos to all - We can't wait to see the final product!
[Check out the discussion - and see samples of the catalogue - here. And don't forget you too can join the project and help out. For more opportunities within the Yoshinkel project, visit their project room.]
The catalogue-making team
Who can really change the world?
Look at this extremely funny video about the President elections and see the connection between Obama, McCain and Neighbours @ NABUUR!
Here you go:
http://www.aarpvote08.org/?d=TkFCVVVSIE5laWdoYm91cnM=
(or click the title of this posting for a direct link)
Here you go:
http://www.aarpvote08.org/?d=TkFCVVVSIE5laWdoYm91cnM=
(or click the title of this posting for a direct link)
Thursday 16 October 2008
Many roads lead to Rome/different styles of development cooperation
(An update from Gerdie Schreuders on the exciting happenings at the Dutch Innovation Seminar last week)
During the Dutch Innovation Seminar, organised by de Baak last week, we had a chance to present NABUUR.com. The audience: 150 innovation managers from companies and NGO's from the Netherlands, eager to learn about open innovation.
I would like to share what happened during the presentation of Siegfried Woldhek. (founder and CEO of NABUUR.com).
Paul Bulenzi (Local Representative for Jinja-Central in Uganda)and Siegfried Woldhek brought NABUUR ''live''.
Paul Bulenzi, Local Representative of Jinja-Central
Through Skype, Paul Bulenzi raised a question about the shipment of two large boxes with mosquito nets, donated by Mosquito Curtains from the US to Uganda. The audience came up with a number of possible solutions by sharing their ideas live and real time.
The solutions they came up with were so much representing the expression: many roads lead to Rome that I would like to share them with you... this is not about what's best, but what's possible!
1. My wife is a flight attendant for an airline, I can ask her to bring them
2. I know an airline who has a program for transporting goods for non-profits
3. You should tell and teach Paul to help himself
4. Use social networks to raise this question
5. I can post a message in a community for people travelling a lot
6. I have a friend and his girlfriend works for a US company in Uganda, maybe they can arrange shipment
7. Why don't we all raise a little bit of money and just pay for shipment by T&T?
For me the solutions mentioned represent different ways of thinking about development collaboration. Funny to see!
As a tip I would like to share with you another .com organisation who was on stage at the Dutch Innovation Seminar: www.sellaband.com: SellaBand has been regarded as a driving force behind the Music Revolution. It challenges the traditional music industry and encourages aspiring artists and music lovers to go into business together. SellaBand aims to level the playing field of the global music industry
During the Dutch Innovation Seminar, organised by de Baak last week, we had a chance to present NABUUR.com. The audience: 150 innovation managers from companies and NGO's from the Netherlands, eager to learn about open innovation.
I would like to share what happened during the presentation of Siegfried Woldhek. (founder and CEO of NABUUR.com).
Paul Bulenzi (Local Representative for Jinja-Central in Uganda)and Siegfried Woldhek brought NABUUR ''live''.
Paul Bulenzi, Local Representative of Jinja-Central
Through Skype, Paul Bulenzi raised a question about the shipment of two large boxes with mosquito nets, donated by Mosquito Curtains from the US to Uganda. The audience came up with a number of possible solutions by sharing their ideas live and real time.
The solutions they came up with were so much representing the expression: many roads lead to Rome that I would like to share them with you... this is not about what's best, but what's possible!
1. My wife is a flight attendant for an airline, I can ask her to bring them
2. I know an airline who has a program for transporting goods for non-profits
3. You should tell and teach Paul to help himself
4. Use social networks to raise this question
5. I can post a message in a community for people travelling a lot
6. I have a friend and his girlfriend works for a US company in Uganda, maybe they can arrange shipment
7. Why don't we all raise a little bit of money and just pay for shipment by T&T?
For me the solutions mentioned represent different ways of thinking about development collaboration. Funny to see!
As a tip I would like to share with you another .com organisation who was on stage at the Dutch Innovation Seminar: www.sellaband.com: SellaBand has been regarded as a driving force behind the Music Revolution. It challenges the traditional music industry and encourages aspiring artists and music lovers to go into business together. SellaBand aims to level the playing field of the global music industry
Volunteer(s) Wanted: Can You Write Content for a Website?
As we’ve been telling you over the past few weeks, volunteers have a bit of everything to choose from at NABUUR. Some of the projects need just an extra little push to achieve wonderful results, so we thought that in the next few weeks we’ll highlight some urgent tasks that require TLC from committed volunteers out there.
The project of Kabondo in Kenya is looking for some assistance in writing content for its website: www.kabondopoverty.org
The ideal volunteer would have excellent writing and editing skills, and would also be asked to assist with the website layout. If this is you, please click here to join the discussion and offer your help.
And if you’re a brand new volunteer, fear not – a little guidance is within your fingertips. Browse NABUUR 101 – A place for answers to your questions and a chance to meet other neighbours like you.
Check back soon for more volunteering opportunities or meet us online at Nabuur.com!
The project of Kabondo in Kenya is looking for some assistance in writing content for its website: www.kabondopoverty.org
The ideal volunteer would have excellent writing and editing skills, and would also be asked to assist with the website layout. If this is you, please click here to join the discussion and offer your help.
And if you’re a brand new volunteer, fear not – a little guidance is within your fingertips. Browse NABUUR 101 – A place for answers to your questions and a chance to meet other neighbours like you.
Check back soon for more volunteering opportunities or meet us online at Nabuur.com!
Wednesday 15 October 2008
It’s Blog Action Day 2008 – Why not lend a Neighbourly Hand?
Where do you start in the fight against poverty? How does a single person make a dent in such a seemingly uphill battle?
We’ve all talked the talk. But now more than ever in history, the global conversation is radically shifting into action, and people are walking the walk.
Today, thousands of socially-conscious bloggers will take part in Blog Action Day 2008, and make their mark on this year’s topic: Poverty. You might ask yourself what’s the point of an estimated 10 million people spending their time online browsing blog posts? Will such an online mass movement precipitate any change?
Well, we at NABUUR are strong believers that a massive online movement can definitely mean a good thing...
Nowadays, volunteering opportunities are popping up everywhere. There are limitless chances to try and stamp out the issue of poverty: You can donate money to a cause; volunteer abroad with international development organizations; raise a ruckus with your government officials or local media, and on, and on…
The bottom line: People are moving and shaking all over the place, including on the Internet. This digital age of ours affords many new ways to get involved, and NABUUR is happy to offer the passionate activists out there a place to shake and roll to their (big) volunteering hearts’ content.
Since its inception in 2001, NABUUR has recognized the importance of a focused mass movement to provide assistance to those in need. By providing an easy way to get involved and lend a helping hand to developing communities around the globe – and all via online discussions, brainstorms and collaboration with others around the globe. Now that is global action brought to your very own living room.
Every volunteer that comes through the NABUUR gates has the ability to impact, whether they realize it at first or not. By joining an online project and picking a team and a task to work on, they are contributing their resources, knowledge, time, contacts, to a community in need of assistance. From income generation for impoverished communities, to children being educated, to job training, to health clinics being built, to raising awareness on a number of social issues, etc., NABUUR garners the energy of online volunteers to provide concrete answers to the questions brought forward by local communities.
NABUUR combines the best of the old (neighbourly help) with the best of the new (the Internet), always leaving the initiative in the hands of members of local communities, and offering these communities the tools for empowerement – Which they in turn use to sustain the change in their communities and beyond - a start to making a lasting dent in the cycle of poverty.
Poverty can be fought on the ground, in the mud, or with the 21st century approach of the power of the Internet. With inspiring results achieved by the hundreds of committed NABUUR online volunteers in communities located in Africa, Asia and Latin America, it’s an easy bet to say that a mass movement can, and does, translate a global conversation into concrete, global action.
Make a difference today, as part of Blog Action Day, to start contributing to a lasting difference in the lives of others. NABUUR may be just the right place for you to start!
We’ve all talked the talk. But now more than ever in history, the global conversation is radically shifting into action, and people are walking the walk.
Today, thousands of socially-conscious bloggers will take part in Blog Action Day 2008, and make their mark on this year’s topic: Poverty. You might ask yourself what’s the point of an estimated 10 million people spending their time online browsing blog posts? Will such an online mass movement precipitate any change?
Well, we at NABUUR are strong believers that a massive online movement can definitely mean a good thing...
Nowadays, volunteering opportunities are popping up everywhere. There are limitless chances to try and stamp out the issue of poverty: You can donate money to a cause; volunteer abroad with international development organizations; raise a ruckus with your government officials or local media, and on, and on…
The bottom line: People are moving and shaking all over the place, including on the Internet. This digital age of ours affords many new ways to get involved, and NABUUR is happy to offer the passionate activists out there a place to shake and roll to their (big) volunteering hearts’ content.
Since its inception in 2001, NABUUR has recognized the importance of a focused mass movement to provide assistance to those in need. By providing an easy way to get involved and lend a helping hand to developing communities around the globe – and all via online discussions, brainstorms and collaboration with others around the globe. Now that is global action brought to your very own living room.
Every volunteer that comes through the NABUUR gates has the ability to impact, whether they realize it at first or not. By joining an online project and picking a team and a task to work on, they are contributing their resources, knowledge, time, contacts, to a community in need of assistance. From income generation for impoverished communities, to children being educated, to job training, to health clinics being built, to raising awareness on a number of social issues, etc., NABUUR garners the energy of online volunteers to provide concrete answers to the questions brought forward by local communities.
NABUUR combines the best of the old (neighbourly help) with the best of the new (the Internet), always leaving the initiative in the hands of members of local communities, and offering these communities the tools for empowerement – Which they in turn use to sustain the change in their communities and beyond - a start to making a lasting dent in the cycle of poverty.
Poverty can be fought on the ground, in the mud, or with the 21st century approach of the power of the Internet. With inspiring results achieved by the hundreds of committed NABUUR online volunteers in communities located in Africa, Asia and Latin America, it’s an easy bet to say that a mass movement can, and does, translate a global conversation into concrete, global action.
Make a difference today, as part of Blog Action Day, to start contributing to a lasting difference in the lives of others. NABUUR may be just the right place for you to start!
NABUUR is taking part in Blog Action Day 2008
Tomorrow, October 15, is Blog Action Day, an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day.
The aim of this global movement is to raise awareness and shake the web into action. The topic for this year’s Blog Action Day – Poverty.
NABUUR is proud to participate in this year's Blog Action Day, so join us tomorrow to read our contribution.
And if you're a blogger and haven't signed up yet, there's still time! Visit the Blog Action Day website to register.
The aim of this global movement is to raise awareness and shake the web into action. The topic for this year’s Blog Action Day – Poverty.
NABUUR is proud to participate in this year's Blog Action Day, so join us tomorrow to read our contribution.
And if you're a blogger and haven't signed up yet, there's still time! Visit the Blog Action Day website to register.
Thursday 9 October 2008
Transport for mosquito nets arranged during Dutch Innovation Seminar
In a live demonstration of 'how NABUUR works' Siegfried Woldhek (Founder of NABUUR) and Paul Bulenzi (Local Representative of Jinja-Central) asked the audience if they could assist in arranging transport for mosquito nets from the US to Uganda.
A while ago, Facilitator Barb Briggs organised a donation of 2 boxes of nusquito nets from a company called Mosquito Curtains. The only thing left to arrange was transport to Kampala.
In today's audience there was a person who knew someone, who knew someone, which friend etc etc, owns a company in Uganda and gets transports in regularly from the US. She was called and the transport was arranged right away!
More details will follow for sure, but for now this was a great result and De Baak offered a good stage for NABUUR to show to companies what NABUUR is and how their emplyees can participate.
Here are some pics of the event!
The Dutch Innovation Seminar is underway!
As I type this the Dutch Innovation Seminar will be entering the afternoon workshop phase, and the NABUUR team will be - I'm positively sure of this - rocking the house!
But what excites me most is that one of NABUUR's local representatives, Paul Bulenzi from Jinja-Central in Uganda, will be taking part in the gathering via MSN chat. Paul, joined by Siegfried Woldhek (founder of NABUUR) will demonstrate to the audience how NABUUR works - right from his home in Uganda.
In an email exchange Paul confessed he was nervous about today. Understandable, though based on all that Paul has accomplished (with and without NABUUR) and his super cool personality (have a chat with him and you'll know what I'm talking about), I am betting he's holding the audience in the palm of his hand!
So, I anxiously wait for updates from the seminar - and of course, we'll make these available to you as soon as they come in.
Until soon,
Romina
But what excites me most is that one of NABUUR's local representatives, Paul Bulenzi from Jinja-Central in Uganda, will be taking part in the gathering via MSN chat. Paul, joined by Siegfried Woldhek (founder of NABUUR) will demonstrate to the audience how NABUUR works - right from his home in Uganda.
In an email exchange Paul confessed he was nervous about today. Understandable, though based on all that Paul has accomplished (with and without NABUUR) and his super cool personality (have a chat with him and you'll know what I'm talking about), I am betting he's holding the audience in the palm of his hand!
So, I anxiously wait for updates from the seminar - and of course, we'll make these available to you as soon as they come in.
Until soon,
Romina
Wednesday 8 October 2008
Putting Ideas into Action in Kabwe, Zambia
Josephat Mwale, local representative of Kabwe, a small town in Zambia, is thinking and dreaming big. As youth worker in Kabwe, Josephat knows too well the devastating effects of HIV/AIDS on his hometown, particularly the damage inflicted on the youth of the community who are at highest risk of infection. This grim reality is what is driving Josephat to put ideas into action, focusing on education and awareness as key components in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
Community members in Kabwe
The YMCA in Kabwe is planning to build a Counseling, Testing and Care Centre (CTC), focused on youth and their needs, which will aim to prevent HIV infections, and provide educational resources and treatment for those already infected. Even the local government is getting in on the act by supporting the building of the CTC and saying they will allocate land for the centre to be built. That sounds like a deal that can't be passed up!
Members of Kabwe YMCA
As with any ambitious project, a well-thought out project plan is lurking not far behind. The village of Kabwe has a project plan on the go, thanks to the extensive research and work done by the online neighbours – but they need a few more expert eyes to dot the I’s and cross the T’s.
Lynley MacKay, volunteer online project manager for Kabwe, explains the needs of the project:
"Kabwe needs an excellent project proposal, and some creative ideas and actions! Ideas are needed for possible seed funding, self generating funding ideas and other options to secure funding and support for the centre.
Once a project proposal has been produced, it can be utilized to apply to potential funding bodies for funding, and information from the project proposal can be used for funding submissions, media releases and marketing ideas."
Sounds doable, right? What better way to help Josephat and members of the community achieve their dreams than by spending a couple of hours helping out - online, from the comfort of your own home?! If we've peaked your interest, please join the project proposal task discussion here.
And if project proposals aren't your cup of tea, there's many other ways to get involved. Just pick a task and go for it!
Community members in Kabwe
The YMCA in Kabwe is planning to build a Counseling, Testing and Care Centre (CTC), focused on youth and their needs, which will aim to prevent HIV infections, and provide educational resources and treatment for those already infected. Even the local government is getting in on the act by supporting the building of the CTC and saying they will allocate land for the centre to be built. That sounds like a deal that can't be passed up!
Members of Kabwe YMCA
As with any ambitious project, a well-thought out project plan is lurking not far behind. The village of Kabwe has a project plan on the go, thanks to the extensive research and work done by the online neighbours – but they need a few more expert eyes to dot the I’s and cross the T’s.
Lynley MacKay, volunteer online project manager for Kabwe, explains the needs of the project:
"Kabwe needs an excellent project proposal, and some creative ideas and actions! Ideas are needed for possible seed funding, self generating funding ideas and other options to secure funding and support for the centre.
Once a project proposal has been produced, it can be utilized to apply to potential funding bodies for funding, and information from the project proposal can be used for funding submissions, media releases and marketing ideas."
Sounds doable, right? What better way to help Josephat and members of the community achieve their dreams than by spending a couple of hours helping out - online, from the comfort of your own home?! If we've peaked your interest, please join the project proposal task discussion here.
And if project proposals aren't your cup of tea, there's many other ways to get involved. Just pick a task and go for it!
Tuesday 7 October 2008
Just a few more sleeps until the Dutch Innovation Seminar!
(This post also appears on the Social Actions blog)
The coming days we'll be busy preparing for the Dutch Innovation Seminar. Siegfried Woldhek (founder of NABUUR) will be keynote speaker on October 9, together with Paul Bulenzi, local representative for the Village of Jinja-Central in Uganda on NABUUR.com.
Siegfried will demonstrate in a live presentation the principle of NABUUR: neighbourly help. How people from all over the world. not knowing one another, can come up with new solutions by sharing their ideas, knowledge and contacts. The question to solve will be raised by Paul Bulenzi who is coordinating a project for orphans and desabled people. The audience will try to find an answer in 20 minutes, quite exciting!
The seminar is an initiative of De Baak. De Baak is the place for leaders, business people and professionals to come in search of inspiration, motivation, knowledge and insight. Dutch Innovation Seminar is a yearly event, with Heineken and Apple playing host roles in previous years.
If you speak or read Dutch and you want to participate or join the discussions about Innovation online please take a look here.
Stay tuned after Thursday as we'll share with you what the audience came up with!
That's all for now. Enjoy your day, everyone!
The coming days we'll be busy preparing for the Dutch Innovation Seminar. Siegfried Woldhek (founder of NABUUR) will be keynote speaker on October 9, together with Paul Bulenzi, local representative for the Village of Jinja-Central in Uganda on NABUUR.com.
Siegfried will demonstrate in a live presentation the principle of NABUUR: neighbourly help. How people from all over the world. not knowing one another, can come up with new solutions by sharing their ideas, knowledge and contacts. The question to solve will be raised by Paul Bulenzi who is coordinating a project for orphans and desabled people. The audience will try to find an answer in 20 minutes, quite exciting!
The seminar is an initiative of De Baak. De Baak is the place for leaders, business people and professionals to come in search of inspiration, motivation, knowledge and insight. Dutch Innovation Seminar is a yearly event, with Heineken and Apple playing host roles in previous years.
If you speak or read Dutch and you want to participate or join the discussions about Innovation online please take a look here.
Stay tuned after Thursday as we'll share with you what the audience came up with!
That's all for now. Enjoy your day, everyone!
Monday 6 October 2008
The Floor is Yours
Here's hoping you're all starting off Monday on the right foot.
So far this blog has been about presenting you with amazing projects and volunteers, as well as updates from the NABUUR organization. Meaning we have been doing all the talking. Experience has taught us everyone always has something to contribute, so we'd like to switch things up a bit, and invite you to join the conversation as well in a couple of ways.
Many of you are existing NABUUR users, others are brand new to the organization. NABUUR can be a challenging concept to understand from the get-go, so I'm inviting you to ask questions, make comments, debate, discuss. The idea is to get a dialogue going, and get you involved in more than just reading these blog posts.
If you feel your question hasn't been answered by the FAQ or About NABUUR pages on our website, please post them as replies to this post - Or if you prefer, send them to info@nabuur.com with the subject title 'blog.'
Once we've gathered a few questions we'll post the replies here and hopefully get more of you commenting - other than just yours truly. :)
Alternatively, you can join the Social Actions blog where Gerdie is currently hosting a question on how best to engage volunteers. And the replies are starting to come in already...
Hope to chat with you soon!
Romina
So far this blog has been about presenting you with amazing projects and volunteers, as well as updates from the NABUUR organization. Meaning we have been doing all the talking. Experience has taught us everyone always has something to contribute, so we'd like to switch things up a bit, and invite you to join the conversation as well in a couple of ways.
Many of you are existing NABUUR users, others are brand new to the organization. NABUUR can be a challenging concept to understand from the get-go, so I'm inviting you to ask questions, make comments, debate, discuss. The idea is to get a dialogue going, and get you involved in more than just reading these blog posts.
If you feel your question hasn't been answered by the FAQ or About NABUUR pages on our website, please post them as replies to this post - Or if you prefer, send them to info@nabuur.com with the subject title 'blog.'
Once we've gathered a few questions we'll post the replies here and hopefully get more of you commenting - other than just yours truly. :)
Alternatively, you can join the Social Actions blog where Gerdie is currently hosting a question on how best to engage volunteers. And the replies are starting to come in already...
Hope to chat with you soon!
Romina
Friday 3 October 2008
Online to Offline: Introducing the NYC Volunteer Meetup Group
NABUUR is mainly about online volunteers working together towards solutions for local communities in developing countries. But some of our online volunteers have taken this a step further, starting physical meetups in their own cities, and taking the NABUUR concept of the global neighbourhood quite literally!
New York City residents Manuel Perez and Frederica Clare are veterans on the NABUUR stage, having worked on various online projects in project management roles or as team members. They put their heads together and organized a meetup in NYC for people interested in online volunteering, specifically those participating in NABUUR.com projects. The group meets monthly to discuss and brainstorm community service projects, and evaluate how best to use the tools available to volunteers on the internet.
If you're planning on being in the NYC area, drop in on their next meeting taking place on Monday, October 6. For more information and location, please visit their Meetup page.
Also make sure to check out the NYC Group discussion on the NABUUR.com platform, where you can pipe in with ideas and comments - and this without the cost of a plane ticket to NYC!
[If you're a member of NABUUR and wish to set up a similar Meetup in your city, let us know. We'll be happy to get you started. Contact info@nabuur.com for more information.]
Enjoy your weekend, everyone!
Romina
New York City residents Manuel Perez and Frederica Clare are veterans on the NABUUR stage, having worked on various online projects in project management roles or as team members. They put their heads together and organized a meetup in NYC for people interested in online volunteering, specifically those participating in NABUUR.com projects. The group meets monthly to discuss and brainstorm community service projects, and evaluate how best to use the tools available to volunteers on the internet.
If you're planning on being in the NYC area, drop in on their next meeting taking place on Monday, October 6. For more information and location, please visit their Meetup page.
Also make sure to check out the NYC Group discussion on the NABUUR.com platform, where you can pipe in with ideas and comments - and this without the cost of a plane ticket to NYC!
[If you're a member of NABUUR and wish to set up a similar Meetup in your city, let us know. We'll be happy to get you started. Contact info@nabuur.com for more information.]
Enjoy your weekend, everyone!
Romina
Thursday 2 October 2008
The Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre earns NGO status!
Nairobi Eastlands is one of the largest slums in Nairobi, Kenya, and is notorious for its youth culture and urban youth music scene. However, the area is also well known for its many health related problems, including high rates of HIV/AIDS and substance abuse.
Nairobi Eastlands
To combat the health problems affecting the community, the Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre (NESC) was set up with the aim of providing affordable primary health care services, including health education and rehabilitation programs for substance abuse. In the hopes of finding ways to improve the centre's services, the community registered their project on NABUUR.
HIV/AIDS workshop
The online project is supported by Australian project manager Lynley MacKay, with Daniel Macharia, a health counsellor based in Nairobi, acting as local representative for the community.
With help from online volunteers from all corners of the world, a website for NESC was built, outlining the mandate and project goals of the organization. The website also includes a gallery of traditional crafts the community is selling in order to raise funds for self-sustainability.
Lack of legal status is often an obstacle for many local organizations, but last week NESC was granted formal non-profit status, a major achievement for the health centre. Daniel shares with us the exciting news here, and includes a copy of the certificate given to NESC by the Non-Governmental Organizations Board in Kenya.
Now that NESC is officially recognized as a legal non-profit organization, the community has many plans it wishes to tackle, including raising funds for the centre to become self-sustainable, and registering NESC with the United Nations (UN).
If you feel you can help with this project (and you can because no specific experience is needed - just your knowledge, contacts, resources, and lots of good ideas!) please click here to visit the Nairobi Eastlands project pages and join the online discussion.
We hope to see you as part of the team soon!
Nairobi Eastlands
To combat the health problems affecting the community, the Nairobi Eastlands Support Centre (NESC) was set up with the aim of providing affordable primary health care services, including health education and rehabilitation programs for substance abuse. In the hopes of finding ways to improve the centre's services, the community registered their project on NABUUR.
HIV/AIDS workshop
The online project is supported by Australian project manager Lynley MacKay, with Daniel Macharia, a health counsellor based in Nairobi, acting as local representative for the community.
With help from online volunteers from all corners of the world, a website for NESC was built, outlining the mandate and project goals of the organization. The website also includes a gallery of traditional crafts the community is selling in order to raise funds for self-sustainability.
Lack of legal status is often an obstacle for many local organizations, but last week NESC was granted formal non-profit status, a major achievement for the health centre. Daniel shares with us the exciting news here, and includes a copy of the certificate given to NESC by the Non-Governmental Organizations Board in Kenya.
Now that NESC is officially recognized as a legal non-profit organization, the community has many plans it wishes to tackle, including raising funds for the centre to become self-sustainable, and registering NESC with the United Nations (UN).
If you feel you can help with this project (and you can because no specific experience is needed - just your knowledge, contacts, resources, and lots of good ideas!) please click here to visit the Nairobi Eastlands project pages and join the online discussion.
We hope to see you as part of the team soon!
Tuesday 30 September 2008
Big Steps Made in Achieving Quality Health Care in Kayole-Soweto
ARROW KENYA is a non-profit organization whose main priority is to help the community of Kayole-Soweto tackle health related issues by offering quality health services at Arrow-Web Hospital. On average, the hospital treats between 110-150 patients per week, with the majority being treated for Malaria, Typhoid, Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS.
The Kayole-Soweto project on NABUUR focuses on the sustainable development of the hospital and its health care programs, which includes health education aimed at addressing the root causes of disease and poor health in the community.
Led by project facilitator Jennifer Wells, and supported on-site by Local Community Representative Bramuel Simiyu, the online volunteers of Kayole-Soweto have worked tirelessly towards achieving results for the community hospital - With this work paying off in the form of great news in the past few days:
- A proposal drafted by the online team and submitted to Friends of Kenya was accepted, resulting in the organization providing over $1000 to pay for hospital beds and other supplies.
- A visit and inspection by the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) proved successful and the hospital passed the inspection, resulting in accreditation through NHIF.
- The Insurance Card machine is now installed! As of October 1st, patients carrying the insurance card will be able to receive inpatient care. The hospital will be reimbursed monthly for the medical services, and this will provide revenue that can then be used toward medication replenishment.
(A member of NHIF installs the insurance card machine at Arrow-Web Hospital)
A hearty congratulations goes to the entire team for these wonderful achievements!
But it doesn't stop there, there's more work to be done and your help is needed. Please visit the online project here, and join the online team with your knowledge, expertise, contacts, and resources, to help achieve more results for the local community of Kayole-Soweto. See you online!
The Kayole-Soweto project on NABUUR focuses on the sustainable development of the hospital and its health care programs, which includes health education aimed at addressing the root causes of disease and poor health in the community.
Led by project facilitator Jennifer Wells, and supported on-site by Local Community Representative Bramuel Simiyu, the online volunteers of Kayole-Soweto have worked tirelessly towards achieving results for the community hospital - With this work paying off in the form of great news in the past few days:
- A proposal drafted by the online team and submitted to Friends of Kenya was accepted, resulting in the organization providing over $1000 to pay for hospital beds and other supplies.
- A visit and inspection by the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) proved successful and the hospital passed the inspection, resulting in accreditation through NHIF.
- The Insurance Card machine is now installed! As of October 1st, patients carrying the insurance card will be able to receive inpatient care. The hospital will be reimbursed monthly for the medical services, and this will provide revenue that can then be used toward medication replenishment.
(A member of NHIF installs the insurance card machine at Arrow-Web Hospital)
A hearty congratulations goes to the entire team for these wonderful achievements!
But it doesn't stop there, there's more work to be done and your help is needed. Please visit the online project here, and join the online team with your knowledge, expertise, contacts, and resources, to help achieve more results for the local community of Kayole-Soweto. See you online!
Monday 29 September 2008
Greetings from a Volunteer on the ground in Uvira
Local Representative Rodolphe Menga, founder of the youth association Mutuelle Jeunesse Active (MJA), had a long-standing dream of making the Internet accesible to his community of Uvira, a rural territory located in the province of South Kivu, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Along with efforts made by MJA, and support from members of the local community, Rodolphe set up the Uvira Multimedia Centre (UMC). The centre is geared towards providing Internet access to members of the community, and offering educational workshops on computing skills and multimedia arts to the local youth, in order to improve their chances of employment.
Ned Meerdink, an online volunteer from Wisconsin (USA), joined the Uvira project last year. Along with other NABUUR volunteers, Ned arranged for a shipment of 24 computers, books, and other supplies, to be sent to the UMC. Ned flew to Uvira to help with the set up of the UMC, where he had a chance to see first hand the impact the work of the online volunteers had on the community.
At present time, Ned finds himself on a return trip to the local community of Uvira, where he sent the following update:
"Hello to all at Nabuur,
Just wanted to contact you all to let you know that I am once again lucky enough to be with our 'nabuur' Rolph Menga here in Congo. I actually was able to get a fellowship from The Advocacy Project and a grant from my former university in order to get here again, and I'll be staying through March. I have been here for a couple weeks, and things are gong well. The center is at a temporary standstill while we renegotiate our connection with the service providers. But, the center worked without stopping since March, so we consider this a minor hurdle. Rolph and I are still working on fundraising, program design, and all of that, so things seem to be moving in the right direction. As soon as the connection gets sorted out, we hope to get our Nabuur profile in shape and mark the progress on UMC.
Right now, there are a lot of programs going on at the center. Seminars for single-mothers and victims of sexual violence, which is definitely one of the most common problems here in Congo. Also, courses on Windows, Microsoft Office, and PC use to encourage small business productivity and organization are all being conducted. We have hired two boys who were orphaned to work/live at the center. Their names are Claver and Isidord, and Rolph taught them for months on the use of the computers and they are now basically professionals. They, along with Rolph's brother Willy, teach the classes at UMC, with the exception of the seminars for single mothers and victims of sexual violence, which are taught by a local woman named Mawa who herself was widowed due to AIDS. She is in Kinshasa with her only son for the moment receiving some new ARV treatment for her and her son, but will be back in Uvira soon. Me, Willy, Rolph, Claver, and Isidord all live together in the back of the center (there are two small bedrooms for staff), and during the day we work on whatever we can at the center.
So just wanted to check in with everyone now that I am back in Uvira. I appreciate the connections you all helped me make here through your organization, and I feel very lucky to be able to spend time again here with Rodolphe and everyone at UMC in South Kivu.
Rodolphe and everyone here says hello, and hopefully I will be able to email you some new developments sometime soon.
Ned Meerdink"
We wish Ned much success in Uvira, and we'll keep posting updates as we receive them!
To learn more about the project in Uvira, and how you can help, please visit the project page here.
Along with efforts made by MJA, and support from members of the local community, Rodolphe set up the Uvira Multimedia Centre (UMC). The centre is geared towards providing Internet access to members of the community, and offering educational workshops on computing skills and multimedia arts to the local youth, in order to improve their chances of employment.
Ned Meerdink, an online volunteer from Wisconsin (USA), joined the Uvira project last year. Along with other NABUUR volunteers, Ned arranged for a shipment of 24 computers, books, and other supplies, to be sent to the UMC. Ned flew to Uvira to help with the set up of the UMC, where he had a chance to see first hand the impact the work of the online volunteers had on the community.
At present time, Ned finds himself on a return trip to the local community of Uvira, where he sent the following update:
"Hello to all at Nabuur,
Just wanted to contact you all to let you know that I am once again lucky enough to be with our 'nabuur' Rolph Menga here in Congo. I actually was able to get a fellowship from The Advocacy Project and a grant from my former university in order to get here again, and I'll be staying through March. I have been here for a couple weeks, and things are gong well. The center is at a temporary standstill while we renegotiate our connection with the service providers. But, the center worked without stopping since March, so we consider this a minor hurdle. Rolph and I are still working on fundraising, program design, and all of that, so things seem to be moving in the right direction. As soon as the connection gets sorted out, we hope to get our Nabuur profile in shape and mark the progress on UMC.
Right now, there are a lot of programs going on at the center. Seminars for single-mothers and victims of sexual violence, which is definitely one of the most common problems here in Congo. Also, courses on Windows, Microsoft Office, and PC use to encourage small business productivity and organization are all being conducted. We have hired two boys who were orphaned to work/live at the center. Their names are Claver and Isidord, and Rolph taught them for months on the use of the computers and they are now basically professionals. They, along with Rolph's brother Willy, teach the classes at UMC, with the exception of the seminars for single mothers and victims of sexual violence, which are taught by a local woman named Mawa who herself was widowed due to AIDS. She is in Kinshasa with her only son for the moment receiving some new ARV treatment for her and her son, but will be back in Uvira soon. Me, Willy, Rolph, Claver, and Isidord all live together in the back of the center (there are two small bedrooms for staff), and during the day we work on whatever we can at the center.
So just wanted to check in with everyone now that I am back in Uvira. I appreciate the connections you all helped me make here through your organization, and I feel very lucky to be able to spend time again here with Rodolphe and everyone at UMC in South Kivu.
Rodolphe and everyone here says hello, and hopefully I will be able to email you some new developments sometime soon.
Ned Meerdink"
We wish Ned much success in Uvira, and we'll keep posting updates as we receive them!
To learn more about the project in Uvira, and how you can help, please visit the project page here.
Thursday 25 September 2008
Featuring Projects
As part of getting the word out on NABUUR Villages and their projects, we'll be featuring some of their stories here during the next few weeks. With these stories, you'll get a chance to meet the key players in the village (both the online one and the offline one), read up on the latest news and results achieved, and learn how you can get involved with the projects. Watch for these inspiring stories coming very soon.
In the meantime, opportunities abound for new volunteers eager to get started. If you're unsure of where to start, visit the 'How NABUUR Works' group for tips on kicking off your NABUUR online experience.
Also make sure to catch up with all NABUUR News as well. Lots is happening so stay informed by checking in regularly.
See you on NABUUR.com!
Romina
In the meantime, opportunities abound for new volunteers eager to get started. If you're unsure of where to start, visit the 'How NABUUR Works' group for tips on kicking off your NABUUR online experience.
Also make sure to catch up with all NABUUR News as well. Lots is happening so stay informed by checking in regularly.
See you on NABUUR.com!
Romina
Friday 19 September 2008
Dutch Innovation Seminar
NABUUR asked to co-create Dutch Innovation Seminar 2008
Heineken in 2005, Apple in 2006, Albron in 2007 and now NABUUR.
The Dutch Innovation Seminar is the platform for discussions on innovation in the Netherlands. It’s organized by De Baak.
De Baak is the place for leaders, business people and professionals to come in search of inspiration, motivation, knowledge and insight. They have chosen NABUUR because of the innovative idea to use the "wisdom of the crowds" for the benefit of developing countries.
Just wanted to share this happy news with you!
Details
Dutch Innovation Seminar
October 9, Driebergen, the Netherlands
Program: http://www.debaak.nl/events/dis/dis2008
Interested? Send an e-mail to gerdie@nabuur.com and please explain why the seminar is relevant for you if you want to participate in this seminar (in Dutch).
Heineken in 2005, Apple in 2006, Albron in 2007 and now NABUUR.
The Dutch Innovation Seminar is the platform for discussions on innovation in the Netherlands. It’s organized by De Baak.
De Baak is the place for leaders, business people and professionals to come in search of inspiration, motivation, knowledge and insight. They have chosen NABUUR because of the innovative idea to use the "wisdom of the crowds" for the benefit of developing countries.
Just wanted to share this happy news with you!
Details
Dutch Innovation Seminar
October 9, Driebergen, the Netherlands
Program: http://www.debaak.nl/events/dis/dis2008
Interested? Send an e-mail to gerdie@nabuur.com and please explain why the seminar is relevant for you if you want to participate in this seminar (in Dutch).
If it's videos you want, we've got 'em!
If you didn't know, NABUUR has its own YouTube channel with videos submitted from our own online volunteers and local representatives. It's a wonderful opportunity to see NABUUR come to life, with real stories and real experiences.
And don't forget to subscribe to the NABUUR channel to be kept updated on new videos. If you have any videos of your own relating to NABUUR, please upload them and join our video community!
We hope these videos will inspire you to join NABUUR (if you haven't done so yet!) and start contributing to one of our many online projects.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Romina
And don't forget to subscribe to the NABUUR channel to be kept updated on new videos. If you have any videos of your own relating to NABUUR, please upload them and join our video community!
We hope these videos will inspire you to join NABUUR (if you haven't done so yet!) and start contributing to one of our many online projects.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Romina
Tuesday 16 September 2008
Google Grants is bringing in the Neighbours!
NABUUR and Google Grants - A step in the right direction!
"The Google Grants program supports organizations sharing our philosophy of community service to help the world in areas such as science and technology, education, global public health, the environment, youth advocacy, and the arts. Google provides grants to nonprofits in the form of a fixed monthly budget for free AdWords advertisements."
NABUUR is one of the grateful recipients of the grant, and it has undoubtedly been paying off. Over the last two weeks, nearly 2000 visits per day have landed on the pages of NABUUR.com with an average of 20 new Neighbours (volunteers) per day registering to help with online projects.
That's reason to celebrate ~ Thanks Google Grants!
To learn more about Google Grants, please visit their website here.
For information on other organizations supporting NABUUR, and how you can join the ranks, please click here.
"The Google Grants program supports organizations sharing our philosophy of community service to help the world in areas such as science and technology, education, global public health, the environment, youth advocacy, and the arts. Google provides grants to nonprofits in the form of a fixed monthly budget for free AdWords advertisements."
NABUUR is one of the grateful recipients of the grant, and it has undoubtedly been paying off. Over the last two weeks, nearly 2000 visits per day have landed on the pages of NABUUR.com with an average of 20 new Neighbours (volunteers) per day registering to help with online projects.
That's reason to celebrate ~ Thanks Google Grants!
To learn more about Google Grants, please visit their website here.
For information on other organizations supporting NABUUR, and how you can join the ranks, please click here.
Thursday 11 September 2008
NABUUR and Social Actions
Dear all,
We've got some great news to share with you today.
As a result of a meeting between NABUUR and Social Actions at the NetSquared conference in May of this year, we're thrilled to announce that NABUUR Volunteer tasks will now be featured on the Social Actions platform. This will allow for a broader reach of volunteers and garner more help with the online projects.
The full story, written by Rolf Kleef, can be foundHERE.
Thanks to all those involved in the collaboration discussion. Looking forward to seeing the next steps!
Until next time,
Romina
We've got some great news to share with you today.
As a result of a meeting between NABUUR and Social Actions at the NetSquared conference in May of this year, we're thrilled to announce that NABUUR Volunteer tasks will now be featured on the Social Actions platform. This will allow for a broader reach of volunteers and garner more help with the online projects.
The full story, written by Rolf Kleef, can be foundHERE.
Thanks to all those involved in the collaboration discussion. Looking forward to seeing the next steps!
Until next time,
Romina
Thursday 4 September 2008
SMS!
And the first messages through SMS are getting into the NABUUR.com website now!
Local Representatives have the possibility to send sms messages directly to the NABUUR.com website and they are published in the Village and in the News sections (www.nabuur.com/en/news). Making it much easier to update their Neighbours about what's going on locally (when powersupply is down, when transport is impossible, when travelling etc).
Hope it will make the connections and understanding of eachothers situation even better!
Gerdie
Local Representatives have the possibility to send sms messages directly to the NABUUR.com website and they are published in the Village and in the News sections (www.nabuur.com/en/news). Making it much easier to update their Neighbours about what's going on locally (when powersupply is down, when transport is impossible, when travelling etc).
Hope it will make the connections and understanding of eachothers situation even better!
Gerdie
Wednesday 3 September 2008
What's happening over at NABUUR.com?
Good morning, afternoon, or evening, depending on where you are in the world! :)
It's been rather quiet around these parts lately! Rest assured that things are in full swing over at NABUUR.com as we're striving to optimize the new website functionalities. If you're a follower of our feedback development thread, you'll know the recent website launch has been a bit of a challenge; unfortunately running into quite a few technical bugs which were not anticipated.
For the past few weeks the NABUUR team has been fielding questions, suggestions for improvements, and bug reports. Our volunteers have been beyond outstanding in cooperating with us as we sift through the feedback. A huge Thank You to everyone, we couldn't do this without your help and keen observation skills. To keep informed of how things are coming along with the feedback please visit our weekly updates here.
To lend a helping hand in navigating the new site, we have set up a group called 'How NABUUR works' which is meant as a support tool for new and existing users. The idea behind this group is to give you an inside look at how NABUUR works and how you can make the most of your online experience. On regular basis we’ll be posting tricks and tips to make sure you have easy and simple access to all the new and existing functionalities the NABUUR platform has to offer. Pay us a visit soon!
We'll be back soon with more. In the meantime thanks for the read, and have a great day everyone!
Romina
It's been rather quiet around these parts lately! Rest assured that things are in full swing over at NABUUR.com as we're striving to optimize the new website functionalities. If you're a follower of our feedback development thread, you'll know the recent website launch has been a bit of a challenge; unfortunately running into quite a few technical bugs which were not anticipated.
For the past few weeks the NABUUR team has been fielding questions, suggestions for improvements, and bug reports. Our volunteers have been beyond outstanding in cooperating with us as we sift through the feedback. A huge Thank You to everyone, we couldn't do this without your help and keen observation skills. To keep informed of how things are coming along with the feedback please visit our weekly updates here.
To lend a helping hand in navigating the new site, we have set up a group called 'How NABUUR works' which is meant as a support tool for new and existing users. The idea behind this group is to give you an inside look at how NABUUR works and how you can make the most of your online experience. On regular basis we’ll be posting tricks and tips to make sure you have easy and simple access to all the new and existing functionalities the NABUUR platform has to offer. Pay us a visit soon!
We'll be back soon with more. In the meantime thanks for the read, and have a great day everyone!
Romina
Tuesday 12 August 2008
Back from holidays
Just a short message to let you know that I am back in the office again and hopefully bringing some fresh energy for my colleagues. Going to browse the new site and read all the feedback provided, for which I would like to say thanks for your commitment already!
Gerdie
Gerdie
Thursday 31 July 2008
Feedback forum is now up and running
Dear all,
Now that NABUUR Beta has been online for a few days we're starting to receive feedback and comments from NABUUR users. In order to keep things transparent and more efficient, we set up a feedback discussion thread in the web development group.
To leave your comments, ask questions, or report a bug, log in to www.nabuur.com and click on the following link: http://www.nabuur.com/en/group/nabuurcom-website-development/project/task/general-feedback
In that thread you can also read up on the latest bug reports and see what fellow users have to say about the new site.
Thanks everyone for taking the time to make your thoughts known, and please keep 'em coming!
Romina
Now that NABUUR Beta has been online for a few days we're starting to receive feedback and comments from NABUUR users. In order to keep things transparent and more efficient, we set up a feedback discussion thread in the web development group.
To leave your comments, ask questions, or report a bug, log in to www.nabuur.com and click on the following link: http://www.nabuur.com/en/group/nabuurcom-website-development/project/task/general-feedback
In that thread you can also read up on the latest bug reports and see what fellow users have to say about the new site.
Thanks everyone for taking the time to make your thoughts known, and please keep 'em coming!
Romina
Wednesday 30 July 2008
A celebratory drink, and back to work it is!
What's a website launch without a party, right? After a rather long and busy day in the office yesterday, the NABUUR team (minus Gerdie and Pelle who happen to be on holiday) ventured into the heart of Amersfoort for a lovely meal, accompanied by some liquid joy (read drinks) to celebrate the launch of the new website.
Check out the smiling faces below.
And if you haven't done so yet, please take a peek at www.nabuur.com and let us know what you think.
(From left to right: Siegfried, Rolf, Kester, Frans - Yours truly is holding the camera.)
Check out the smiling faces below.
And if you haven't done so yet, please take a peek at www.nabuur.com and let us know what you think.
(From left to right: Siegfried, Rolf, Kester, Frans - Yours truly is holding the camera.)
Tuesday 29 July 2008
The new NABUUR site is now live!
Dear all,
Have you visited NABUUR.com yet? If so, you'll have noticed we are now live with the new site - and we're beyond ecstatic to have it up and running! So help us celebrate by browsing or logging in to the new site, and checking out what's new. As always, any feedback is welcome. You can post your comments here or send them to us at info@nabuur.com
And last, but not least, I hereby copy a message from NABUUR's CEO, Siegfried Woldhek, that was sent out to all our users.
See you online!
Romina
"Dear Neighbours,
With much joy I announce today that the new and improved website is live! Over the past months you have seen it take shape via the demo site. Neighbours from all over the world not only supplied recommendations or feedback, but also contributed text, translations, theming and coding online. One of them even filled a sudden mid-project vacancy. The new Nabuur platform has been completely built by drawing on the Nabuur global neighbour network! It has been a massive effort and on behalf of myself and the rest of the team, I’d like to take this opportunity to personally thank you for your dedication to help improve the NABUUR platform for the benefit of local communities worldwide. The energy behind this effort has been tremendous and gratifying. The result is a site that I believe represents a significant leap forward in improving the quality, accessibility and effectiveness of the NABUUR model
Some important changes aren’t visible to the naked eye. Changes were made to the processes, too. Local Communities e.g now help each other prepare the projects before they appear on the site. The role of the NABUUR staff has shifted from “waiter” to “host.”
The previous NABUUR website proved the concept can work, and now it’s time to ensure that many more Local Communities and Neighbours can use it effectively. That is what the new site will do. Because the possibilities of the internet keep changing rapidly, the NABUUR Beta has been designed so that it can be improved and changed very easily. In fact, a list of additions for the coming weeks and months is already being put together and will be up in the new Nabuur.com development group shortly. Jointly we’ll thus create an ever more effective platform. So keep in mind that the improved site you see now is just the beginning.
Let me give you a few examples of some new things that you’ll be able to do and experience with NABUUR Beta:
- Notification of new posts in your village. You’ll have a choice of receiving this notification in your email accounts or in your private message inbox. (You can choose which by adjusting the settings in your profile.)
- Village chat room is back! Here you’ll be able to chat with fellow Neighbours who are online in your village. It will be a lot easier to discuss the project in this way.
- There will be the chance to tag (label) the resources and documents you post, which will make it easier to share these resources across the whole website and in your own village.
- Via the ‘groups’ you can now organize yourself with your colleagues and Neighbours in any way you see fit; around themes, expertise, neighbour meetups, etc.
As I already mentioned above, this will be put up in the new Nabuur.com development group shortly so that we can jointly continue to improve and adapt the platform.
If you like what you see, then please share it with your friends and families. This has been made a lot easier as at the bottom of each page there’s a ‘share this’ set of bookmarks for other sites such as Digg, Facebook, del.icio.us, etc. By clicking on one or more of these, you can help spread the new site to many new users.
On behalf of the team in Amersfoort I want to thank you once again and I look forward to working with you more on the new NABUUR Beta.
Warm regards,
Siegfried Woldhek
Founder / ceo"
Have you visited NABUUR.com yet? If so, you'll have noticed we are now live with the new site - and we're beyond ecstatic to have it up and running! So help us celebrate by browsing or logging in to the new site, and checking out what's new. As always, any feedback is welcome. You can post your comments here or send them to us at info@nabuur.com
And last, but not least, I hereby copy a message from NABUUR's CEO, Siegfried Woldhek, that was sent out to all our users.
See you online!
Romina
"Dear Neighbours,
With much joy I announce today that the new and improved website is live! Over the past months you have seen it take shape via the demo site. Neighbours from all over the world not only supplied recommendations or feedback, but also contributed text, translations, theming and coding online. One of them even filled a sudden mid-project vacancy. The new Nabuur platform has been completely built by drawing on the Nabuur global neighbour network! It has been a massive effort and on behalf of myself and the rest of the team, I’d like to take this opportunity to personally thank you for your dedication to help improve the NABUUR platform for the benefit of local communities worldwide. The energy behind this effort has been tremendous and gratifying. The result is a site that I believe represents a significant leap forward in improving the quality, accessibility and effectiveness of the NABUUR model
Some important changes aren’t visible to the naked eye. Changes were made to the processes, too. Local Communities e.g now help each other prepare the projects before they appear on the site. The role of the NABUUR staff has shifted from “waiter” to “host.”
The previous NABUUR website proved the concept can work, and now it’s time to ensure that many more Local Communities and Neighbours can use it effectively. That is what the new site will do. Because the possibilities of the internet keep changing rapidly, the NABUUR Beta has been designed so that it can be improved and changed very easily. In fact, a list of additions for the coming weeks and months is already being put together and will be up in the new Nabuur.com development group shortly. Jointly we’ll thus create an ever more effective platform. So keep in mind that the improved site you see now is just the beginning.
Let me give you a few examples of some new things that you’ll be able to do and experience with NABUUR Beta:
- Notification of new posts in your village. You’ll have a choice of receiving this notification in your email accounts or in your private message inbox. (You can choose which by adjusting the settings in your profile.)
- Village chat room is back! Here you’ll be able to chat with fellow Neighbours who are online in your village. It will be a lot easier to discuss the project in this way.
- There will be the chance to tag (label) the resources and documents you post, which will make it easier to share these resources across the whole website and in your own village.
- Via the ‘groups’ you can now organize yourself with your colleagues and Neighbours in any way you see fit; around themes, expertise, neighbour meetups, etc.
As I already mentioned above, this will be put up in the new Nabuur.com development group shortly so that we can jointly continue to improve and adapt the platform.
If you like what you see, then please share it with your friends and families. This has been made a lot easier as at the bottom of each page there’s a ‘share this’ set of bookmarks for other sites such as Digg, Facebook, del.icio.us, etc. By clicking on one or more of these, you can help spread the new site to many new users.
On behalf of the team in Amersfoort I want to thank you once again and I look forward to working with you more on the new NABUUR Beta.
Warm regards,
Siegfried Woldhek
Founder / ceo"
Friday 25 July 2008
Monday is the big day!
It's now almost 6PM on Friday evening. I'm sitting in front of our programmer who's been sitting in the office since 6AM, making sure all things are go for the final migration this weekend. It's been a long day for everyone, and it will continue into the weekend, but the good news is that we're almost there and NABUUR Beta will go live on Monday.
Just a quick note of gratitude to all our NABUUR volunteers who have provided feedback over the past few months, and who have offered their assistance with testing and web development. This improved website is indeed a team effort, so thanks to everyone involved. It couldn't have been made without you.
Please remember that log in to NABUUR.com will be disabled this weekend as the final data migration is conducted.
Have a super weekend and see you online on Monday at NABUUR Beta.
Romina
Just a quick note of gratitude to all our NABUUR volunteers who have provided feedback over the past few months, and who have offered their assistance with testing and web development. This improved website is indeed a team effort, so thanks to everyone involved. It couldn't have been made without you.
Please remember that log in to NABUUR.com will be disabled this weekend as the final data migration is conducted.
Have a super weekend and see you online on Monday at NABUUR Beta.
Romina
Wednesday 23 July 2008
A quick preview of the Village pages
Things are quickly taking shape on the demo site in anticipation for the launch of NABUUR Beta on Monday. Today, Frans has announced the Village pages are almost ready, so we thought you might want to take a peek.
Please click HERE and browse around the different tabs.
Keep in mind that this is just a preview. The theming (design) still needs tweaking and there may be some functionalities that are missing (i.e. newsletter archive) but it should all be in place by Monday.
Like it? Don't like it? Let us know by posting here or emailing info@nabuur.com
Have a great day, everyone.
Romina
Please click HERE and browse around the different tabs.
Keep in mind that this is just a preview. The theming (design) still needs tweaking and there may be some functionalities that are missing (i.e. newsletter archive) but it should all be in place by Monday.
Like it? Don't like it? Let us know by posting here or emailing info@nabuur.com
Have a great day, everyone.
Romina
Notice: Log in disabled this coming weekend
Hi everyone,
This coming Friday we'll be making the final move to the new NABUUR.com website. In order to do this, the programmers need full access to the current website so NABUUR.com will have its log in disabled starting Friday July 25th at 18:00 CET until Monday July 28th. The log in should be restored Monday starting 09:00 CET.
This means you'll still have access to the NABUUR.com website, browse its pages but not log in, post comments, or upload any information. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.
If you have any questions, please post them here or contact us via email at info@nabuur.com. Thanks everyone for your cooperation.
Romina
This coming Friday we'll be making the final move to the new NABUUR.com website. In order to do this, the programmers need full access to the current website so NABUUR.com will have its log in disabled starting Friday July 25th at 18:00 CET until Monday July 28th. The log in should be restored Monday starting 09:00 CET.
This means you'll still have access to the NABUUR.com website, browse its pages but not log in, post comments, or upload any information. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.
If you have any questions, please post them here or contact us via email at info@nabuur.com. Thanks everyone for your cooperation.
Romina
Tuesday 22 July 2008
People often ask us what this migration business is all about...
Over the past few weeks you've been hearing a lot about migration of data on NABUUR.com. It's perfectly understandable if this technical concept is difficult to grasp, so we asked Pelle Aardema, project manager at NABUUR, to have a go at explaining what this migration business is all about - in plain English. Ever the 'think-outside-the-box' type, Pelle compared the migration of data (basically all content - pictures, documents, links, etc.) from the old website to the new website, to moving into a new house.
While reading, picture the old house being the old NABUUR.com website, with each room representing one of the 152 Villages currently online...
"The old house is quite big, it has 152 rooms, and all the rooms are full of boxes. Some of the rooms contain over 10.000 boxes. Some of these boxes contain pictures or important documents. Of course we've had to decide in what room the boxes will be moved into the new house. But in order to make sure all the pictures and documents aren't lost, we're going through all the boxes to see if there are pictures or documents in them, and make sure they are brought to the new house first, before all the boxes are moved in. In order to keep track of the context of the pictures, a link is put on the boxes that show the new location of the picture."
There you have it, migration explained a la Pelle. So only a few more days to go, and the move will be all but complete. Then comes the house party, which will take place when the programmers hit the 'live' button on the new website - and you're all invited!
Romina
(Pelle at his desk, seeing the world through migration colored glasses.)
While reading, picture the old house being the old NABUUR.com website, with each room representing one of the 152 Villages currently online...
"The old house is quite big, it has 152 rooms, and all the rooms are full of boxes. Some of the rooms contain over 10.000 boxes. Some of these boxes contain pictures or important documents. Of course we've had to decide in what room the boxes will be moved into the new house. But in order to make sure all the pictures and documents aren't lost, we're going through all the boxes to see if there are pictures or documents in them, and make sure they are brought to the new house first, before all the boxes are moved in. In order to keep track of the context of the pictures, a link is put on the boxes that show the new location of the picture."
There you have it, migration explained a la Pelle. So only a few more days to go, and the move will be all but complete. Then comes the house party, which will take place when the programmers hit the 'live' button on the new website - and you're all invited!
Romina
(Pelle at his desk, seeing the world through migration colored glasses.)
Friday 18 July 2008
No publishing on demo site for the weekend
Dear all,
Looking ahead to another weekend of work for the demo site. To get the final bits of the migration completed, along with other updates that need to be made, publishing on the demo site (demo.nabuurtest.com) will be turned off for the weekend.
This means that you can still browse through the site, but please refrain from posting or uploading information as it will not be saved.
Please note this does not affect the current NABUUR.com website - we hope to see you online there!
Enjoy your weekend, everyone. :)
Romina
Looking ahead to another weekend of work for the demo site. To get the final bits of the migration completed, along with other updates that need to be made, publishing on the demo site (demo.nabuurtest.com) will be turned off for the weekend.
This means that you can still browse through the site, but please refrain from posting or uploading information as it will not be saved.
Please note this does not affect the current NABUUR.com website - we hope to see you online there!
Enjoy your weekend, everyone. :)
Romina
Thursday 17 July 2008
Counting down to NABUUR Beta
The closer we get to the launch date of NABUUR Beta, the more techie-speak is heard around the office. Even during lunch hour where the topic today was theming of the blocks and panels...Or something to that effect, though admittedly, I just smiled and nodded throughout the conversation. But here's what you should know - and relax; it's in plain English!
~ The first translation pages are up. Thanks to the quick work of our volunteer language translators, we have the first translated pages ready and they have been added to the website.
~ The Village chat room has been tested and it's working perfectly, so you'll be able to chat with Facilitators, Local Reps and Neighbours about the project, in real time - as before!
~ Theming continues on its path, bigger and better every day.
~ A set of user test questions will be tackled by a few of our volunteer Facilitators to make sure functionalities are working as expected.
~ New Village projects are being added, with the project definition starting next week.
Eagerly counting down, and we hope you are too.
More coming up very soon!
Romina
~ The first translation pages are up. Thanks to the quick work of our volunteer language translators, we have the first translated pages ready and they have been added to the website.
~ The Village chat room has been tested and it's working perfectly, so you'll be able to chat with Facilitators, Local Reps and Neighbours about the project, in real time - as before!
~ Theming continues on its path, bigger and better every day.
~ A set of user test questions will be tackled by a few of our volunteer Facilitators to make sure functionalities are working as expected.
~ New Village projects are being added, with the project definition starting next week.
Eagerly counting down, and we hope you are too.
More coming up very soon!
Romina
Monday 14 July 2008
Your Monday dose of NABUUR news
Hey everyone,
Why is it that the weekend always goes by so fast?!? At least we had some sun over the weekend (after a week of rain and chills) so no complaints on my part. :)
Monday started with our customary meeting, where a few things were addressed. Here's a quick recap.
- The last bits of migration are being done. There were some hiccups with images but they have been recovered now. Of course, the migration will be tested so a testing plan is being devised to make sure nothing slips past us.
- Rolf and Frans are pouring their time into the theming of the village pages. In some cases the theming can't be done before the content is there, so the content is being filled in as quickly as possible, then - you guessed it - the theming can get fully underway.
- All processes are being tested to make sure everyone accessing NABUUR.com finds it an easy to nagivate ride. Processes from registration to creating a task in a Village, and everything else that falls in between, will be tested out.
If you're like us, you're looking forward to know when NABUUR Beta will see the light. Fingers and toes crossed, the site will be launched within the next two weeks. As mentioned before, this will be a soft launch, meaning that functionalities will continue to be added after the launch date.
In the meantime, tons more things are happening. A NABUUR wide newsletter will be sent out by tomorrow so happy reading!
Ciao for now,
Romina
Why is it that the weekend always goes by so fast?!? At least we had some sun over the weekend (after a week of rain and chills) so no complaints on my part. :)
Monday started with our customary meeting, where a few things were addressed. Here's a quick recap.
- The last bits of migration are being done. There were some hiccups with images but they have been recovered now. Of course, the migration will be tested so a testing plan is being devised to make sure nothing slips past us.
- Rolf and Frans are pouring their time into the theming of the village pages. In some cases the theming can't be done before the content is there, so the content is being filled in as quickly as possible, then - you guessed it - the theming can get fully underway.
- All processes are being tested to make sure everyone accessing NABUUR.com finds it an easy to nagivate ride. Processes from registration to creating a task in a Village, and everything else that falls in between, will be tested out.
If you're like us, you're looking forward to know when NABUUR Beta will see the light. Fingers and toes crossed, the site will be launched within the next two weeks. As mentioned before, this will be a soft launch, meaning that functionalities will continue to be added after the launch date.
In the meantime, tons more things are happening. A NABUUR wide newsletter will be sent out by tomorrow so happy reading!
Ciao for now,
Romina
Friday 11 July 2008
Holidays
Dear readers,
I will be away for a while to relax and reload my batteries for the next steps in the development of NABUUR.com.
Thanks for the commitment, feedback and your patience so far. I am looking forward to what's coming up. Really,I do believe in the new possibilities which the NABUUR Beta site will give for faster and easier results in the Villages. And not to forget; it will be so much more efficient, fun and self-organising. At least, that's what we are aiming for.
Also happy that we are launching it ''soft'': step by step and not a whole new site at once. This gives the opportunity to make improvements on the way, together with you.
So far for now...stay tuned,
Gerdie
I will be away for a while to relax and reload my batteries for the next steps in the development of NABUUR.com.
Thanks for the commitment, feedback and your patience so far. I am looking forward to what's coming up. Really,I do believe in the new possibilities which the NABUUR Beta site will give for faster and easier results in the Villages. And not to forget; it will be so much more efficient, fun and self-organising. At least, that's what we are aiming for.
Also happy that we are launching it ''soft'': step by step and not a whole new site at once. This gives the opportunity to make improvements on the way, together with you.
So far for now...stay tuned,
Gerdie
Wednesday 9 July 2008
How will new projects come online?
As we've had to put a hold on new projects coming online in the past few months, there are currently over 130 projects in the pipeline, with many of them eager to come online as new NABUUR Villages. We've already established contact with most of them to advise them of the new process - so we thought we'd share it with you as well.
The Villages (or projects) waiting have been asked to answer some very specific questions regarding their local community and project. These questions will help determine if the project is feasible and achievable within NABUUR standards. The new local reps will be asked to join a preparation group on the new website where along with a special task force they will define their projects and outline tasks for the neighbours to work on. The task force is made up of experienced Neighbours, facilitators, leading local reps and a few external experts in project management. Each new local rep will be matched up to a project manager where they'll be given a space in the preparation group where they can discuss the project definition. The group will be visible to all NABUUR neighbours, but the discussion threads will only be accessible by the expert in project management and the local rep. No offence meant: Just trying to avoid too many chefs in the kitchen!
Simultaneously as the local rep works on the project definition, they will begin filling in their village pages with the assistance of leading local reps and yours truly.
This is a new process and we sincerely think it can work. We are emphasizing the peer to peer aspect and have already had positive feedback on this new way of working.
As soon as the preparation group is fully set up, we'll link you up to it so you can see how things are being set up.
Romina
The Villages (or projects) waiting have been asked to answer some very specific questions regarding their local community and project. These questions will help determine if the project is feasible and achievable within NABUUR standards. The new local reps will be asked to join a preparation group on the new website where along with a special task force they will define their projects and outline tasks for the neighbours to work on. The task force is made up of experienced Neighbours, facilitators, leading local reps and a few external experts in project management. Each new local rep will be matched up to a project manager where they'll be given a space in the preparation group where they can discuss the project definition. The group will be visible to all NABUUR neighbours, but the discussion threads will only be accessible by the expert in project management and the local rep. No offence meant: Just trying to avoid too many chefs in the kitchen!
Simultaneously as the local rep works on the project definition, they will begin filling in their village pages with the assistance of leading local reps and yours truly.
This is a new process and we sincerely think it can work. We are emphasizing the peer to peer aspect and have already had positive feedback on this new way of working.
As soon as the preparation group is fully set up, we'll link you up to it so you can see how things are being set up.
Romina
Friday 4 July 2008
You may have been spammed...
We're sorry to say that overnight you may have received a spam message from NABUUR. This was caused due to a mistake in not turning off the email function off for the test and feedback site.
If you received emails sent from info@nabuur.com with the titles below, please ignore them.
Subject line: You are now an administrator for the group (name)
and
Subject line: Replacement login information anaragaj at Nabuur 2.0 Demo Site.
Apologies if this caused any inconvenience, and thank you for your understanding.
Romina
If you received emails sent from info@nabuur.com with the titles below, please ignore them.
Subject line: You are now an administrator for the group (name)
and
Subject line: Replacement login information anaragaj at Nabuur 2.0 Demo Site.
Apologies if this caused any inconvenience, and thank you for your understanding.
Romina
Screenshots, screenshots!
Hi everyone,
The week is ending with good news on one hand, but sad news on the other. Our theming expert Gertjan has had to resign his work at NABUUR due to health reasons. It was a great experience to work with him, and we wish him all the best. Thanks Gertjan for your dedication to the new site, you’ll be missed.
The good news comes in the form of the screenshots below. You’ll see a preview of the homepage and the Village page (both still in progress) which we hope you’ll like. Just so you know, the current image in the middle of the homepage (where it now says "Volunteer from behind your computer...") will be replaced by a video showing some of our NABUUR volunteers and explaining how to join. A real dynamic homepage!
We wish everyone a happy weekend and hope you make your comments known on the screenshots.
Gerdie and Romina
Monday 30 June 2008
A jump start to the week
Hi everyone,
I hope you had a very good weekend, be it relaxing or busy as you wanted it to be! On my end, I took a couple of days off and had the chance to fly to Budapest to attend a summit on citizen media. It was great to network and be on the receiving end of so much information - and even to see that many people there were familiar with NABUUR.
As with every Monday morning, accompanied by numerous cups of coffee, we began with a meeting to make sure all systems are still go.
Some exciting news: Gertjan, our resident theming expert, has begun work on the NABUUR homepage and the Village homepage and we’re aiming to have something ready to show to you by this Thursday.
Also, we reviewed the current priorities to make sure nothing is being left behind, and made a planning accordingly.
Make sure to subscribe to the Twitter updates (follow us on www.twitter.com/nabuur) to get the latest happening – And we’d like to hear what you think, so please post your comments on this blog and join the discussion.
Until next time,
Romina
Friday 27 June 2008
Migration
Friday afternoon, beer, wine and crisps.
Frans is bringing the good news: migration of the most important data is completed!
The 40.000 postings, the Neighbour profiles and the data of 152 Villages are migrated (copied). Still not visible but that will chance this Monday.
Also introducing beginning next week: the super search function on NABUUR.com. You can find basically anything you want (resources, Neighbours, the whole site) and it's organised and presented in an (almost) organised way! Imagine, you will be able to find anything (people, organisations, resources, postings etc) on the subject you are looking for....
Have an inspired weekend,
Gerdie
Wednesday 25 June 2008
What's going on?
Romina and me are sitting with our faces towards two developers and they are not happy. After two days of silence we understand what’s going on and we would like to share that with you.
What’s going on?
I’ll try to explain in my own words. Last night Kester finished the migration. This was a huge job: imagine 40.000 postings, 12.500 Neighbour profiles, information from 152 Villages all moved to another website. This other website is called the developers website. Everything is behind the screens to make sure that the demo website is not harmed when something goes wrong. But then they noticed that the huge data migration has a negative influence on the performance of the developers website.
Frans Kuipers (lead web developer): ‘’it takes nearly 2 minutes to open the search tab. This is a problem we need to fix before anything else is done’’.
How do we continue
This will be a long night again for the developers team, trying to find out why the site is too slow now, trying to find an expert who can help out and continue with the look & feel as soon as possible. So we non-techies can start collecting feedback and test.
You can assist already now
If you know someone who is experienced in Drupal and My SQL: please send an e-mail to frans@nabuur.com as soon as you can!
What’s going on?
I’ll try to explain in my own words. Last night Kester finished the migration. This was a huge job: imagine 40.000 postings, 12.500 Neighbour profiles, information from 152 Villages all moved to another website. This other website is called the developers website. Everything is behind the screens to make sure that the demo website is not harmed when something goes wrong. But then they noticed that the huge data migration has a negative influence on the performance of the developers website.
Frans Kuipers (lead web developer): ‘’it takes nearly 2 minutes to open the search tab. This is a problem we need to fix before anything else is done’’.
How do we continue
This will be a long night again for the developers team, trying to find out why the site is too slow now, trying to find an expert who can help out and continue with the look & feel as soon as possible. So we non-techies can start collecting feedback and test.
You can assist already now
If you know someone who is experienced in Drupal and My SQL: please send an e-mail to frans@nabuur.com as soon as you can!
Monday 23 June 2008
A true team effort
Development of a website is not something which is done by a few people in the NABUUR office. Especially not the NABUUR website, which is a result of the input of many Neighbour discussions already in the summer of 2007. I think it's very special to see the commitment of people all over the world, dedicating their valuable time volunteering for the NABUUR.com website. This makes NABUUR a special place to work, having so many committed ''colleagues''.
Feedback team
The last weeks a group of Neighbours, have provided very valuable feedback during the development of the new Beta site. Under the guidance of Raul Alberto Caceres (facilitator and temporary NABUUR staff member from March-June) the feedback team was asked many questions on the functionalities of the (demo) website and for testing functionalities. Big thanks to Elsa Lama, Lynley Mackay, Carolyn DV, Barb Briggs, Jennifer Wells, Rahul Bhargava, Mary Smith and Tanja Simiatchieva. See their faces in the FlickR badge besides.
Volunteer developer
A Drupal volunteer also joined the NABUUR office to assist with the ''theming'' of the new site: Gert-Jan Idema. We would love to have a small interview with him, but he cannot be disturbed today because he is busy with the migration of all the data from the current database to the new site. Don't worry, the developers made a back-up. But this is an exciting process taking place behind the screens these days. More to follow tomorrow!
Gerdie
(PS we need you for the testing of the site, to check if all the data is there and on the right place, to test new registration, log-in procedures etc etc. Feel like spending a few hours the next 2 weeks? Send me an e-mail: gerdie@nabuur.com)
Feedback team
The last weeks a group of Neighbours, have provided very valuable feedback during the development of the new Beta site. Under the guidance of Raul Alberto Caceres (facilitator and temporary NABUUR staff member from March-June) the feedback team was asked many questions on the functionalities of the (demo) website and for testing functionalities. Big thanks to Elsa Lama, Lynley Mackay, Carolyn DV, Barb Briggs, Jennifer Wells, Rahul Bhargava, Mary Smith and Tanja Simiatchieva. See their faces in the FlickR badge besides.
Volunteer developer
A Drupal volunteer also joined the NABUUR office to assist with the ''theming'' of the new site: Gert-Jan Idema. We would love to have a small interview with him, but he cannot be disturbed today because he is busy with the migration of all the data from the current database to the new site. Don't worry, the developers made a back-up. But this is an exciting process taking place behind the screens these days. More to follow tomorrow!
Gerdie
(PS we need you for the testing of the site, to check if all the data is there and on the right place, to test new registration, log-in procedures etc etc. Feel like spending a few hours the next 2 weeks? Send me an e-mail: gerdie@nabuur.com)
Friday 20 June 2008
Picture of the day
Snapshot of Friday afternoon at the office in Amersfoort.
A pensive Frans contemplates his next big move (or is thinking "when are they going to stop taking my picture so I can get back to work?") and a 'typing-away' Kester is doing web development things I can't even begin to explain....
Feel like sharing?
Word on the blog has just gone out, so if you're reading us for the first time; welcome!
Feel like sharing this blog with friends and family, or fellow bloggers? It's easy as forwarding them the link and a quick message:
"Hey, I thought you may want to check out the new NABUUR blog. It's a nice way to keep up to date with latest developments, and count down together to the launch of the Beta site. And if IT isn't quite your cup of tea, don't worry - there's plenty of other things to read up on!"
Have a great weekend, everyone.
Romina
p.s. Are you on Twitter? If so, follow us at http://twitter.com/nabuur
Feel like sharing this blog with friends and family, or fellow bloggers? It's easy as forwarding them the link and a quick message:
"Hey, I thought you may want to check out the new NABUUR blog. It's a nice way to keep up to date with latest developments, and count down together to the launch of the Beta site. And if IT isn't quite your cup of tea, don't worry - there's plenty of other things to read up on!"
Have a great weekend, everyone.
Romina
p.s. Are you on Twitter? If so, follow us at http://twitter.com/nabuur
Thursday 19 June 2008
Goodies
Inside the tag cloud above you'll see a list of terms that represent what's upcoming on the new website. Not everything is visible just yet but we wanted to give you a quick preview of what you can expect within the next few weeks. Obviously we're very excited about these new functionalities, especially since many of them have been requested by you for quite some time now!
Just a few of the goodies highlighted:
Chat - The chat is back! We'll be able to chat with one another in each Village.
Banners - Copy and paste the banner found on the right hand side of this blog and take NABUUR to your own site or email signature
Groups - Like minded people, connecting with peers, in their own space. Join a group or start one of your own
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