8th June 2012
Radical Surfers
Did you know that Martha writes a 'digital' column for Reader's Digest?
Crammed with whizzy projects, natty facts and fun ways to help you make the most of the web, we thought you might enjoy it, so here's an excerpt from May's column, which is all about innovative tech helping to tackle some of our thorniest issues:
"Recently, I helped judge the New Radicals awards, run by the Observer and innovations experts NESTA, to find the top 50 people and organisations in the UK with innovative and creative solutions to today's problems. We're living through very challenging times, and it's never been more urgent that we find fresh ways of tackling some of our thorniest issues. That means brave thinking and innovation - often underpinned by technology.
Here are my favourites:
- One man's trash is another man's treasure. Accessspace.org is a web-learning centre in Sheffield kitted out entirely for free. Anyone can use and take away a computer without charge, on one condition - that they repair, reconfigure and renew it themselves.
- Apps for Good (appsforgood.org) is a brilliant programme teaching young people to change their world by creating mobile and Facebook apps.
- Adil Abrar co-founded The Amazings (theamazings.org), a marketplace for retired people to sell their experiences, skills and passions to their local community. His latest project, Sidekick School (sidekickschool.org), is helping large charities and social organisations think like start-ups by teaching them all about radical social change.
- Livity (livity.co.uk) is working directly with young people to improve their lives while producing co-created campaigns and content for brands, broadcasters, charities and government.
- PatientsLikeMe.com, a health-datasharing platform with more than 125,000 patients with over 1,000 life-changing illnesses, is challenging the way industry conducts research to improve patient care."
Check out the rest of the column here, and look out for June's issue, which is in shops now!