June 01, 2011
Georgina Allen is a marketing and communications intern, based in our Seattle office.
David Edelstein, Director of Grameen Foundation Technology Center, speaks about the poverty-fighting potential of the mobile phone.
It’s been 10 years since Grameen Foundation established its Technology Center in Seattle to empower poor people through information and communication technology. On Tuesday, May 17, we hosted an open house to celebrate this milestone and thank the donors and supporters who help make our work possible. Almost 200 people attended!
Upon arrival, guests were invited to make their way around the space where different “stations” were set up to highlight each of the Tech Center’s projects and demo some of the accompanying mobile phone technology. Photographs of microfinance clients, farmers and pregnant women who have benefited from our work lined the walls, with a story behind each photo that demonstrates the potential of communications technology in economic development. Our staff was excited to welcome our supporters to explain more about our work and connect with people in the Seattle community.
Just when the office felt like it was at capacity (or over), Alex Counts, President and CEO of Grameen Foundation, took the stage to share some reflections on our work. After welcoming and thanking supporters, Alex recollected the birth of the Tech Center 10 years ago. At that time, Craig and Susan McCaw, long-time philanthropists with a background in telecommunications technology, generously partnered with Grameen Foundation to finance a replication of the village-phone program that Grameen Bank had pioneered in Bangladesh. This seed then grew into the idea to establish an entire technology center devoted to the field of information communications technology for development.
Susan McCaw recalls the early days of Grameen Foundation Technology Center, while (from left) Alex Counts, Peter Bladin, David Edelstein and Craig McCaw look on.
Following Alex, Susan McCaw briefly discussed her and Craig’s long-time belief in mobile technology as a solution to economic development. She commented on the importance of dignified solutions like the Village Phone program, where individuals get the opportunity to earn income for themselves while offering a valuable service to individuals in their community. She also drew on her experience as an ambassador, implying that "micro solutions," like those supported by Grameen Foundation, actually have the potential to help solve "macro problems" like global security.
To conclude, Peter Bladin and David Edelstein, founding and current directors of the Tech Center, went through a list of the Center's major accomplishments over the years, including proving the value of technology to microfinance institutions, delivering relevant and actionable agricultural and health information through the mobile phone, and creating microbusinessses. Both acknowledged that Grameen Foundation's mobile phone-related work would not be possible without the ability to partner with private mobile phone companies – whose work is the reason why 4 billion phones are in the hands of individuals in the developing world. Both Peter and David also attributed our success to enduring core values – empowerment, sustainability, scalability and collaboration.
After nearly three and a half hours, the last of the guests trickled out, full of cheese, donated wine (courtesy of Vehrs Domestic and Imported Beverages) and interesting Grameen Foundation tidbits. If the success of this event is an indication of how the rest of our anniversary-event series will go, be sure not to miss the next one!
Be sure to check out our photo album as well as a video of the program.