Painting and New Social Spaces!
Rushing Headfirst Into Summer!
Welcome to the May 2023 edition of the SFTech4Good monthly newsletter!
We’re rushing headfirst into summer. At least, in the San Francisco Bay Area, it feels like it as it’s supposed to be HOT tomorrow. If you’re around this week, gear up. Of course, gear up with layers because you know how it goes. No matter how hot it gets it usually cools down in the evening so get ready for tomorrow!
Like a lot of people in tech, I got severance papers a few days ago. Since community management skills are seen as softer, I’m not really surprised. However, I disagree because community-led growth is definitely a thing that contributes to a company’s sales and bottom line. Not being surprised doesn’t make it any less stressful. Now it’s all the things: negotiate the severance agreement, file for unemployment, keep my spirits up, and get started on a job hunt.
With that said, if you know of any startups looking for a senior community manager, feel free to let them know that I’m looking! I’d appreciate it. Here is my LinkedIn, and thank you!
Remember that I set up a space for SFTech4Good on Substack. It’s sad in there right now. I would suggest that folks who are looking head over there to network virtually as I’ve retired in-person events for SFTech4Good for now.
What I’ve been doing in the meantime is getting creative. There is a long story as to why I stopped, but it’s been fun.
What’s bad? All the Instagram scammers who want to “buy” my paintings as an NFT not knowing that I’m pretty well-versed in NFT-land. So if you know anyone who wants to buy one or more of my paintings or an NFT of my paintings, send them my way, and I can set that up.
Please make sure that they’re not a scammer though. 🙏🏾😭
Much thanks!
If you’re flexing your creative music, that’s another thing to share in our SFTech4Good section on Substack. In fact, I just took my own advice and popped my Instagram link in there! Please share what you’re working on!
Okay, onward to SFTech4Good and tech and social impact business!
As always, I hope this newsletter inspires you to think about the ways in which you use your skills and resources to create positive change in the world.
Thank you for being a part of our community, and thank you for your continued support of tech for good.
As always, if you know anyone who is interested in technology and social impact, feel free to forward this message to them.
We’d love for them to be a part of our community!
Our Events and Updates!
Take a look at our Good Tech Fest talk titled Empowering Your Organization: Data Equity Edition session with Cindy Lin and Eva Sachar on the LATech4Good home page or YouTube.
Feel free to share this newsletter or the direct link with friends, family, and colleagues!
Thanks so much!
Data equity for everyone everywhere all the time!
Find our two-year retrospective on our data for good efforts and events in this interview with Rachel Whaley, our Data Equity Program Manager, by Jen Holmes, a nonprofit data leader, and data equity practitioner.
Other Events
Keep SF Clean
Refuse Refuse is a grassroots volunteer effort dedicated to trash-free neighborhoods.
Keeping San Francisco clean is up to you.
The city’s local government does not have the money or resources to do it alone, so it's up to you, the citizens, to take responsibility. Refuse Refuse aims to motivate fellow San Franciscans to take actions needed to clean the streets, beautify neighborhoods, and encourage others to join the cause.
They organize their own events and cleanup opportunities, as well as partner with other local organizations with the ultimate goal of keeping San Francisco free of refuse.
Head to the link above to learn more and get involved!
Early bird registration for the 2023 Social Impact World Summit closes on May 31st
Don't miss hearing from the likes of:
Brittney Oberfeld, Head of Social Impact at Shopify;
Lisa Boyd, Director of Social Impact at Lyft;
Admas Kanyagia, Head of Social Impact at DigitalOcean; and
Jake Wood, Founder & CEO of Groundswell and Founder & Chairman of Team Rubicon.
Register now before the ticket price goes up!
Turning your strategic plan into tactical reality
Wednesday, May 24th | 12 pm ET/9 am PT
For those tasked with reaching an organization’s strategic goals, it can feel like searching for buried treasure- take one hundred steps to the west, then 50 to the south, and dig- but if we’re not all starting in the same place and using the same metrics, we’ll never find the X. The only way you get there together is with a detailed map.
Similarly, while many nonprofits have a high-level strategy or strategic plan, they often don’t have a plan for how their people, processes, and technology will work together to meet those goals in 3-5 years.
Join ParsonsTKO on Wednesday, May 24th, 12 pm ET/9 am PT to learn what a technology roadmap is and how it will help you achieve your organization’s mission. Our PTKO team of experts will walk you through how to evaluate your current state and how to enable practitioners to think broader than day-to-day to bridge internal tech strategy with external goals.
Learn more here and register!
Volunteer Opportunities and Jobs
Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) - Looking for a Consultant
They have an RFP for a consultant to lead some equity work with LAHSA for homelessness. Find that here and spread the word!
Good luck if you submit an RFP!
Sogorea Te' Land Trust Volunteer Opportunities!
The Sogorea Te' Land Trust team invites our community members interested in sharing time with them to their rematriated land sites throughout the year. They have different land sites throughout the East Bay that their team tends to and so many different projects that folks can tap into.
They also offer volunteer opportunities that are not land-based and can be done at your own pace such as sharing our materials in the community or other projects their administration crew might need support with.
If you are part of an organization that would like to share your time with us, you can reach out to volunteer@rematriatetheland.org to plan a workday with our team!
Join their volunteer list here.
Resources
ASEAN Youth Organization - Spread the Word!
ASEAN Youth Organization was founded in 2013 by two ASEAN youths, Senjaya Mulia from Indonesia and Vanna Hay from Cambodia. This initiation arose because they were part of the ASEAN Community Facebook Page, an online platform managed by youths from ASEAN countries and shared about ASEAN Cultures.
In 2018, AYO received the ASEAN name authorization from the ASEAN Secretariat and established the AYO Social Enterprise in Singapore and Indonesia. Since then, AYO has established other arm’s organizations to support its sustainability: AYOAcademy, AYORecent, and AYOEnviro.
ASEAN Youth Organization is an international non-partisan, non-profit, and non-governmental organization established to promote international understanding and goodwill parallel to the ASEAN Motto and constitutes one vision, identity, and community. Our vision is to create a world where youths exhibit a heightened interest in ASEAN through our activities that Empower Youth, Engage, & Educate Communities to implement ideas that enable Positive Sustainable Change.”
Fighting Algorithmic Bias
Corporations use hidden computer programs to decide an array of things about you – from quoting you a certain auto insurance rate, denying or approving your mortgage application, to even landing a more timely doctor appointment.
Consumer Reports and Kapor Foundation, a national nonprofit dedicated to racial justice, created the BAD INPUT short film project to show how some data sets used to make decisions about you are simply outdated and discriminatory – leading to bias in medical devices, mortgage lending, and facial recognition software.
Please help them spread the word about algorithmic bias by sharing their short videos with friends and family. The more people know the better chance we all have of ending algorithmic bias.
If you only do one thing, Fix Your Organization’s Meta Pixel Problem
It’s time to be proactive about user privacy. Find out if you’re sending too much data to Facebook—or if you need to send data at all
Read “In 2023, Resolve to Fix Your Organization’s Meta Pixel Problem” from The Markup in full here.
Estée Lauder and Shutterfly: Companies Driving Change from the Social Impact Examiner!
Estée Lauder goes beyond beauty and cosmetics to improve the well-being of its global communities.
Snapshot
In 2016, Estée Lauder launched The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation. Focusing on improving the well-being of its global communities, with an emphasis on women and girls, the charitable arm of the company centers its impact efforts on three areas: health, education, and the environment.
The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation also makes annual grants to organizations in the U.S. and around the world that align with its focus areas.
Through Estée Lauder's charitable matching gifts and volunteerism program, ELC Good Works, employees can create and sign up for volunteer initiatives, as well as request to have their donations and volunteer hours matched by the company.
Over $17.7 million in employee donations has been distributed through ELC Good Works since 2015.
Financial, product, matching, and in-kind donations are distributed across Estée Lauder's portfolio of brands and through The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation.
In 2014, The company created The Community Impact Grant to give ERG members the opportunity to fund and volunteer with the nonprofit(s) that they care about and align with Estée Lauder's values.
Shutterfly sets its sights on ensuring all people have access to life's unforgettable moments.
Snapshot
Shutterfly's impact and philanthropic work happens under the Open Door Project, which involves partnering with organizations, providing grants, programs, and employee volunteerism to support communities in need.
To extend the reach of the Open Door Project initiative, employees run chapters of Open Door Project in their communities to support local organizations.
Shutterfly created an employee hardship fund where employees can support one another in times of need.
In 2021, the company donated 24 tons of obsolete inventory to Habitat for Humanity, Kids in Need Foundation, and a number of local nonprofits to reduce waste and repurpose material.
That same year, Shutterfly signed the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge, a commitment to advancing diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
If you’re interested in more info on companies doing good, subscribe to the Social Impact Examiner newsletter here.
The End!
Thank you for getting to the end!
Please let us know if you'd like to discuss bringing one of our data sessions or a data series to your organization in Q3 or later!
And, again, thanks so much for being part of the SFTech4Good and LATech4Good communities!
To find old issues of the newsletter on Meetup, go here for April 2013 to September 2017. For newsletters from October 2017 on Mailchimp to August 2020 go here.
The rest are here on Substack. Please don’t join the old email list on Mailchimp as I don’t update from there anymore.