TechChange trains leaders to leverage relevant technologies for sustainable social change. We specialze in delivering highly social online certificate courses on the role of technology in addressing urgent social and global challenges.
Technology moves fast.
The pace of technological development is moving fast — really fast. New tools are being developed at an astounding pace, the cost of hardware and software continues to decline, and over 90% of the world is now covered by a cellular network.
The tools to solve social problems are already out there.
Technological innovation isn't limited to the commercial space. Increasingly, software programs and devices are being used to foster learning and collaboration, transform conflicts, fight diseases, monitor elections, distribute food, and more. In the aftermath of the recent Haitian earthquake, interactive mapping software platforms greatly improved the coordination of humanitarian relief efforts. In Malawi, a lightweight text messaging tool has helped health organizations improve efficiency and double the number of patients receiving tuberculosis treatment. Among many organizations and stakeholders, there's a growing realization that there is real power in leveraging technology to create social change.
The training is not.
As powerful as these tools may be, their application remains limited. The software developers who've created them are not educators, and traditional educational institutions have been slow in updating curriculum to keep pace with this rapidly evolving landscape. A recent report on "Graduate Education and Professional Practice in International Peace and Conflict" released by the US Institute of Peace (USIP) found that graduate-level academic institutions are not adequately preparing students for careers in international peace and conflict management.
A new model is needed.
If the right kind of training is not going to come from developers or grad schools, then a new model is needed to ensure that these tools are used effectively. Two years ago we set out on a journey to rethink online learning and develop a model that was flexible, practical, social, and, yes, fun (if you've taken an online course before you know that they can be anything but). Find out more about our model at TechChange.org and take a course with us today.
