Saturday, November 17, 2007

One laptop per child

Hello!
Please look at this incredible opportunity to buy and donate an amazing xo laptop. We did a presentation on this in our Language Learning and Technology class a few months ago, and now there is an amazing offer for anyone in the U.S. and Canada with the means to buy their children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, etc. a laptop. For only $400.00, you can get a practically indestructible, innovative laptop for your child and simultaneously donate one to a child in a developing nation, thus enabling him or her to access resources and information otherwise unavailable to that child. In the U.S., you also get a $200.00 tax deduction for the charitable contribution, and a year of free internet service through T-Mobile! You really can't beat that. Check it out!

http://www.laptop.org/

With these types of programs and the tools on Web 2.0, there is an amazing potential to bring about change in the world. I am very hopeful about this! Also, please check out http://www.globaltext.org/ for an idea of some of the resources that innovative and caring people around the world are collaborating on to empower those who have traditionally held little or nor power, and who have been equally helpless to bring about positive, lasting change in their lives.

What do you think the benefits of these types of programs may be? Do they fill you with as much as hope as they do me??

Update: It appears that this was a holiday season offering only. Now you may donate a computer (or several), but you cannot buy one. Look for it around next holiday season, though! My niece loves hers, and she figured out most of the features right away--the computer is very user friendly, the features are simple to figure out. It looks cool, and she carries it around with her.