Heifer Provides Tech Training in Peru

Heifer International is providing women in the Peruvian Andes with technology training and access to computers, printers, and cameras to help them boost their income from blankets, ponchos, and other items made from alpaca wool.

The artisan groups that Heifer works with are starting to put their technology training to work, using Facebook and web pages to promote their products, getting information to help them set prices, and searching the web for new techniques and designs.

Members of one group, Tres Alpaquitas, hope to start selling their wares online soon.

Mastering the new skills has also raised the women’s self-esteem and their standing in the community, says Madeleine Muñoz, a program assistant in Lima, Peru. “Young people were surprised to see a woman with skirt and braids using the computer, browsing the Internet, managing Facebook, or checking their email,” she says.

Bits

• The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has started a new project, Data for Health, to gather information and make recommendations on how data can be used to help people lead healthier lives. An advisory committee of health experts will host events in five cities to get ideas from local leaders, residents, and health professionals, and will publish a report early next year. For more information: Go to rwjf.org.
• The Roddenberry Foundation has contributed $100,000 to the Global Learning XPrize crowdfunding campaign. In September, XPrize announced a $15-million competition challenging entrepreneurs to develop software that children can use to teach themselves basic math and literacy skills. The group started the crowdfunding campaign to expand testing of the software. For more information: Go to roddenberryfoundation.org.