Using technology to strengthen impoverished communities.

The people of Fundación ChasquiNet, located in Quito, Ecuador, believe that information technology, properly applied, is a critical factor in accessing wealth, power and knowledge. The foundation's work promotes strategic uses of information and communication technologies to help impoverished groups in Latin America and the Caribbean foster economic development, advance health care, support education, work for social justice and achieve other goals that improve lives.

Central to ChasquiNet's work is coordinating and supporting community telecenters, multipurpose centers that cultivate community development through the use of digital technology. In some places, telecenters introduce community members to technology and teach them how to use technology strategically. Those who run microenterprises learn how to strengthen their businesses, for example, and parents get access to information about childhood diseases. Telecenters also typically serve as gathering places where community members voice concerns about housing, public services and other issues.

In addition to hosting its own Web site, ChasquiNet supports www.tele-centros.org, a network of telecenters in Latin America and the Caribbean. Through the site, individuals and institutions that develop telecenters share information and help each other design strategies that strengthen local communities.

www.chasquinet.org
www.tele-centros.org