By David Barnard

More than 50 local and international speakers will contribute to the programme of the 2007 SANGONeT conference. Given the overall objective of the conference to expose participants to a wide range of ICT issues, and to empower them with information and skills to strengthen their understanding of the role and relevance of ICTs in support of their work, the collective contribution of all the speakers will ensure a rich and rewarding experience for everyone associated with the event.

Refer to the conference website for detailed information about the programme and speakers.

The following five international speakers will provide an interesting and strategic dimension to the programme and discussions.

Daniel Ben-Horin, Founder and President, CompuMentor
Based in San Francisco, CompuMentor is one of the largest nonprofit technology assistance institutions in the world, employing a staff of 150 and deploying a budget of $15.5 million. It conducts a range of major programmes on the international, national and the local level, including the operation of the nonprofit technology website, TechSoup, and its distribution service for technology product donations, TechSoup Stock. CompuMentor’s newest programme is TechSoup’s NetSquared initiative to help nonprofits worldwide use new Internet-based tools such as blogging and podcasting to extend their reach and impact.

In addition to guiding the evolution of the organisation, Daniel speaks and writes frequently on issues related to the underserved’s access to technology. He also serves on the board of the Nonprofit Finance Fund. In 2004, 2005 and 2006, The Nonprofit Times included Ben-Horin on its list of the 50 most influential leaders in the U.S. nonprofit sector. Prior to founding CompuMentor, Ben-Horin was a journalist, contributing to publications such as The New York Times, The Nation, Mother Jones, Harper’s Weekly and Redbook.

Katrin Verclas, Executive Director, NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network
NTEN is the international membership organisation of a diverse range of people and organisations that help nonprofits employ technology effectively.

Katrin’s background is in IT and project management in various nonprofit organisations, communications and community organising, and political advocacy. She previously co-directed Aspiration: Better Tools for a Better World, a nonprofit organization focused on providing software-related services. Katrin has also served as a programme officer for a number of grantmaking and philanthropic initiatives focused on civic engagement and electoral reform, and headed her own consulting firm for a number of years.  Katrin has written and spoken widely on topics such as using technology in advocacy, open source software in the nonprofit sector, mobile technology for social change movements, and online organising in industry publications and at national and international conferences.  She has been featured in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, International Herald Tribune, ABC News and other leading publications.

Doug Jacquier, CEO, Community Information Strategies Australia CISA Inc.
Based in Adelaide, South Australia, CISA is a nonprofit technology service provider to Australian nonprofits.

Before joining CISA, Doug lived and worked in a remote Aboriginal community in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, helping Aboriginal people to develop business plans for a wide range of community and family businesses. Doug is a former Vice-Chair of the ICT Council for South Australia and recently completed a two-year term as a national Director of the Australian Society of Association Executives AuSAE. During the past year he also led a consortium researching the need for a national nonprofit ICT coalition in Australia, including surveying the information technology practices and needs of 1000 Australian nonprofits. The recommendations of the report are currently with the Australian federal government.

Through CISA’s partnership with TechSoup, it has developed the DonorTec programme, which channels donated products to Australian nonprofits similar to SANGOTech in South Africa. CISA also operates a nonprofit technology information website for Australian nonprofits.

William Bill Lester, Chief Information Officer, EngenderHealth
Based in New York, EngenderHealth is an international nonprofit organization that has been working for 60 years to make reproductive health services safe, available and sustainable for women and men worldwide.

Bill is a visionary in nonprofit use of ICT particularly in low-resource settings. He is well-known in the nonprofit technology community, and is a popular speaker at many industry gatherings. Bill was an NTEN board member for 6 years, participates on the advisory committees for NPOWER and KABISSA, and is a founding member of the NonProfit Organizations Knowledge Initiative NPOKI. A strong proponent of social entrepreneurship, Bill works worldwide to promote and encourage problem-solvers. His mission is “Imagine-Build-Connect”.

Rob Purdie, Project Management Consultant, Important Projects
Rob is a project management consultant and trainer with over twelve years of programme, project and operations management experience. Over the course of his career, Rob has successfully managed hundreds of projects, led project management departments, established project management offices and worked with senior management teams and staff to develop, implement and maintain strategic plans, processes and best practices.

In 2004, Rob founded Important Projects, a values-led project management consulting and training practice focused on helping social change organisations achieve their strategic goals through the effective and successful management of their most important programmes, projects and ongoing operations. Rob is a member of the Toronto Renewable Energy Co-op TREC and a shareholder and member of the WindShare co-op.

– David Barnard, Executive Director, SANGONeT.