(Cross posted from the Lat Long Blog) 

Editor’s Note: Today’s guest author is Gabriel Ribenboim from Ritual, on behalf of Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS), a nonprofit organization implementing a large-scale social and environmental program in the Amazon. FAS was the recipient of a Google Earth Outreach Grant for Google Maps Engine, which they used to develop an accountability map for their investments in conservation and poverty alleviation. We are excited to showcase the Bolsa Floresta Platform. Our work with FAS is an example of how non-profits all over the world are using comprehensive, accurate and easy-to use Google Maps, Earth and geo tools to tell their story and help their audiences visualize their cause.Read More

(Cross posted from the Lat Long Blog) 

Editor’s Note: Today’s guest author is Gabriel Ribenboim from Ritual, on behalf of Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS), a nonprofit organization implementing a large-scale social and environmental program in the Amazon. FAS was the recipient of a Google Earth Outreach Grant for Google Maps Engine, which they used to develop an accountability map for their investments in conservation and poverty alleviation. We are excited to showcase the Bolsa Floresta Platform. Our work with FAS is an example of how non-profits all over the world are using comprehensive, accurate and easy-to use Google Maps, Earth and geo tools to tell their story and help their audiences visualize their cause.

Since 2011, I’ve been working with the Brazilian nonprofit organization Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS) and Google to collect Street View for the Amazon. One FAS’s most significative initiatives is the administration of the Bolsa Floresta -- Brazil’s first internationally-certified incentive program for the preservation of traditional communities and environment in the Amazon rainforest. As the largest payment for environmental services program in the world, Bolsa Floresta serves over 35,000 people, 15 state-protected reserve territories and covers an area of more than 10 million hectares. 

Today, I’m excited to announce FAS’ latest project with Google: the Bolsa Floresta Platform - an online tool that allows you to explore and visualize a mix of social, environmental and economical map datasets for 15 protected areas in the Amazon.

 

Institutional transparency is a challenge for NGOs across the world. Tools that help track the impact of our efforts and present them in an accessible way are rare and normally require a significant investment. The Bolsa Floresta platform, built on Google technologies such as Google Maps Engine, Google Drive, YouTube and Street View helped us organize this kind of dataset in a way that is easy to visualize, understand and share with little in the way of programming complexity or investment. 

Now, anyone can dive into the mapping visualizations of the State of Amazonas, navigate the rivers, forest, and communities through Google Street View imagery, or even browse 3D buildings inside protected areas. Most importantly, partners, government agencies and those who live within the benefited state-protected areas, can explore all kinds of informational map layers, enhancing institutional transparency, global awareness, exchange of sustainability practices and poverty alleviation solutions and improving internal planning capabilities. 

The new platform is just one of the many ways FAS is using Google’s technologies to work towards a sustainable future on behalf of the communities of Brazil’s Amazon. Explore the map now or find out more about us at fas-amazonas.org. 

Posted by Gabriel Ribenboim from Ritual, on behalf of Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS)

Today, we hosted a Google+ hangout celebration in honor of World Water Day. This year we are focused on raising awareness for the 780 million people that do not have access to clean water -- and what we can do together to solve the water crisis.Read More

Today, we hosted a Google+ hangout celebration in honor of World Water Day. This year we are focused on raising awareness for the 780 million people that do not have access to clean water -- and what we can do together to solve the water crisis.
         
The hangout featured representatives from charity: water, Water.org, Water For People, WaterAid, People Water, Whole World Water and was moderated by YouTube star ijustine. Check out the entire hangout below to learn more about the world water crisis and how you can take action.



If you have questions or want to join the conversation, share them with us. Post your thoughts as comments on the event page for the hangout.

Posted by Alina Kim and Elliot Polokoff, Google+ Community Partnerships team

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Two years ago this week, we launched Google for Nonprofits to support the many nonprofit organizations that are changing the world. In that time, we’ve been privileged to support amazing organizations and witness the meaningful work you do every day. Reaching our second birthday would not have been possible without this fantastic community of nonprofits.

So, yesterday we hosted a day of celebration asking our community to share what they were celebrating whether it be hitting a milestone, an act of service or just being together.

The Google for Nonprofits team celebrating two years of working 

with meaningful and innovative nonprofits.

We saw so many fun and inspiring examples. Check out  all the photos and posts on our Google+ page and feel free to add your own picture. Just make sure to +mention us (+Google for Nonprofits), include a caption about what you’re celebrating, and include the hashtag #Heres2You.

Thank you to everyone who made these two years so special!

Posted by Katie Kellogg, Google for Nonprofits team

WWF & Eyes on the Forest created a map to showcase deforestation in Sumatra. With the Google Maps Engine map as part of their “ Don’t Flush Tiger Forests” campaign, they convinced 17 out of 20 US retailers to stop buying toilet paper from companies cutting down intact hardwood rainforests and critical tiger habitat in Sumatra.Read More

For the third year, I’m excited to announce the call for 2013 Google Earth Outreach Developer Grants applications is now open. Google Earth Outreach Developer Grants provide funding to nonprofit organizations ranging between $10,000 and $20,000 on average to build a map that will help them accomplish their mission, be it around environmental issues, humanitarian causes, disaster relief prevention, or health issues. If your nonprofit has a great idea for a map that can change the world, apply for a 2013 Google Earth Outreach Developer Grant today. This year, we checked in with our 2011 Developer Grantees to learn about the impact their maps had on each nonprofit’s overall mission one year after the launch of the map. We were proud of the many achievements of the nonprofits’ work. Here are some of my favorite examples:

 

WWF & Eyes on the Forest mapped deforestation rates and wildlife habitat in Sumatra.

WWF & Eyes on the Forest created a map to showcase deforestation in Sumatra. With the Google Maps Engine map as part of their “Don’t Flush Tiger Forests” campaign, they convinced 17 out of 20 US retailers to stop buying toilet paper from companies cutting down intact hardwood rainforests and critical tiger habitat in Sumatra.

The HALO Trust mapped their minefield clearance work in a Google Earth Tour

The HALO Trust clears minefields in previously war-torn regions around the world, including Angola, Afghanistan and Cambodia. Upon the launch of their Google Earth tours designed to raise awareness about their work, they saw the most traffic to their website over the entire calendar year.

iNaturalist taps into citizen scientists who submit research-grade species observations to a global map using Android devices and iPhones

iNaturalist.org’s Android app, designed to collect species observations from around the world from citizen scientists, has been installed on over 2000 Android devices. The number of scientific-grade research observations has more than quadrupled. We look forward to hearing about the impacts of our 2012 Developer Grantees’ maps as they are launched in coming months. Good luck to nonprofits who apply to our 2013 Google Earth Outreach Developer Grants, and if you are a nonprofit with a great idea for a map, apply for a grant!

Posted by Tanya Birch, Google Earth Outreach

As we continue to dive into how Google for Nonprofits can work for your organization, we’ve met some great product experts who have shared insightful ways specifically for nonprofits to use Google products.  Last week, we met two Google Apps experts, Asha Toulmin and Marianna Kerppola,  who  walked us through different uses of tools like Google Calendar, Gmail and Docs. If  you couldn’t make it, here are five tips we learned to help you take advantage of Google Apps. You can also watch the full video below.

1. Use labels and filters to organize your Gmail. If you have a specific event or team you’re working with, you can create custom labels and filters and assign them to groups of emails. When you need to access information, you can simply sort by labels and filters and find all the related emails.

2. Connect with your team instantly through Gmail. Need to collaborate with someone immediately? You can use Gmail to chat, video chat or make a phone call directly to a colleague - allowing immediate interaction without ever leaving your inbox.

3. Schedule meetings easily using shared calendars. Using shared calendars in Google Calendar, you can view coworkers’ calendars and see when each team member is available. You can quickly find times that work for everyone and eliminate the back and forth that often comes with scheduling.

4. Keep everyone on the same page in meetings by attaching files. Google Calendar allows you to attach documents from your computer and your Drive directly to the meeting invitation. Make sure all your meeting invitees are looking at the same information by sharing an agenda and background resources in your meeting invite.

5. Organize your documents and access them anywhere. With Google Drive, you can upload, create and share documents in the cloud - allowing you to access them anytime, anywhere. Help your nonprofit take it a step further by organizing materials into shared folders.  These automatically updated folders can be accessed both online and offline by anyone who is granted access. Read More

As we continue to dive into how Google for Nonprofits can work for your organization, we’ve met some great product experts who have shared insightful ways specifically for nonprofits to use Google products.  Last week, we met two Google Apps experts, Asha Toulmin and Marianna Kerppola,  who  walked us through different uses of tools like Google Calendar, Gmail and Docs. If  you couldn’t make it, here are five tips we learned to help you take advantage of Google Apps. You can also watch the full video below.

1. Use labels and filters to organize your Gmail. If you have a specific event or team you’re working with, you can create custom labels and filters and assign them to groups of emails. When you need to access information, you can simply sort by labels and filters and find all the related emails.

2. Connect with your team instantly through Gmail. Need to collaborate with someone immediately? You can use Gmail to chat, video chat or make a phone call directly to a colleague - allowing immediate interaction without ever leaving your inbox.

3. Schedule meetings easily using shared calendars. Using shared calendars in Google Calendar, you can view coworkers’ calendars and see when each team member is available. You can quickly find times that work for everyone and eliminate the back and forth that often comes with scheduling.

4. Keep everyone on the same page in meetings by attaching files. Google Calendar allows you to attach documents from your computer and your Drive directly to the meeting invitation. Make sure all your meeting invitees are looking at the same information by sharing an agenda and background resources in your meeting invite.

5. Organize your documents and access them anywhere. With Google Drive, you can upload, create and share documents in the cloud - allowing you to access them anytime, anywhere. Help your nonprofit take it a step further by organizing materials into shared folders.  These automatically updated folders can be accessed both online and offline by anyone who is granted access. 

 

Have questions? Our product experts, Asha and Marianna, have answered the top questions from the Hangout with short video responses. Check out their full set of video responses on our YouTube channel.

Posted by Katie Kellogg, Google for Nonprofits team

(Cross posted from the Official YouTube Blog) 

Awards season is upon us. And for the fourth year, YouTube is teaming up with See3 Communications to present the DoGooder Video Awards, a celebration of the best nonprofit videos of the year. If you’re a nonprofit who made a video in 2012, you’re eligible and encouraged to submit your video.Read More

(Cross posted from the Official YouTube Blog) 

Awards season is upon us. And for the fourth year, YouTube is teaming up with See3 Communications to present the DoGooder Video Awards, a celebration of the best nonprofit videos of the year. If you’re a nonprofit who made a video in 2012, you’re eligible and encouraged to submit your video.

But wait, there’s more! For the first time ever, we’re opening up the awards for submissions from individuals who are making videos to change their communities or the world. So if you’re a YouTube creator trying to save the whales one video at a time, or if you made a video on behalf of your favorite nonprofit this year, visit YouTube.com/DoGooder to nominate your video.

There are four separate categories in this year’s DoGooder Awards: the ImpactX Award for videos that drove clear real-world impact; Best Nonprofit Video; Funny for Good, recognizing effective use of comedy; and the Change Agent Award, for individuals who’ve gotten involved and produced their own cause-focused video.

We’ll award prizes like $3,500 grants, free admission to the Nonprofit Technology Conference, and special promotion on YouTube.

    

The deadline to enter is March 22, 2013. Official rules are available here.

Posted by Jessica Mason, YouTube for Good, recently watched “YouTubers Support Matt Damon's Strike!”