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The Infoxchange Service Directory has improved the provision of quality information and access to crisis services for thousands of women and families in Queensland. As part of a new partnership, the information in Lady Musgrave’s new online directory is populated via a plug-in to the same service directory that powers Ask Izzy. Accurate data for people in crisis The need for an improved directory solution was identified by Lady Musgrave Trust CEO Victoria Parker, who was concerned about the impact on families in crisis of inaccurate or out of date data. “When families are in crisis, they need to be able to quickly access information that they can depend upon,” said Victoria.Posted on 31/10/2022 by -
Ten years ago, Adam McKay had an idea to use basketball to give something back to his local community. Now, Helping Hoops offers programs for hundreds of underprivileged children around Melbourne. It may not be considered a quintessentially Australian sport, yet basketball is often listed among the most highly participated by school-aged kids across the country.Posted on 06/06/2022 by -
This story first appeared on the Digital Transformation Hub. Tuberous Sclerosis Australia (TSA) is a charitable organisation supporting people in Australia living with the rare genetic disease Tuberous Sclerosis Complex (TSC). The organisation supports people affected by TSC and their families by providing up-to-date and reliable information on the condition and its treatment and connecting affected people with health care professionals. Outdated technology presents a challenge TSA’s website plays a central role in supporting its community, but its outdated technology and difficulties with some functions such as navigation and search capabilities present challenges.Posted on 01/06/2022 by
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Mirridong Services, based in Yarram in Australia, is dedicated to empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities to make choices, gain independence, and achieve their goals. They do this through social activities, supported independent living, supported employment, and other tailor-made initiatives. These are all designed with the well-being of individuals in mind, creating an environment in which they can thrive. Gregor MacAulay, administration officer at Mirridong Services, told us how they have used Connecting Up to access Cisco's networking hardware, allowing them to improve Internet access for their staff, service users, and residents.Posted on 13/01/2022 by -
Almost $100,000 in savings through Connecting Up has helped the Centre for Non-Violence in its work to provide crisis response, case management, advocacy and therapeutic services to women and children experiencing family violence and at risk of homelessness. That’s according to Centre for Non-Violence CEO Margaret Augerinos, whose organisation has supported around 3,000 people from five office locations in the Loddon Region of Victoria over the past 12 months. Those services have been boosted by donated and discounted products through Connecting Up that include Zoom, Microsoft 365 and Adobe Creative Cloud. These are vital technology resources that have ensured continuity of support for the Centre’s clients, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Margaret. “Every extra dollar we have to spend on these items means less is available for the important community services we deliver.Posted on 20/09/2021 by -
A key organisation supporting women facing legal issues due to family violence has been using a wide range of discounted and donated technology products and services available through Connecting Up to maximise its impact. Since 2007, Women’s Legal Service Victoria has accessed Microsoft licenses, server software, upgrades to existing Microsoft licenses, Adobe Acrobat, webinars, and other training programs. This technology and training have significantly boosted Women’s Legal Service’s ability to provide integrated socio-legal support for women, a third of whom are from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and face additional barriers to accessing justice and support. Around 12% of Women’s Legal clients are homeless or at risk of homelessness.Posted on 14/09/2021 by
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The impact of Connecting Up products and services could be felt for generations thanks to their impact on Future Problem Solving Program Australia. That’s according to Suzanne Digby, National Director of Future Problem Solving Program Australia, who says Microsoft 365 plays a key role in the program’s ability to connect with thousands of students and teach them how to identify and tackle major problems. A global network of future problem solversPosted on 09/09/2021 by -
A core benefit of NationBuilder's all-in-one system is its ability to seamlessly capture a 360-degree view of your supporter’s actions. Having this perspective means you have the insight you need to optimize your supporter engagement strategies. But the first step, of course, is acquiring supporters with whom you can begin building those relationships. Although a common strategy for supporter acquisition is importing lists, the most successful NationBuilder customers follow a different path. They use their website. While buying a list and importing it into your database might seems like the easiest path to supporter acquisition, the return on investment calculation is not as simple. Creating an action-focused webpage that drives supporters to spread the word, attracts new visitors, and inspires interested supporters to sign up organically may take more work initially, but the return on this grassroots acquisition strategy pays off in the long-term.Posted on 22/07/2021 by -
Heart for Kids is a Sydney-based not-for-profit that has been helping children living in poverty for 20 years through child sponsorship and education programs. It has changed the lives of hundreds of children in China, Indonesia and India. But working across international borders as well as multiple locations in Sydney meant that collaborating and securely sharing files had become a real challenge for the organisation. Through Connecting Up’s donations and discounts program Heart for Kids was able to get heavily discounted access to Microsoft 365, a cloud-based platform that combines Office apps with additional tools like chat, video meetings and file storage. The team’s communication and efficiency has vastly improved since rolling out the new software, meaning they can now devote more time to their charitable work.Posted on 26/11/2020 by
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Centrecare is a Catholic not-for-profit that delivers professional counselling, support, mediation and training services throughout Western Australia. With more than 300 staff supporting almost 25,000 clients, Centrecare’s important work has been supported for the last 15 years by Connecting Up’s donations and discounts program. In the past year alone, Connecting Up has provided Centrecare with access to dozens of refurbished desktops and laptops running software that includes Microsoft Office 365, Adobe Creative Cloud and Tableau – enabling Centrecare to improve its efficiency and capability. All workers now have access to a quality desktop or laptop, and can collaborate with each other through Microsoft software such as SharePoint and Teams. This saves time by significantly reducing duplication and enabling access to key documents across the organisation.Posted on 12/11/2019 by -
Auskick program participants with AFL Queensland, MDA Limited, 2018
“The work that goes into helping new Australians also helps the broader Australian community to understand and accept how important migration is for Australia. So, in that sense, the broader Australian community is as much a beneficiary of our work as the new arrivals themselves. “Without good quality technology we wouldn’t be able to do as much, or do it nearly as well.” Speaking from his office in Canberra, Settlement Council of Australia Chief Executive Officer Nick Tebbey has just summed up the importance and impact of donated and discounted technology on the work of an organisation that affects the lives of millions of Australians every year, whether they realise it or not.Posted on 11/12/2018 by -
“I can’t imagine technology not being a key part of our organisation. We’ve used lots of tech right from the start because we quickly realised the more we used it the more people we helped.” Nic Marchesi’s answer to the question of what Orange Sky Australia would look like without technology reveals two profound truths about technology and Australian not-for-profits. The first is that ‘people-centric’ and ‘technology-centric’ are not mutually exclusive - even at an organisation that offers a service as personally impactful as a free mobile laundry and shower service for people experiencing homelessness. The second is that the Young Australian of the Year 2016 can’t even conceive of how his organisation’s 1200 volunteers and 27 services could achieve what they do without the technology that underpins every aspect of their work.Posted on 23/11/2018 by
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Every year on the Thai-Myanmar border eighty nervous young scholars gather for one of the world’s most inspiring graduation ceremonies. As they wait quietly to take the stage, watched by emotional, moist-eyed parents who comprehend the enormity of their achievement more than they will for some years to come, the group of young Karen refugees could be any class, anywhere. But their graduation ceremony, in the sprawling Mae La refugee camp in Thailand, is one of the greatest examples of the triumph of the human spirit you are every likely to hear about. As they accept their certificates, this special group of graduands are a beacon of hope for more than 45,000 of their fellow refugees; a shining example of what can be achieved even by stateless young people who have never known life beyond a refugee camp.Posted on 04/09/2018 by -
“I could not believe the presenter was looking at our actual Facebook page. She looked at around 10 organisations’ pages and gave expert advice on each of them. It was great to see the different things other people are doing and I was also able to use some of the advice she gave to the others.” Sports Chaplaincy New Zealand’s Rebecca Hawkins’ excitement shines through when she talks about what she has learned during Connecting Up and TechSoup New Zealand's recent “Facebook LIVE Feedback” webinar. Having also touched on everything from how to choose a CRM to how to create compelling digital storytelling, it’s just one of several courses she has completed with Connecting Up and TechSoup NZ. “I found the Facebook Live webinar particularly useful,” she says. “I went to a social media master class at the TechSoup New Zealand Conference last year that was given by the same presenter, Kirsty Wallett, so I already had confidence that she knew her stuff.Posted on 17/08/2018 by -
“I would highly recommend any charity doing an IT strategy to get in touch with Connecting Up and TechSoup New Zealand. We had been looking at band aids and were struggling to find a long-term solution to our IT problems, but In a year’s time we will be in a totally different position.” Multiple Sclerosis Auckland Business Manager Mark Blackie doesn’t mince his words when asked how useful he found Connecting Up and TechSoup New Zealand’s new IT Strategy on a Plate program. “The facilitator, Sandra, was amazing and went above and beyond what we could ever have expected from a private consultant,” he adds. “The big difference now is that we actually have a plan and are moving forward with it. Long term this will mean greater efficiencies and services and overall better support for people with Multiple Sclerosis.”Posted on 14/08/2018 by
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Proponents of one of the oldest self-help techniques are using some of the newest technology thanks to a Google AdWords grant and training from Australian not-for-profit technology enabler Connecting Up. The Google AdWords grant, facilitated by Connecting Up – which also provides online training - means the Lifeflow Meditation Centre is helping more Australians manage everything from anxiety to autism. Director of Teaching at Lifeflow, John Burston, says his not-for-profit organisation has seen a 25 per cent increase in web traffic, and a surge in inquiries from interstate since advertising through Google. “The AdWords grant has made it possible to reach a wider audience, and we even had several interstate attendees on our recent weeklong meditation retreat,” he says. “We simply would not have been able to undertake these kinds of advertising campaigns without the Connecting Up training and the Google grants.Posted on 03/10/2017 by -
When Elizabeth Serpell’s son David had to undergo hand surgery at just ten months because of an unknown condition called ‘symbrachydactyly’, she was inspired to help people in similar situations find help more easily in the confusing, jargon-heavy world of hand differences. Back in 2000, she could never have imagined that a set of Google online tools available through the Google for Non-profits program would become one of her most powerful tools. Fast forward to 2017, and thanks to digital tools including Google Drive, Google Ad Grants and YouTube for Non-profits, Ms Serpell’s Aussie Hands Foundation is reaching out to more children and adults with hand differences than ever before.Posted on 18/09/2017 by
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Connecting Up CEO Anne Gawen speaking at the launch of The Festival of Good Humans.
A new festival launched in Adelaide yesterday (Thursday 31 August) is reminding people of what it means to be a good human - and helping them use technology to become a better one.Posted on 17/09/2017 by
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Cloud capabilities made possible through Microsoft Office 365 are helping a Victorian Local Learning and Employment Network continue its critical work in supporting schools, community organisations and local businesses to engage with and support young people who might otherwise disengage from education. Since migrating its business to Office 365, Wimmera Southern Mallee Local Learning and Employment Network (WSMLLEN) has been able to increase efficiencies by adopting the innovative technologies required for it to remain agile and connected with the expansive region it serves. Located in the regional city of Horsham, approximately 300 kilometres north-west of Melbourne, WSMLLEN is one of just 31 Local Learning and Employment Networks (LLENs) in Victoria, and covers a huge region of more than 28,000 square kilometres.Posted on 05/09/2017 by -
People with disabilities across Australia could enjoy increased mobility thanks to a new online platform giving them access to modified vehicles that would otherwise be lying idle. The initiative, to be piloted in South Australia by the not-for-profit tech company Connecting Up as part of YourSAy’s “Share” initiative, aims to engage with disability service providers and transport providers to create a new “sharing portal” providing access to the vehicles. It would enable companies, and individuals, to rent out their idle transport assets directly to disability service providers and primary caregivers. Connecting Up, which provides critical support for 26,000 not for profits by providing access to affordable digital technology and software, will co-design, develop and market the new platform.Posted on 11/08/2017 by -
Community Living Australia (CLA) is a disability service provider that operates in South Australia. CLA providing day services, accommodation services, respite care, in-home support and recreational camps to people with a disability living in regional South Australia. With Office 365, CLA has improved team collaboration and helped simplify document storage.Posted on 01/05/2017 by