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"We are so used to being almost permanently online that we don't really appreciate what we have and do not really know what to do when we're not," Joni Mitchell wrote in her 1970s song "Big Yellow Taxi."
Well, telecom companies "provided the services and products that we have gotten to regard as a basic need: connection," writesjoerd Rozing in an article for the Guardian.
And it's telecom companies that provide that basic service.
In fact, Rozing writes, telecom companies "primarily contribute to the societal transition by facilitating access to key products, services, and markets that broaden opportunities for marginalised groups and individuals to participate in cultural, political, and social spaces."
Examples include providing access to broadband Internet, mobile phones, TV, and so on, as well as "material improvement in their personal financial situation, which enhances their possibilities to participate, when people upgrade from a 3G phone to a very affordable 4G smartphone, as research from Safaricom shows."
In fact, telecom companies "represent one of the least diverse sectors to work in" in emerging markets, but in developed markets, "they are therefore more stable and predictable, as they generate most of their revenues from subscriptions."
They also tend to offer an attractive dividend Read the Entire Article
Selected Grant News Headlines
A customized collection of grant news from foundations and the federal government from around the Web.
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The city of Evanston, Ill., is putting its money where its mouth is. The Evanston Arts Council has awarded a record $99,000 in grants to 27 nonprofit arts organizations over the next decade, the...more
It's not every day you get the chance to sit in front of a computer and interact with it in real time, but that's exactly what one student at the Cleveland Institute of Art did last week. Dr....more
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The Canadian film industry's annual awards ceremony is Sunday, and the Toronto Star has the full list of winners. Among the big winners: Best Picture: The Hate U Give (Zachary Treitz) Best...more
"The limitations of reality do not shackle their mind. They are unfettered by the comments made by others and don't have any preconceived notions about an idea. So they don't have any...more
"If I have a heart attack, I'll want a trained doctor." That's what a drama professor in the UK is saying after the government announced funding cuts to the arts and creative industries, the New...more
When Nur Hanisah Omar Hashim started her social enterprise, Mearpet, two years ago, she didn't expect to end up with an award. But the fourth-year student from Keningau Vocational College in...more
Foundation: Changemakers
They're young, they're bold, and they're solving some of Nigeria's most pressing problems. Nine young people in their teens and early 20s have been named "Young Changemakers" by the social...more
"When you build something that people need, you do not need to look for customers, your product sells itself," says Uganda's Barbara Birungi Mutabazi. "And that is what we are doing, helping...more
Social Entrepreneurship
Spotlight
Ten Years After Katrina, A New Startup Sector Takes Hold In New Orleans
“I think, by 2018, there’s an opportunity for New Orleans to be viewed around the country, around the world, as a hub of entrepreneurship for the South,” says Tim Williamson, the CEO and cofounder of incubator The Idea Village, referring to the year the city will celebrate its 300th anniversary.
