Hello, My name is Philip DesAutels. I am an Academic Evangelism manager for Microsoft in the US. I am also a technologist and very concerned and focused on leveraging the awesome power of technology and networks to help improve the lives of people around the world. In the US my work focuses on getting more student interested in and studying technology subjects - Science, technology, Engineering and Maths. In the US, many students do not see the value in or potential of these fields nor their ability to make change at a global level. Prior to working at Microsoft, I served in the Peace Corps in Uzbekistan, worked in a variety of technology startup companies, worked on the staff of the W3C http://www.wc.org and for several large multinational corporations such as IBM. I am excited to be part of this effort and to share in the incredible experiences of this global community. We have seen how technology designed for one use is applied to completely different and life changing uses (texting -> mbanking for example) and I am hopeful that through this conversation, new models of technology application will be proposed and discussed. Yours, Philip DesAutels
Submitted by Philip A. DesAutels on Tue, 03/11/2008 - 02:23
Hello and Welcome, Does the data collected and processed in your efforts get back to the farmers and communities? If so, through what means? Philip