What is Cloud Computing?

Introducing Salesforce.com Foundation

TOFD İllere Göre Akülü Sandalye İhtiyaç Haritası 2009

TOFD İllere Göre Akülü Sandalye İhtiyaç Haritası 2009 from Levent Korkmaz on Vimeo.

How Cloud Computing Is Changing The World

How Cloud Computing Is Changing The World

View more presentations from Robin Thieu.

Emerging Interest for Cloud Computing

Salesforce.com Foundation is releasing new nonprofit template

Salesforce.com nonprofit template's (a.k.a. NonProfitForce) new version will be released on 1 Dec 2008.

Salesforce.com Foundation is looking for a name for the new template. Current suggestions:

Salesforce SocialPower
Salesforce for Change
Salesforce for Change - Impact Made Easy
Socialforce
Salesforce for Social Impact
Impact Factor
Salesforce for Social Change
Salesforce with Impact
Salesforce Social Impact Edition
Salesforce Impact Starter Pack

You can suggest a new name here

Social Networks - Viadeo

(click to join for free)

Social Force

Call for projects (deadline 30/06/2008):

Belgian Federal government is supporting the social economy with 1 million euros of subsidies for developing pilot projects and innovative initiatives.

Amazing innovation: use the force.com

When Google met Salesforce.com

Salesforce.com Foundation Extends Nonprofit Discount to all B Corporations

Salesforce.com Foundation Extends Nonprofit Discount to all B Corporations
BERWYN, PA -March 14, 2008 - B Lab, a nonprofit that is pioneering the creation of B Corporations, announced today the first Service Partnership for B Corporations through a pilot project with the Salesforce.com Foundation. B Corporations are a new type of corporation that uses the power of business to create public benefit. This is the first such B Corporation Service Partnership, delivering value-added services to B Corporations to help them improve their financial performance and market impact.

B Corporations, of which there are 81 certified at present through the B Ratings System, represent a diverse $650 million marketplace, come from 17 states and operate across 20 industries, from national consumer brands to global financial intermediaries. These and future B Corporations will receive an 80% discount on salesforce.com's web-based CRM platform as part of a pilot program of the Salesforce.com Foundation's 1% Product Donation program.

"By meeting transparent and comprehensive social and environmental performance standards, B Corporations give the Salesforce.com Foundation the tools we need to extend our successful nonprofit program to support triple bottom line business and for-profit social enterprise," says Suzanne DiBianca, Executive Director of the Salesforce.com Foundation. "We are proud to be the first B Corporation Service Partner and look forward to working with B Lab to identify others who want to follow our lead and support this important movement."

B Corporations not only benefit from the ability to use the power of their collective voice to differentiate themselves in the marketplace, but now can benefit from access to discounts on business services and products from Service Partners like the Salesforce.com Foundation who want to support sustainable business and for-profit social enterprise.

"The B Corporation Service Partnership with the Salesforce.com Foundation demonstrates the market forces which will be unleashed as B Lab develops the tools to help individuals and institutions distinguish between "good companies" and just good marketing", says Jay Coen Gilbert, co-founder of B Lab. "Now companies can join millions of consumers and investors who want to see business used not just as a tool to maximize private wealth, but as a tool to maximize public health."

About B Lab

B Lab is a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization whose mission is to support B Corporations by:

defining the marketplace of social investment by overseeing the governance and standards, certifying B Corporations who achieve a minimum score on the B Ratings System and developing a legal framework to institutionalize stakeholder interests within existing corporate law;
building the marketplace for social investment by recruiting B Corporations, providing services to improve the financial performance and social impact of B Corporations, and educating consumers, investors, and policy makers about B Corporations through the power of a unifying brand; and
accelerating growth of the social investment marketplace by pursuing partnerships and policy initiatives to develop mission-aligned capital markets and tax, investment, and purchasing preferences for B Corporations.

Amnesty International Belgium goes to China

You're invited to carry the Olympic torch to the Chinese Embassy in Brussels, one day before the launch of the Olympic Games, on May 3.



Don't forget you can save lives and update your knowledge about the situation in China on I SAVE LIVES.be

You can also order this guide book for 10€:

Remarkable search for hope and human potential in Africa

Echos Communication is a Belgian NGO for education on development that uses communication as a tool for development. As part of its actions it organized a photograph exhibit at the Botanique Park entitled "1000 Families". Two years later, as a continuation of this project, an international consortium (Echos Communication, Concern, PDM, Kopin, UCL) was created to promote reciprocity and collective intelligence in development cooperation and to "make diversity a factor of development".

Echos Communication has also been orchestrating a communication campaign for several years to promote a different image of Africa with the general public in Europe. It considers that the media must be made aware of the impact of the image they present of partners in the South and particularly in Africa. This negative image is such that the public in the North sees Africa only as a place of poverty, and Africans lose confidence in their values, their know-how and their potential for organizing their own development. So there is a need not to systematically present Africa from the standpoint of its shortcomings, but also to show its wealth and creative potential.

United Cities and Local Governments of Africa is an association of village, town and city councils in Africa, via mayors, local elected officials and representatives of local governments. The UCLGA has the specificity of creating a link between African citizens and the world environment. Two types of logic, one "macro", the other "micro", combine and dialogue with each other. The UCLGA is active in promoting local resources in the hands of local "potential". In its founding declaration, one of UCLGA’s objectives is to "promote inclusive local government that exploits the richness and variety of African culture to develop unity, oneness and tolerance among African communities and societies\. One of the priority themes for UCLGA is developing human capital and intellectual exchanges.

2008-01-24 : Programme Plein Sud – RFI
2008-01-24 : Published in the Financial Times
2008-01-21 : Programme Afrik Danse – RTBF
2008-11-01 : The members of the jury answer to your questions
2007-17-10 : Programme 'Plein Sud', a special on the World Day to Overcome Extreme Poverty RFI.
2007-13-11 : Published in "La Libre Belgique"
2007-20-11 : Published in the Financial Times
2007-05-12 : Publié sur www.afrik.com
2007-05-12 : Published in "Le Potentiel (Kinshasa)"

Sustainable profits for not-for-profits through limited joint venture

We can only recommend the US practice of tax-exempt LLC (limited liability company) as a sustainable legal form of joint venture.

You can read more about this practice in an article published on GuideStar.org. It's still questionable whether such a joint venture can be taxed completely or, for example, can at least be exempted from VAT. Current practice does not allow not-for-profits to recover the VAT from transactions with service providers. Belgium is an exception, where they can opt in for a VAT number.

Similar legislation is being considered for foundations throughout the continental Europe, as was discussed during the Luxemburg philanthropy symposium.

Earth Clock

Poodwaddle.com

Food Clock

Poodwaddle.com

Sustainable Agriculture Information Network - SUSTAINET

Sustainet – a cooperative project to combat world hunger through sustainable agriculture

Eating well & sustainable - GRACE links

Sustainable Table activities (flicker photo album)

Every day, more and more consumers are shopping smarter, eating healthier, and enjoying an abundance of fresh, locally-grown products. Sustainable Table was created to celebrate this fast-growing, dynamic movement, to educate consumers on food-related issues, and to help build community through food.

Today’s dominant form of agriculture relies on synthetic fertilizers and chemical pesticides, large amounts of water, major transportation systems and factory-style practices for raising livestock and crops. Artificial hormones in milk, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, mad cow disease, and large-scale outbreaks of potentially deadly e.coli are all associated with this industrial form of food production.



Sustainable agriculture involves food production methods that are healthy, do not harm the environment, respect workers, are humane to animals, provide fair wages to farmers, and support farming communities. But rather than focus on the problems, Sustainable Table promotes the positive shift toward local, small-scale sustainable farming.

www.gracelinks.org

• Factory Farm


• The Meatrix


• Eat Well Guide


• Sustainable Table


• H₂O Conserve


• Network for New
  Energy Choices
• National Energy
  Research Database

Social Food Research

FREE UNIVERSITY OF BRUSSELS - FOST: Social & Cultural Food Studies
In the past ten years, food research has gained tremendous interest in the humanities and social sciences. Sociologists, anthropologists, economists, historians, art historians, social geographers, linguists, philosophers, archaeologists, ethnologists, and social and cultural theorists devoted attention to the seemingly banal acts of shopping, cooking, eating and drinking. This was characterized by a myriad of approaches and themes, which comprised social and economic policy, health concerns, identity formation, sociability, inequality, signification, and globalization.

As of the 1970's, the Department of History of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel plays an important role in this research field, in Belgium and on an international level.
In recent years, colleagues from other departments have shown vivid interest in food studies, and today this expertise is present in various departments of the university. This attention and qualification led to the submitting of several research proposals dealing with food studies.

These researchers wanted to institutionalize the expertise by setting up a new research group at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Therefore, in April 2003, FOST (Social & Cultural Food Studies) was founded.
FOST works in collaboration with the Vlaams Centrum voor Volkscultuur, the Institut Européen de l'Histoire de l'Alimentation and the Institut National de Recherche Agronomique.

FOST aims at consolidating the expertise by inviting (foreign) specialists to workshops and colloquia, by operating within networks, by publishing and contemplating about food studies, and by performing new (multidisciplinary) food research. This multidisciplinary, internationally rooted base guarantees a diversity of approaches, methodologies and theories around a common research field.

Who is who?

• Daniëlle Caluwé


• Daniëlle De Vooght


• Maureen Duru


• Willem Elias


• Ignace Glorieux


• Marc Jacobs


• Joeri Januarius


• Inge Mestdag


• Peter Scholliers


• Nelleke Teughels


• Annelies Tollet


• Dries Tys


• Piet Van De Craen


• Steven Van den Berghe


• Patricia Van den Eeckhout

Social Enterprise community

UnLtdWorld is based in London and enables social entrepreneurs, socially-minded people and socially-driven organisations to share, shape and use social insight to generate greater positive impact in the real world.

Connect with other socially minded people, search and share resources and opportunities, find and list services and products, find answers to key questions, create and join groups and lots more. UnLtdWorld houses the world's most powerful mapping and graphing of social entrepreneurship, and of social and environmental issues. preview and join the community

Philanthropy event in Luxembourg 23 April 2008

Banque de Luxembourg is organising a conference at Luxemburg Philharmony, to "seize the philanthropic opportunity".



Seizing the Opportunity for Philanthropy in Luxembourg

Under the esteemed patronage of Her Royal Highness the Grand Duchess

08.00-08.30 am Welcome message

08.30-09.00 am Philanthropy, the new impetus in the private and public spheres
Public authorities, citizens and the corporate sector are experimenting with new forms of organisation. What is driving this new impetus? What role can philanthropy play in this context?

• Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister, Luxembourg
With an introduction by Pierre Ahlborn, Chief Executive Officer, Banque de Luxembourg

09.00-10.00 am "New Philanthropy": a European overview
The rapid rise of philanthropy in Europe reveals the demands of some and the creativity of others. What are the expectations and roles of private donors today? What are the needs and challenges for the beneficiary organisations? Who are the stakeholders in this booming “sector”?

• Luc Tayard de Borms, Managing Director, Fondation Roi Baudouin, Belgique
• Mathew Bishop, Chief Business Writer, The Economist, Grande-Bretagne
• Arno Krause, President, Forum Europa, Germany
Hosted by Volker Then, Managing Director, Centre for Social Investment, University of Heidelberg, Germany

10.00-10.30 am State of play in Luxembourg: the view from key players
Leading players in the Luxembourg “philanthropy chain” met recently to identify the factors that could stimulate or hamper donations.

Hosted by Philippe Depoorter, Head of Philanthropy Advisory Services, Banque de Luxembourg
• Laurent Probst, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Luxembourg
• Marie-Paule Planchard, Founder Handicap International, Luxembourg
• Frantz Charles Muller, President, Fondation Hëllef fir d’Natur, Luxembourg
• Dr Mario Di Cato, President, Fondation de Recherche Cancer et Maladies du Sang, Luxembourg

10.30-11.00 am break

11.00 am -12.00 pm Legislation and tax: challenges and levers of development
The legal and tax framework determines the level of contributions from individuals and the private sector. In recent years, there have been significant innovations in this area in a number of European countries. Cross-border donations and the status of a European foundation are of vital importance in this context. Foundations and legal professionals analyse and discuss best practices.

• Russell Prior, Executive Director, Company & International Services, Charities Aid Foundation, United Kingdom
• Xavier Delsol, Lawyer and Partner, Delsol & Associés, France
• Ludwig Forrest, Project Manager, TGE (Transnational Giving Europe),
Fondation Roi Baudouin, Belgium
• Volker Then, Managing Director, Centre for Social Investment, University of Heidelberg, Germany
Hosted by André Prüm, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance, Director of the Economic Law Laboratory, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg

12.00 – 01.30 pm Lunch

01.30-03.00 pm Professionals serving donors
The efficiency of donations is the primary requirement of the donor and a real challenge for the sector. New intermediaries and advisors are responding to the needs of donors. What kinds of services are they offering? What is their added value?

• Martin Brookes, Chief Executive, New Philanthropy Capital, United Kingdom
• Sharath Jeevan, Chief Executive, Global Giving UK, United Kingdom
• Dominique Allard, Director of the Philanthropy Centre, Fondation Roi Baudouin, Belgium
• Etienne Eichenberger, Co-founder, Wise Partnership, Switzerland
• Virginie Seghers, Consultant, sponsorship and corporate social responsibility specialist, France
Hosted by Marc Elvinger, Lawyer, Luxembourg

03.00 – 03.45 pm
Which model for Luxembourg?

• Marc Pfitzer, Managing Director, FSG Social Impact Advisors, has been meeting with various players in Luxembourg in the run-up to the symposium and will discuss his avenues for reflection and recommendations for Luxembourg.
With an introduction by Philippe Depoorter, Head of Philanthropy Advisory Services, Banque de Luxembourg

03.45 – 04.15 pm
Conclusion and outlook

• Jacques Santer, Honorary Minister of State, Luxembourg

Simultaneous translation of the speeches and round table discussions will be provided in French, English and German

Hello world!

http://www.be-cause.be/blog