Virtual Volunteering in SE Asia Tsunami relief efforts with Groove - Microsoft technologies at its finest

The past week has been a harrowing experience - all is well in Bombay where some of my family live but all is not well elsewhere in SE India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and other near-by countries. The devastation is almost apocalyptic.

The past few days I have been a 'Virtual Volunteer' with Info-Share, a 21st century NGO agency based in Sri Lanka that uses information technologies to its fullest (from their site) -

'Info Share aims to create secure, accessible and pervasive online information sharing networks that contain relevant, updated information from trusted sources to help all stakeholders work collaboratively to create holistic, sustainable and innovative peacebuilding processes'.

InfoShare is a Groove 'power user' and the way they use Groove is considered exemplary by Groove Networks and Robin Good. An informative description of their Sri Lanka Tsunami Aid Groove space (and brochure) will show you their fine efforts in bringing relief to their country of Sri Lanka.

The Groove Community of Partners and Developers have been magnanimous - a short appeal brought them to offer their Groove products and 'virtual volunteering' services to aid in the logistics of the relief effort:

Information Patterns - Toucan Navigate Colloborative Geographic Information System (UK/Scotland)

Dicodemy - GForce.CRM to track people and agency information (USA)

Black Coral - BC LIVE 2.0 Geospatial information systems (Canada)

ApWiz - various Groove tools and custom development (India)

Suite75 - various Groove tools

Note that these firms are from the world over - a fine example of global technology collaboration!

The Groove platform is intrinsically (and business-wise) a Microsoft-technology based platform and its effective use in this dire event is something you Microsofties  can be proud of.