Find out how these 14 'eNGOs' are collaborating to bring about social change

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In the earlier 25 posts, we brought you creative photographs from an art fair, music festival, telecom expo, art museum, mobile showcase, math museum, social hackathon, bookstore, co-working space, sensorium, lantern festival, outdoor ads, startup roadshow, computer museum, startup T-shirts, business cards, Diwali rangoli and ecopreneurs. This week we look at the winners of the eNGO Awards for digital excellence. Make YourStory’s PhotoSparks your regular source of photographs that celebrate creativity and innovation!

NGOs from seven South Asian countries gather each year for the eNGO Challenge Conference and Awards for digital excellence (see my coverage of last year’s awards here). The NGOs collaborate to identify best digital practices and emerging media trends - and also compete for awards in eight categories: communication and outreach; social commerce; advocacy; organisational efficiency; sustainable development; and usage of mobile phones, social media, video and radio. The eNGO Challenge is a joint initiative of Public Interest Registry (PIR) and Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF).

Aaghaz-e-Dosti is an Indo-Pak Friendship Initiative of Mission Bhartiyam (India) and The Catalyst - TC (Pakistan). The youth group decided to set up an independent channel of communication via social media, bringing together youth from India and Pakistan in online and offline forums. They meet during cricket matches, design calendars, call for ceasefires during military hostilities, and promote a broader peaceful vision for the future.

Thrive’s Accendo lamps are inexpensive LED-based study lamps for children. The LED technology uses less power than conventional lamps, lasts longer and is less polluting. The lamps can be charged by solar panels or mobile chargers. The Accendo mini lamps are small, light and trendy.

JanaThakshan from Sri Lanka is a knowledge management tool for sustainable social enterprises, targeting SMEs, social entrepreneurs and concerned citizens. Their digital library serves as a repository for community information assets, under the Creative Commons License. They make extensive use of social media and mobiles. Digital opened up new avenues for inquiry and partnerships for JanaThakshan, who also won the eSwabhimani Award in Sri Lanka.

Community Information Resource Centre (CIRC) is an initiative which aims at setting up digital information and communication centres at rural locations across India. The focus areas of these centres are livelihood generation, education improvement, health focus and rural development, all through ICT tools. The core target groups are children, youth and women. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was one of the many high-profile visitors at these centres.

PraveenLata Sansthan is a Jaipur-based NGO focusing on the problems of the poor and their struggle to obtain a life of justice and dignity. The NGO provides online resources for environment stabilisation, food security and empowerment of the community for self-governance. Primary contributions are in child welfare, women empowerment and rural development.

The Consortium of Handicrafts and Artisans Society, Varanasi, was formed as a result of a call to save handloom traditions and weaver communities. Over the centuries, the handloom sector in many countries is battling for survival in the face of machine-made fabrics. Varanasi is home to weavers of Banaras brocades, sarees and other handicrafts, and the Consortium promotes their wares online.

Pragat Shikshan Sanstha, founded by Dr. Maxine Berntsen, engages educators through online and offline forums to implement the best in educational thought and practice. Dialogue is promoted between researchers, government officials and the general public. Special projects have been run in localities such as Phaltan for the under-privileged.

Shree Global Foundation has made the product Akshay Jal for the masses who are not able to access clean drinking water. The Foundation provides 20 litres of clean drinking water as per WHO norms, at Rs 5. Pilot projects using pre-paid RFID cards have been done in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Lha Charitable Trust is one of the largest Tibetan social work organisations based in Dharamsala. It uses the Web and social media to provide vital resources for Tibetan refugees, the local Indian population, and people from the Himalayan regions. Lha plays a crucial role in facilitating the transition of Tibetan refugees from their homeland to the Indian community by providing long-term rehabilitation and education resources.

Purkal Stree Shakti is an organisation for empowering the women of Purkal, enhancing the lives of the disadvantaged women of the community by empowering them. The Society works in a rural village outside Dehradun known as Purkal, located in the foothills of the Himalayas. Many families in the area lack basic education and skills and suffer from various cultural and social problems which keep them locked in a continuous cycle of poverty. The Society provides workshop and online training to batches of women in crafts such as patchworking and embroidery.

Promoted by AHM (Action of Human Movement), aptly named SunGrace has set itself an ambitious goal of promoting solar photovoltaic modules and systems in every remote part of rural India. Current offerings also include lanterns, home lighting solutions, street lighting systems and solar power packs for small commercial establishments and community water pumping systems.

Save The Quest is a charitable organisation working for disabled students and bringing reform in society with the help of education. The dedicated volunteers advocate changes in society by making education more flexible, more liberal, holistic and skill-based. Save The Quest is currently on a drive to prevent discrimination against differently-abled students, enable them to live a life with dignity and contribute to the GNP.

MAD (Make a Difference) empowers children living in orphanages and street shelters to discover their true strengths and unleash their full potential. MAD is now a movement of young people taking ownership of the institutionalised children in their community. Their outreach has impacted over 5,000 children across 23 cities.

SocialCops helps non-profits and citizen activists gather better data and make quality decisions based on digital tools and the power of crowds. Active users take part in tracking and monitoring data on a real time basis, thus improving insights for decision making. Teacher attendance in government schools, safe transport routes for women, and healthcare policy parameters are just some of the areas which can be tracked.

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