Idealist.org - 13,000 Organizations Under One
Roof
-by Russ Finkelstein
Director of Internet Outreach
Action Without Borders
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Idealist is a project of Action Without
Borders, Inc, a New York-based
nonprofit organization that facilitates the sharing of ideas,
information and resources to help build a world where all people can live free,
dignified and productive lives.
Three or four years ago, few nonprofit organizations had even heard of the World Wide Web. Today, thousands of organizations in almost every country are using the Web in their work, and 13,000 of them can be found at www.idealist.org.
Idealist, as this Website is called, is the richest directory of volunteering and nonprofit resources on the Internet. Idealist enables any nonprofit or community organization—whether it has its own Website or not—to post and update detailed information about its services, volunteer opportunities, jobs, internships, upcoming events, and any material or publication it has produced.
All this information—searchable by location, keyword, area of interest and other fields—can then be used any person with Internet access in schools, libraries, work places and homes. Every day, over 1,500 people are using Idealist to help themselves and their communities.
For Lisa Hudgens, Agency Relations Director of Project Connect in Jackson, Mississippi, Idealist offers an opportunity to reach out to more people: "When I was diagnosed with HIV seven years ago, I found it very difficult to find information and services in this area. I hope more Mississippians will now have a better time than I did finding the help they need."
Neil S. Andre, Director of the Earth Angels in St. Louis, Missouri, is using Idealist to recruit volunteers: "I have been all over the Net and have not found a service that compares to yours. Not only does it let more people know about our program, but I have received several inquiries from potential volunteers that look like they will work out well."
Idealist is based on a revolutionary model in which each organization in the system is responsible for its own entry. In contrast to other nonprofit directories—printed, online or on cd-romcd-rom—the information on Idealist is entered and updated directly by each participating organization through simple Web forms that require no computer skills beyond typing and using a mouse.
If an organization doesn’t have a computer, or is not yet online, it can enter and update its information at a school, public library, or any other organization offering access to the Internet.
Idealist was created by Action Without Borders, a nonprofit organization based in New York. For more information on Idealist and AWB, call Russ Finkelstein at 212-843-3973 or email russ@idealist.org
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