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20 hours until I depart for Philippines… and typhoon on it’s way

With only a few more hours in my office, and my bags almost packed for departure tomorrow to Philippines, I’m really looking forward to arriving in Manila on Thursday. During my trip I’ll be visiting some of my friends at various not-for-profit organisations, interviewing (through informal conversations) low-income slum dwellers, photographing some of the <$1/day Filipinos, and meeting…

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July 13, 2010
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Help — how can I stop all this SPAM I’m getting?

In my regular ‘Nitty Gritty — Online’ column for Australian Business Solutions magazine, due to hit the shelves in a few days time, I address the question “Is there anything I can do to minimise the amount of SPAM that I’m getting each day?”. With only 500 words available to cover this whole, complex topic, I just briefly touched on…

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July 9, 2010
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Off-shoring — ethical and socially responsible

A long time ago, I started writing about “Offshoring — the pros and cons from a social and commercial perspective”. I promised then to delve deeper in three subsequent posts, and this is the first of those long-overdue posts: Off-shoring is not only ethical, it’s a socially responsible and progressive step. That’s a claim that’s going to get me in…

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June 22, 2010
Read more about the article Offshoring — the pros and cons from a social and commercial perspective
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Offshoring — the pros and cons from a social and commercial perspective

A couple of years ago I wrote a draft article about off-shoring and the reasons why, ethically, it makes perfect sense and should not be condemned. However, it languished in the recesses of my hard disk until a couple of weeks ago, when a phone call I made to Telstra was directed to a call centre in Philippines…

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January 13, 2010
Read more about the article Are you breaking the law with your Wi-Fi connection?
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Are you breaking the law with your Wi-Fi connection?

According to the Herald Sun newspaper today, “a Monash university student has admitted in court scamming thousands of dollars worth of Internet access in what experts say is potentially a rocketing problem”. Considering I work with this type of technology (Internet, Wi-Fi, etc…) all the time and I’m not aware of the laws around this topic, I imagine…

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December 23, 2009
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Political killings in Philippines a tragic symptom of the nation’s problems

In 2006 I was visiting the Philippines during the pre-election campaigning period, and was dumb-founded to read of scores of politically-motivated killings. Political candidates and their aides, advisors, assistants were being picked off in ones and twos all around the nation. I quickly learned that, sadly, this was par for the political course in the Philippines. Coming from…

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November 26, 2009
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Cheap airfares?

I’m a sucker for a cheap airfare! Anything that will get me to Philippines one more time makes my ears prick up. So Air Asia’s current sales have me salivating like Pavlov’s dog! Under $300 return to Philippines if I’m prepared to fly via Kuala Lumpur. There’s only one catch… Their web site is so shockingly slow that…

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November 11, 2009
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Why experiences are key for non-profit organisations

For many years, fundraising (and, for that matter, commercial marketing) has operated on the basis that a simple transaction occurs when money changes hands, and the recipient of the money delivers a product or service in return. That ‘service’ may be the delivery of humanitarian services in poverty-stricken countries, as readily as it may be a material product.…

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November 10, 2009
Read more about the article Tell me why, when so many need somebody, we don’t give a helping hand?
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Tell me why, when so many need somebody, we don’t give a helping hand?

Today, I’m not going to worry about trying to find the words — he may be just a teenage boy, but Declan Galbraith says it so much more eloquently than I can, in his song “Tell Me Why”. Kids like this are our hope for the future! May we all have a heart of concern like this… (and may we…

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October 31, 2009
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Digital Marketing maturing for Not-for-Profits

The Global Financial Crisis has, understandably, been feared and loathed by leaders and citizens around the world. Concerns about the possible collapse of entire economies, mass unemployment, widespread personal and corporate financial losses, and families being plunged into relative poverty were justifiably held. However, along with the detrimental ramifications, 2009 has brought to light a number of positive…

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October 30, 2009