Last year, IT professionals donated hundreds of
thousands of pounds in cash and time to help the disadvantaged in
society. In 2007, Computer Weekly will continue its support for a
wide range of charitable activities, and will highlight
opportunities for readers to get involved.
The hub for many charitable activities in the IT sector is the
Information Technologists Company, the City of
London livery company for IT, which aims to maximise the impact and
effectiveness of each pound raised.
A good example of its work is the
Lifelites
scheme, which identified the communication needs of a terminally
ill child, consulted the best IT brains and built a pilot system in
a hospice. The system was further developed and has since been
installed in all of the UK's 35 children's hospices.
Intellect IT Charity Ball
The Information Technologists Company, along with Computer
Weekly, supports the grandest IT charity event of the year, the
annual Intellect ICT Charity Ball, which last year raised more than
£50,000 for disadvantaged children.
The theme of this year's ball, which takes place on Thursday 5
July, is "A Night in Las Vegas". The event, compered by Jeremy
Beadle, will raise money for the Advisory Centre for Education
(Ace), a charity that helps disabled people with complex physical
and communication difficulties and works with technology such as
that used by Stephen Hawking.
Ace is helping push the boundaries in eye-control technology for
people with disabilities. In particular, it is unlocking the world
of play for seriously disabled children through the use of
innovative eye-control technology to adapt and develop computer
games.
The organisers of the ICT Charity Ball are currently looking for
four more companies to join Xerox, EDS, Cable & Wireless and
Symantec as sponsors.
www.wcit.org.uk/Events
London Charity Walk
For those with families, the Information Technologists Company
promises a fun day out on its London Charity Walk. The walk takes
place on a Sunday in September, and offers a family-oriented
charity event for IT professionals.
Based at the Honourable Artillery Company's grounds in the heart
of London, the charity walk comprises a series of structured walks
visiting places around London that are normally closed to the
public. Last year the London Charity Walk raised £20,000 for
Barnado's and the WCIT Trust.
www.wcit.org.uk/Events
Byte Night
At the other end of the scale, a hardy group of about 250 IT
industry leaders will take part in Byte Night on Friday 5 October.
This annual sponsored sleep-out in central London raises money for
homeless children on behalf of the charity NCH. Also supported by
Computer Weekly, with the magazine's managing editor one of the
sleepers, Byte Night raised £283,000 last year.
www.bytenight.org.uk
Vanco Three Peaks Challenge
The Vanco Three Peaks Challenge invites teams of IT
professionals to spend a gruelling weekend in July raising money
from sponsors the hard way - by climbing the three highest peaks in
Wales, England and Scotland within 24 hours. The funds raised are
donated to global aid organisation Care International.
www.careinternational.org.uk
IT4Communities
For those who prefer to offer their time and expertise rather
than raise sponsorship or donate money, the IT4Communities scheme
provides a structured framework for IT professionals who want to
help charities or community projects.
IT4Communities matches IT volunteers to charitable projects in
need of assistance, offering advice and guidance to maximise the
return by maintaining realistic expectations and helping both
groups avoid potential pitfalls.
The organisation is backed by the British Computer Society,
Citizens Online, Business in the Community, the Information
Technologists Company and Computer Weekly. Since it started in
November 2002, more than 4,000 IT professionals have donated time
worth more than £2m to the many charities asking for IT
assistance.
www.it4communities.org.uk
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