This is Part II of a three part series featuring Josh Nesbit, Co-Founder of FrontlineSMS Medic.

Thank you Josh for taking the time to meet for this video interview.

In this interview, Josh talks about the business model that sustains FrontlineSMS: Medic and explains the difference between his organization FrontlineSMS: Media and the umbrella platform developed by Ken Banks, FrontlineSMS. We also learn about another member of the FrontlineSMS family, FrontlineSMS: Credit, which uses mobile phones to support microfinance.

FrontlineSMS: Medic is a mobile phone platform that helps rural community workers in developing countries to access health information via SMS text message. The service has been deployed in ten countries, and saves community health workers’ time, enabling them to treat more patients and save countless lives. In Malawi alone, FrontlineSMS Medic has saved clinics $US 3,000 in fuel, 2,100 hours of travel time, allowing clinicians to identify and treat two times the number of patients infected with TB. Check out the video to learn more about FrontlineSMS Medic, its business model, and impact around the globe.

The Full Transcript

For Part I of this three part interview series, please check out: How Mobile SMS Saves Lives in Africa | Josh Nesbit, Co-Founder FrontlineSMS: Medic

Katrina: So here I am with Josh of FrontlineSMS Medic. [How has your organization evolved since the SMS platform was first rolled out and community health workers began using the platform in rural Malawi, Africa?]

Josh: What’s happened since then is that organizations like Partners in Health, the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative have grabbed hold of particular use cases that they’re most interested in. For example, in Nano, Malawi we work with Partners in Health to implement an SMS program focusing on follow-up for HIV to make sure that people who start treatment, stay in treatment. And that’s something like 40 text messages every couple of days.

So, once you have that laptop in place, the GSM modem set-up, and some local training, the costs are really minimal.

Katrina: Fantastic. And can you share, what is the difference between Frontline SMS: Medic and the umbrella platform, FrontlineSMS, developed by Ken Banks? How do you differ? You have similar names and you’re using the platform, so how are you different?

Josh: Ken and I work very closely together, and I am actually a FrontlineSMS Ambassador. So, I joined Ken on the core FrontlineSMS team and it’s been really exciting to work with people like him. And to work with people like Ben Lyon, who has created a FrontlineSMS: Credit to repurpose the FrontlineSMS platform to be used by microfinance institutions to link in to mobile money transfer systems.

We’re basically seeing a family of tools and a family of teams develop. And we all share the same DNA. So part of what I get to do is to interact with other people in other verticals – to try to help them to feel empowered to start things up and to build new tools.

Katrina: Can you share, how do you sustain FrontlineSMS: Medic, given that you have an open-source platform?

Josh: Right. So, FrontlineSMS: Medic is a full-fledged non-profit. We are a pure non-profit. So, we’ve turned to grant giving foundations, social innovation groups, and the like, for start-up capital to help us get started, get running.

Katrina: Wonderful. Thank you so much, Josh. Best wishes with FrontlineSMS: Medic. And everyone can find you on the web at …

Josh: HopePhones.org, medic.frontlinesms.com. And we’re all over Twitter, you can find me @joshnesbit. You can find us @smsmedic or @hopephones.

Katrina: Wonderful, thank you so much Josh.

Josh Nesbit | Co-Founder, FrontlineSMS Medic / HopePhones

About: FrontlineSMS Medic advances healthcare networks in under-served communities using innovative, appropriate mobile technologies. HopePhones is a campaign of FrontlineSMS Medic that enables people to recycle old mobile phones to support the work of FrontlineSMS Medic.Website: www.medic.frontlinesms.com

Photos in Video via Creative Commons Flickr thanks to: Ken Banks, kiwanja.net, whiteafrican, and a.drian

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Following up on a successful event last summer, DiasporaCamp DC takes place again this Saturday, July 24, 2010 with the aim to bring together the African Diaspora and people interested in Africa to exchange ideas on entrepreneurship, innovation, and development in Africa.

With over 100 people planning to attend DiasporaCamp DC 2010, the gathering is certain to be an amazing event. We’re happy to announce that the envisionGood team will be in the house to help capture highlights of the event via video interviews. DiasporaCamp DC 2010 takes place at the School of Advanced International Studies – Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC.

The theme of DiasporaCamp DC 2010 is “Financial Innovations For African Small & Medium-Scale Enterprises”. Given that access to capital is one of the greatest challenges that ventures face, the event’s focus on investment capital for start-up, small, and medium-sized businesses is certain to be informative. Stay tuned for insights we gain at DiasporaCamp DC 2010!

P.S. For highlights from last year’s DiaporaCamp, check out the video below featuring our globetrotting producer Shara Karasic‘s interview with Ashifi Gogo, CEO at Sproxil.com, PhD Innovation Fellow at Dartmouth College, Co-founder at mPedigree.org, and 2009 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer. In this interview, Ashifi talks about BarCamp Diaspora, mPedigree, and the future of scientific research in Ghana.

Can clubbers change the world? Michel Smit, Project Lead for Sustainable Dance Club (SDC), a social business dedicated to showing that having fun and taking responsibility for our environmental impact can go hand in hand, thinks so.

Launched in 2006 through a partnership between Enviu -Innovators in Sustainability and architect studio Döll Lab, Michel explains in this talk given at PICNIC’s Green Challenge that SDC’s challenge is to make as many dance clubs and festivals all over the world sustainable in a cool and hip way. The team aims to inspire more young people to lead a more sustainable life style.

Why focus on clubs? In Holland, Michel explains that over 1.5 million young people go to clubs each week. It’s the place where young people communicate and learn about new products. However the clubbing industry, reports Michel, is one of the businesses that at the moment does not think much about sustainability.

In a study to determine the impact of clubbing on the environment, SDC looked at ten clubs in Holland serving over one thousand people, discovering that clubs on average used 30x the amount of water that an average household of four would use. In addition, the clubs produced 40x more waste and used over 150x more energy. Finally, they discovered that one club alone produces roughly 400,000 kg of CO2 a year. Putting this into perspective, it takes 24,000 trees a year to compensate for this amount of CO2.

The concept for Sustainable Dance Club is amazing: by harnessing the power of movement, Sustainable Dance Club turns clubbers from consumers into sources of energy, triggering thoughts about sustainability in a new way. In an environment where the DJ usually reacts to the energy of the crowd, Sustainable Dance Club has also developed a way to make the energy produced by the clubbers visible on the dance floor. So as you dance, you can see the energy you are producing.

The environmental impact is impressive:

• 30% energy consumption reduced
• 50% water consumption reduced
• 50% refuse generated
• 30% CO2 emissions reduced

If you are in Rotterdam, be sure to check out Club Watt, the world’s first Sustainable Dance Club. Dance on! : )

(Photo thanks to llRed on Flickr.)

When I think of race car driving, environmental action is not one of the things that comes to mind. On the contrary, given its nature – race cars, the sport represents to me the antithesis of conservation and protection of the environment.

I was surprised and delighted therefore, to learn about Leilani Münter, professional race car driver and environmental activist, who is using her voice to change her sport for the better.

Considering that the number one spectator sport is race car driving, with one hundred million fans in the U.S., Leilani’s efforts could have a tremendous impact. Imagine 75 million NASCAR fans recycling their cans. Imagine 40 million INDYCAR fans using energy efficient lightbulbs. Imagine 100 million race fans using canvas bags instead of plastic or paper.

By raising awareness about sustainable living alternatives, clean energy, alternative vehicle fuels, and environmental legislation, Leilani explains her mission: to spread a message about ways to protect the planet, call to action a million race fans, and inspire fans to make a difference.

How Does Race Car Driver Leilani Münter Go Green?

A long-time vegetarian and former photo double for actress Catherine Zeta Jones, Leilani has been adopting an acre of rainforest since 2007 for every race she runs to offset her carbon footprint. (Note: to learn how you can offset your carbon footprint as well, check out our previous interview with our friend Hans Chung of MokuGift.)

As the first Ambassador of the National Wildlife Federation, Leilani is politically active on behalf of environmental issues and has made several visits to Capitol Hill to speak with members of Congress on behalf of clean energy and climate change legislation.

In The World of Racing …

Leilani is the fourth woman in history to race in the Indy Pro Series, and set the record for the highest finish for a female driver in the history of Texas Motor Speedway when she finished fourth in 2006. Her racing accomplishments have landed her on the pages of USA Today, Italian Vogue, Esquire, and ESPN. Sports Illustrated named her one of the top ten female race car drivers in the world.

Interview With Leilani Münter:  What Is The Race Car Industry Doing To Promote Sustainability?

In the video interview above with Ken Spector of Living Echo, Leilani explains how she got into racing and talks about how the racing industry is making changes to become more sustainable.

Specifically, Leilani tells us about the Green Racing Challenge, a joint effort between the EPA and others to use motor sport competition to help rapidly develop cleaner, more fuel efficient vehicle propulsion systems that will eventually be used in consumer vehicles.

Leilani also shares additional promising developments including NASCAR’s appointment of a new Head of Green Innovation, as well as the development of BMW’s Hydrogen 7, the world’s first performance car with hydrogen drive that emits virtually nothing but water vapor. (Yes, you can actually drink the exhaust. Wow.)

Enjoy the interview above – and for Parts II and III of this interview series, see:
Part II: (Leilani On Clean Energy Alternatives) and Part III (Leilani On Racing With A Purpose). To learn more, be sure to check out Leilani’s website, Carbon Free Girl, as well as her blog in the green section of the Huffington Post.

Leilani, thank you for all you do! : )

envisionGood Friends: Do you know of other technologies that are coming on the market that support a sustainable lifestyle? Let us know in the comments below : – )

Thanks for watching: please subscribe, comment, and rate this vid – thanks!

Nii Simmonds, Co-Founder of Afrobotics

About: Afrobotics inspires African university students to be science, engineering, and technology leaders, by enabling them in innovative team-based competitions that build science, engineering, technology, and leadership skills. Website: www.afrobotics.com