Giving Compass' Take:

• Writing for Forbes, Tracey Welson-Rossman, founder of TechGirlz and CMO of Chariot Solutions, explains how innovations in technology have catalyzed efforts of nonprofits to help people around the world. 

• In what ways can we make sure that technology is more inclusive and that the communities it aims to help always have a voice in its implementation? What programs could gain the most from such efforts?

• Here's more on how technology is amplifying global missions. 

To quote well-known comic book canon: “with great power comes great responsibility.” And there is perhaps no greater power in modern day society than the technology industry. It is changing nearly every aspect of our lives, and now — thanks to people like Shannon Farley — it is embracing its responsibility by disrupting the way we help others.

Farley is the co-founder of Fast Forward, an accelerator providing investment, space, and guidance to help scale early-stage tech nonprofits. Tech nonprofit entrepreneurs live at the intersection of the startup and social good sectors, structuring their organizations as 501c3 nonprofits to focus 100% on impact rather than creating a return for investors.

Far from George Carlin’s famous oxymoron examples like jumbo shrimp and military intelligence, social entrepreneurship perfectly describes this red-hot sector. The segment has grown 33% since 2016 and seems to only be accelerating. As the founder of a tech-oriented nonprofit myself, I was eager to hear Farley’s thoughts on how she came to her current role and how she sees other women engaging in the space.

In part, technology nonprofits are proliferating because the cost of launching a business has diminished. The use of cloud-based platforms and outsourced business solutions have made it easier and more affordable than ever for entrepreneurs to launch a business. Farley observed that while a startup in the ‘90s may have needed to raise $5M for an effective launch, it can be done for a fraction of that today — sometimes for less than $5,000.

Read the full article about technology in the nonprofit sector by Tracey Welson-Rossman at Forbes.