05 May 2021 | Annabel Hudson
Technology plays a huge role in the current world, especially during the unprecedented times we are currently living through. Apps like Zoom and Microsoft Teams have slowly taken over our working days, and we are filling up our down time with Netflix and Amazon Prime. All these apps are fantastic for their own use, but do any really have a wider social impact on our world? Ensuring we all play our part in creating a world of good has just become much easier. With a simple click on our smartphones, we can make use of numerous apps with the sole purpose to have a positive social impact on our world. Let’s take a look at a few of those:
ShareTheMeal is an initiative of the United Nations World Food Programme – the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger. The main goal of the app is to ensure every child has regular access to food and to achieve a world of zero hunger. Through a simple click on the app, you can share a meal with a hungry child for a full day at the small cost of $0.80. The app users have shared over 105,000,000 meals so far, with the rate increasing every day. Download now via the App Store or Google Play.
Walk your dog, grab a takeaway coffee, or go for a cycle. Charity Miles is a fantastic app which enables its users to raise money for charities for every mile moved (via brand workout sponsors). As you do your work out, the app will measure your distance and you will earn money for your choice of charity; with each type of exercise being worth a different value. Some of the listed charities include ALS Association, Girl Up, Sight for Kids, World Food Programme, and many more!
Freerice is an educational trivia game that helps you get smarter while making a difference for people around the world. Every question you answer correctly triggers a financial payment to the World Food Programme to support its work saving and changing lives around the world. In the game, these payments are represented by grains of rice, so by playing Freerice, you are generating the money that pays for this rice. Since 2010, 210 billion grains of rice have been donated to people in need directly from the app.
Be My Eyes captures the power of technology and was designed to help those individuals who are blind or visually impaired. The app uses the camera on your smartphone to assist people with poor or no vision with everyday tasks. These tasks range from checking if the lights are on to helping with a website that is not accessible to a blind individual. The app works by pairing a sighted volunteer with a blind or low-vision user through a video call. Be My Eyes will notify volunteers of a call all depending on their language and time zone. If they are free to answer, individuals will then be able to communicate through audio connection and a live video feed.
GameChanger is a research project led by University of Oxford and supported by Alzheimer’s Society. Download the app on your smartphone and begin to play fun, free brain games, which will help researchers understand more about how the brain works and will aid the prevention, and hopefully stop the progression of dementia within the UK.
Here at Pogo Studio we are very conscious about using are knowledge and skills to better the world around us. For example, our Tailored Talk platform was built on the basis on improving relationships between patients and doctors. If you would like any advice on ways you could improve your platforms to encourage social good, contact us here.