<span style="font-family:Verdana"><div style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 16px; "><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hello OS-GEO Community,</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">If you work at a non-profit organization, keep reading for information about Google.org's Geo Challenge Grants! You can also get more information at their </span><a href="http://blog.google.org/2008/10/introducing-googleorg-geo-challenge.html" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">blog posting</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Also, if you know others that work at non-profit organizations, consider passing this along to them!</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Thanks so much,</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Karin</span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br>
</span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">******************************</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">***************************</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Google.org just launched an exciting new grants program. Google.org </span><a href="http://www.google.org/geochallenge.html" title="Geo Challenge Grants" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Geo Challenge Grants</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> will award grants to NGOs around the world to create projects using online mapping tools, such as Google Maps and Google Earth. The program is an open application process that will award grants up to $100,000.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Maps are a powerful way for organizations to display and share data, promote ideas and issues, and plan and organize activities. Online mapping tools can help the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">world visualize and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">understand information, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">problems, and solutions - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">whether locally or globally. We've found that well designed maps can help organizations operate more effectively. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 242, 204); "><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> T</span></span></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">h</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">ey can convey the importance of your</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 229, 153); "></span> cause in a visual, compelling way. And, they can give individuals from around the world a chance to experience the work you do. We want to help organizations use these kinds of tools to advance their work in the areas of global development, climate change and global public health. </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Here's an example project. </span><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><a href="http://www.dreamingnewmexico.org/" title="Dreaming New Mexico" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Dreaming New Mexico</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">initiative seeks to encourage adoption of clean electricity and to move New Mexico away from dirty, polluting power plants. Using the </span></span><a href="http://code.google.com/apis/earth/" title="Google Earth API" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Google Earth API</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">(browser </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">plugin), Dreaming New Mexico shows </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">some of the choices available </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">to New Mexico as it considers </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">a move to sustainable clean </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">energy.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><a href="http://www.dreamingnewmexico.org/visualize" title="Click here to view" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Click here to view</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> the site. </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Applications, which are open to NGOs around the world are open now and will close on December 22. (We hope to continue with further application rounds next year.) </span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">There are 3 levels of funding. A US$5,000 grant is enough to complete a small mapping project or a prototype of a more ambitious map project. Examples include maps such as the </span><a href="http://services.google.com/earth/kmz/women_for_women_n.kmz" title="Women for Women project locations" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Women for Women project locations</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. A US$25,000 grant is enough to complete a substantial mapping project using one or more data sources. The map will typically still use a fixed data set vs a dynamically updating data source. Examples include maps such as the Appalachian Voices Mountaintop Removal Layer with associated "Are You Connected?" interactive website noted in this </span><a href="http://earth.google.com/outreach/cs_app_voices.html" title="http://earth.google.com/outreach/cs_app_voices.html" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">case study</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. A US$100,000 grant is enough to complete a more dynamic mapping project, or a system that will enable the production of maps across a number of scenarios. Such a project might include tools that the grantee as well as other organizations could use to quickly create maps of a certain type.</span></div>
<div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">To learn more about the program, check out our </span><a href="http://www.google.org/geochallenge.html" title="website" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">website</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> which has a description of the program, FAQs and the application. Also, for other ways that Google can help your organization, check out our </span><a href="http://www.google.com/nonprofits/" title="Google for Non-profits site." target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 204); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Google for Non-profits site.</span></a></div>
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