Issue link: https://takingitglobal.uberflip.com/i/134182
Innovate for Good, a Microsoft YouthSpark program in Microsoft Innovate for Good partnership with TakingITGlobal, is a global community enabling youth to collaborate, inspire and support each other while using technology to make a difference in their communities. http://www.innovate4good.org TakingITGlobal and Microsoft have developed a dynamic partnership that includes many online and offline opportunities for young people to enact their ideas and build their projects. TakingITGlobal designed and manages the online community for Innovate for Good, along with delivering the many social innovation offerings available to the community's members. There are many different ways a young person can participate in the community, however a general pathway might have a member moving through deeper forms of engagement. A member can begin with signing up and posting a project idea, and through workshops and other feedback, register as a Sprout student and launch their venture. Innovate for Good is currently a collective of 800 individuals who have generated more than 60 ideas for social innovation, and 37 of these members are actively developing their projects through the Sprout program. The Innovate for Good program itself involves both offline and online events. There were seven main events in different regions of the world last year, each designed to get young people collaborating on innovative solutions. Innovate for Good offline events are coming up regionally across the United States along with several global events. In 2013, we expect that our membership will grow from several hundred to several thousand. 2013 will also see the launch of a mentorship program, which will engage both Microsoft employees as mentors and Innovate for Good members as mentees, to transfer critical knowledge and know-how to help advance young people's social ventures and job skills. "4G@MicrosoftLatam was one of the best moments of I this year for me, I would love to see all the participants continue working to fulfill their goals, projects and make their dreams come true, allowing them to leave a big footprint in society." — Diana Torres, Innovate for Good from Latin America, Colombia 60+ 20+ Projects Young innovators 68 7 Countries Events 1,000+ Total members 59,363 New members in 2012 TakingITGlobal Annual Report 2012 21