Tag Archives: CSR

PR Newswire

ZAFUL and LiveMe donate masks to California hospital

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MARTINEZ, Calif., May 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — ZAFUL has taken steps to fulfill its social responsibilities, and actions to help curb the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak. Cooperating with LiveMe, a joint live broadcast partner of Cheetah Mobile, ZAFUL donated 17,500 masks to a hospital in California as well as 2,500 disposable isolation face masks to the nurses, anchors and staff on the LiveMe live broadcast platform. The donation has been appreciated by the hospital staff. Celebrity anchor Macykate also mentioned this donation in the live broadcast of LiveMe’s four-year event, calling on more people to joint in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The celebrity anchor Macykate
The celebrity anchor Macykate

The Clothing Industry is facing an unparalleled challenge, among which many retailers across the world have shut their offline stores. In response to the pandemic, ZAFUL has taken proactive measures.

ZAFUL has provided prevention guidance on its website, adding mask identification instructions so that consumers can have a better understanding of the different protection methods. ZAFUL is offering basic protective equipment materials to people in need, qualified medical masks are sold at a cost ($3.20 each) on the website.

ZAFUL has its own warehouse where the products are thoroughly disinfected on a daily basis. The relevant staff are required to conduct daily temperature tests, wear masks and gloves to ensure a safe delivery of packages to the consumers. In terms of the shipping, ZAFUL is preferentially choosing local warehouse logistics for delivery to guarantee timeliness and reducing transportation risks. The monitoring of logistics channels has been strengthened and new workflows have been added to minimize the delay of deliveries.

In addition, the validity of returns and exchanges was extended to 60 days. Through communicating online with consumers and solving their issues in a timely and effective manner, ZAFUL aims to improve the shopping experience of its consumers.

Keeping up with fashion – ZAFUL will carry out various brand activities and introduce new selections of clothes every year. This year, the Spring pop-up store plan in New York has been postponed. However, it will bring surprise to the people looking forward to it when the program runs again.

ZAFUL has launched series of sportswear and related equipment on the website so that customers can wear various clothes and exercise while staying at home. Moreover, free medical masks are offered for orders over $79. ZAFUL is expecting to see a brand new you when the pandemic ends!

About ZAFUL

Founded in 2014, ZAFUL is dedicated to offering fashionable and cost-efficient fashion-related merchandise for the tech savvy youth. In 2019, ZAFUL was ranked 23rd in the High 50 China Export Manufacturers by BrandZ, the world’s largest model fairness database. Thus far, ZAFUL covers shoppers in over 180 nations and regions.

Web site: www.zaful.com

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PR Newswire

Bigo Live Announces ‘Global BIGOer One World Together’ Fundraising Campaign To Support WHO In Fight Against COVID-19

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  • The “Global BIGOer One World Together” fundraising campaign brings together the global BIGO community to raise donations for the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund
  • Campaign highlights include the release of a music video featuring 100 broadcasters from over 20 countries, showcasing solidarity.
  • Viewers are invited to enjoy a 24-hour music live house featuring broadcasters from around the world starting 13 May 2020 at 9:00am PST to 14 May 2020, 9:00am PST as well as to donate to the Solidarity Response Fund on the Bigo Live app.

LOS ANGELES, May 12, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Bigo Live, a global leading live streaming platform, today announced the ‘Global BIGOer One World Together‘ fundraising campaign in support of healthcare workers and vulnerable communities affected by COVID-19. The ‘Global BIGOer One World Together’ campaign brings together a cast of talented singers and musicians from around the world who will broadcast on Bigo Live app, with proceeds going to the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s Solidarity Response Fund.

Join BIGO LIVE broadcasters as they belt their way into your hearts and raise funds for WHO Solidarity Response Fund
Join BIGO LIVE broadcasters as they belt their way into your hearts and raise funds for WHO Solidarity Response Fund

Mike Ong, Vice President of BIGO Technology said “The ‘Global BIGOer One World Together’ fundraiser aims to rally and unite the community as one through the power of music. As a global platform that connects and brings people together, the campaign is aimed at fostering solidarity on a global scale for a very important cause. In collaboration with Bigo Live broadcasters, we hope to bring the community together to lend our support to frontline healthcare professionals and communities most in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

A music video showcasing solidarity was put together by over 100 broadcasters from over 20 countries performing a cover of the Michael Jackson hit “We Are The World”. It will be released on 12 May 2020 across all Bigo Live social media channels.

The main event is a 24-hour music livehouse on Bigo Live that will take place on 13 May 2020, starting at 9:00am PST. The music livehouse – a single ‘room’ on Bigo Live that will host the performances – will showcase broadcasters from around the world streaming right from their own homes or studios. Viewers will be able to engage and chat with the broadcasters as well as the community using the various features on the app. Viewers are encouraged to donate generously towards the fundraising efforts via the Bigo Live app.

Since the start of the outbreak, Bigo Live has launched a series of curated content by broadcasters around the world to bring comfort and happiness during these trying times. This included a #STAYATBIGO campaign which had sharing sessions with healthcare professionals, performances by local music DJs and workouts by fitness enthusiasts to help local communities stay fit and healthy at home. They have also been the first to bring cloud clubbing as a form of entertainment to communities in Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

“The fight against COVID-19 is a long and arduous one. As with previous campaigns over the past few months, we hope that the Global BIGOer One World Together campaign will help bring people together and show our solidarity towards frontline professionals, while also being able to spread some joy and cheer,” Mike added.

Viewers can expect to see popular broadcasters from the country like “RazB_B2K”, “Djer” and “HalleHallelujah” perform in-app between 5:30pm, PST to 7:00pm, PST on 13 May 2020.

To join ‘Global BIGOer One World Together’ live stream, search for the Bigo ID: “music” in the app.

Web users can also join the music live house via this link here: https://bigolive.onelink.me/sG8X/Livehouse

About Bigo Live

Bigo Live is one of the world’s fastest-growing livestreaming social communities where users broadcast in real-time to share life moments, showcase their talents and interact with people from around the world. Bigo Live has around 400 million users in over 150 countries and is currently the market leader in the livestreaming industry. Launched in March 2016, Bigo Live is owned by BIGO Technology which is based in Singapore.

Download the Bigo Live app here: https://bigolive.onelink.me/sG8X/bigoliveth

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PR Newswire

Poker’s Most Famous Fans Unite For ‘Stars CALL for Action – Powered by PokerStars’

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Hank Azaria and celebrity friends team up with PokerStars for $1 million charity extravaganza

ONCHAN, Isle of Man, , May 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — On May 9 at 2pm ET, dozens of A-list celebrities will come together for Stars CALL for Action – Powered by PokerStars, an online charity poker event raising vital funds for relief efforts during the current global crisis.

Dozens of A-list celebrities will come together for Stars CALL for Action - Powered by PokerStars
Dozens of A-list celebrities will come together for Stars CALL for Action – Powered by PokerStars

The online poker tournament will be hosted at PokerStars and broadcast live on Twitch, Facebook and YouTube. International stars will turn their cameras on as they take their seats at the virtual table, and poker lovers the world over can join hosts James Hartigan and Lex Veldhuis as they follow the action while dropping in on crowd favorites.

Viewers will also be able to contribute to the cause via a ‘Donate’ button on their platform of choice.

Conceived and brought together by actor Hank Azaria and journalist, author and screenwriter Andy Bellin, this unique event is fast building momentum.  Spaces are limited and celebrities already registered include Edward Norton, Brian Koppelman, Amy Schumer, Bryan Cranston, Don Cheadle, Michael Cera, Jon Hamm, Jeff Garlin, David Schwimmer, Eric Bogosian, Jason Alexander, Brad Garrett, Michael Ian Black, Kevin Pollak, Tony Yazbeck, Max Kruse, and many more.

The top placed celebrities will direct their portions of $1 million, donated by PokerStars, to a charity of their choosing and take home exceptional bragging rights. Fifty percent of the total donation will go directly to Care International on behalf of those playing, as well as all proceeds donated via live stream. Grants to charities will be administered by the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a Charity Navigator Four-Star Charity that meets all 20 BBB Charity Standards.

“This event is a great way to combine genuine giving where it’s needed with a way to stay home and yet still connect with people from around the world. A friendly game of poker reminds us how life used to be, which hopefully we get back to soon,” said Hank Azaria. “It’s a way for people to interact for a good cause and enjoy themselves at the same time. The response has been really great, and I’ll tell you, when PokerStars stepped up like that, I was actually kind of moved by it. We were hoping they’d put in some money, but to basically finance the whole thing to the tune of a million dollars, is pretty incredible.”

To add a little extra competition, PokerStars is surprising players and fans by giving them the opportunity to play against the stars. PokerStars Ambassadors, Streamers and Celebrities will hold community giveaways and those chosen will battle it out on May 9 to direct further donations to Care International. Two fields – celebrities and players – will then play down to their respective final tables and combine for the ultimate showdown. Celebrities who get knocked out early will be added into a side event where the winner will direct 10% of the total to charity.

“This event began as a simple conversation between our team, Hank, Andy and the Entertainment Industry Foundation as a way to create positive entertainment and raise support for critical causes during these challenging times,” said Rebecca McAdam Willetts, Associate Director of Public Relations at PokerStars. “We were thrilled that they came to us and have been blown away by the momentum it’s gained. With people increasingly using our products to connect, compete and stay social while safe at home, we are delighted to show how the game we love can be used to bring people together and do good… with the added bonus of surprising some poker fans along the way.”

“We are honored to serve as a partner to artists in our community to help raise funds – and spirits – during this time,” said Regina Miller, Chief Strategy Advisor to the Entertainment Industry Foundation. “With PokerStars setting the stage and Hank and Andy leading the charge, we are looking forward to a fun-filled night of fundraising to benefit people across the world.”

To hear more from Hank Azaria and for further information check out the PokerStars Blog.

Notes to Editors

This event is a play money event, with no real money prizes awarded to any players. Donations will be made on the behalf of top performers.

Hashtag: #StarsRaising

Stars CALL for Action – Powered by PokerStars will be streamed at:         

Facebook.com/PokerStars

YouTube.com/PokerStars

Twitch.tv/PokerStars

Play responsibly. Check here for more information on PokerStars Responsible Gaming Tools.

About Care International

Care International UK is one of the world’s leading humanitarian charities and has been the official emergency relief partner of PokerStars since 2014. Care International works in over 100 countries around the world to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice.

About PokerStars

PokerStars operates the world’s most popular online poker sites, serving the global poker community. Since it launched in 2001, PokerStars has become the first choice of players all over the world, with more daily tournaments than anywhere else and with the best online security. More than 200 billion hands have been dealt on PokerStars, which is more than any other site.

Play Responsibly!  For more information on responsible gaming please visit our website at http://www.pokerstars.com/about/responsible-gaming/ 

Contact – press@pokerstars.com 

About the Entertainment Industry Foundation

The Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), founded in 1942, is a multifaceted organization that occupies a unique place in the world of philanthropy. By mobilizing and leveraging the powerful voice and creative talents of the entertainment industry, as well as cultivating the support of organizations (public and private) and philanthropists committed to social responsibility, EIF builds awareness and raises funds, developing and enhancing campaigns on the local, national and global level that facilitate positive social change. Visit eifoundation.org or follow @eifoundation for more information.

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PR Newswire

SMBs, get ready to rebound from COVID-19 with Grove HR Free Support Program

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HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, May 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Grove HR, an emerging SaaS HR software company focusing on SMBs in APAC, just announced its free program to support companies during the COVID-19 crisis.

Small and medium businesses can now have free and unlimited access to the Grove HR platform. It allows them to digitize their Core HR, engage their employees, and reduce administration costs.

4 HR foundations of Grove HR: Recruitment, Engagement, Growth and People Management
4 HR foundations of Grove HR: Recruitment, Engagement, Growth and People Management

“The COVID-19 situation has accelerated the need to consider a digital transformation. HR is expected to play a leading role in managing this human crisis, but the transition will be hard for SMBs. We want to help them make that transition.” – says Bao Nguyen, General Manager of Grove HR.

In times of crisis, a major challenge for SMBs will be to streamline and optimize HR administration processes that can effectively adapt to the rapid changing of the current situation. At the same time, businesses need to keep employees aligned and productive – especially when working remotely and make sure they’re in good shape, maintain good mental health, etc.

This dual challenge of HR digitalization and engagement is very difficult to tackle. Without the right tools and approach, business performance may decrease and employee morale may falter. In times like these, this threatens the survival of any company.

The Grove HR Foundation plan aims at helping SMBs overcome that challenge.

From people management to keeping in sync with employees, SMBs will have the right tools out-of-the-box to digitize their employee records and manage time-off, engage their workforce, and maintain morale and productivity high.

By simplifying core HR processes, Grove HR helps business leaders to free up their time and energy to focus more on reviving business strategy. It also provides cross-analyze data that managers need to make insight-driven decisions while keeping employees engaged with seamless onboarding and company news updates even virtually.

No matter how long employees have to work from home, SMBs can now take advantage of Grove HR and ride through the difficult times ahead.

“SMBs are the major employers in APAC. They are the engine of regional economic growth. We have to help them survive, then thrive again.” – says Bao Nguyen. 

In another effort to support the community, Grove HR has published a variety of materials (articles, templates, and checklists) to help SMBs go digital or switch to remote work. It has already reached and helped more than 2,000 companies in APAC. 

Grove HR also recently launched the Talent Exchange Program – a 100% non-profit initiative. It aims at connecting talents on the lookout for jobs with SMBs still recruiting.

To know more about Grove HR COVID-19 Support Program, visit https://www.grovehr.com/covid-19-support-program.

About Grove HR

Grove HR is an HR Tech company that helps small and medium businesses in APAC digitize their Core HR, so that they create attractive Digital Employee Experiences.

Through its modern, efficient yet affordable platform, Grove HR empowers SMBs to become talent-magnets and compete with larger competitors.

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PR Newswire

Forest Interactive Shifts Focus to Scalable Mobile Platforms Due to COVID-19 Market Demand

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — With the Movement Control Order (MCO) in Malaysia, Forest Interactive is leveraging on one of its flagship products to help mobile operators maximise subscriber base engagement and content management through these unprecedented times.

The move allows the company to channel its talents and resources to the additional features of the DSDP (Digital Service Delivery Platform) and DVP (Digital Voucher Platform) to other partner mobile operators in their regional offices, of which some are already a working partner for the company’s different portfolio of HTML Games. The DSDP platform has been deployed to some of the mobile operators in Malaysia which include TuneTalk, XOX, U Mobile and TM, and the company is currently looking to expand to other mobile operators in the region – especially to the countries with its presence.

“Many businesses have navigated the short-term impacts of slowing economic growth due to the sudden halt to operations. Discretionary spend controls and permanent or temporary reductions in workforce, among many others, are often the immediate and urgent considerations,” says Forest Interactive CEO Johary Mustapha. “However, we noticed that mobile operators have an even greater need for transformation during these difficult times, and with that in mind, our Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) should be able to complement them even further.”

Forest Interactive CEO Johary Mustapha
Forest Interactive CEO Johary Mustapha

Forest Interactive’s DSDP is a mobile value-added service (MVAS) automation platform equipped with a number of practical and convenient functionalities. It also provides Platform as a Service (PaaS) for mobile operators to manage their content providers with a single administrative platform, simplified service integration, and efficient on-boarding process.

“DSDP provides a full package of infrastructure and hardware, backed by a single integrated platform – a solution that will help mobile operators to speed up their return of investment by automating complex, time-consuming tasks and processes,” shares Forest Interactive Vice President Sharon Maurenn who has been working with mobile operators in Southeast Asia for 10 years now.

One of the benefits using DSDP is that the platform offers customizable features with fast upgrade capability to suit the mobile operators’ business requirements and there is no initial setup fee or hidden cost. It is a profitable solution to the mobile operators as the commercial model is pure on revenue share basis as compared to the traditional modes of high CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) with many eventual hidden costs.

Additionally, the company has also launched DVP considering the rising popularity in mobile and video gaming during the worldwide lockdown period. The comprehensive, one-stop portal for digital voucher products on digital goods will help mobile operators increase their average revenue per user (ARPU) and customer loyalty through a white-label solution for gamification features.

“The option to white-label our Digital Voucher Platform provides mobile operators their exclusive branding as customer trust level is significantly higher compared to third party brands,” clarifies Sharon. “It is a cost and time-effective solution. By using a fully-functional platform which has seen many successes from mobile operators in Asia, others can save their costs from investing in the new, untested platforms.”

The underlying digital platform technology of DSDP and DVP is backed with 14 years of in-depth experience in providing scalable mobile platforms to over 50 mobile operators and 150 content providers worldwide, connected to more than 1 billion subscribers. Over 450 servers on the cloud across multiple continents are also constantly monitored to ensure uninterrupted services with the growing transactions.

For more products and services by Forest Interactive, visit https://forest-interactive.com/.

About Forest Interactive (as of April 2020)

Forest Interactive is an award-winning telecommunications platform provider with a global presence across 14 regional offices in 33 countries. Since its founding in 2006, Forest Interactive has been providing innovative and revenue-generating solutions for 50 mobile operators and is connected to more than 1 billion subscribers worldwide. The company enables enriched mobile experiences through highly-customizable platforms such as Digital Service Delivery Platform (DSDP), Mobile Games Publishing, and eVouchers. Forest Interactive is also the organizer for numerous Mobile Esports events in partnership with Moonton and Tencent.

Stay updated with Forest Interactive on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.

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PR Newswire

CouponBirds Seedling Project Made Great Progress

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BEIJING, April 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — CouponBirds Seedling Project achieved impressive progress in April, 2020. Over twenty non-profit organizations joined the platform and raised more than $1,000 funds. During this time of uncertainty, The Seedling Project made the fundraising work more manageable for non-profit organizations.

CouponBirds Seedling Project

The mission of CouponBirds Seedling Project is to build a peer-to-peer fundraising platform, encouraging online shoppers to earn cash, donate to nonprofit organizations and support charity work in this difficult time. There are over 3 million shoppers visiting and using CouponBirds to shop and save every month and almost all the brands that shoppers are looking for could be found on CouponBirds. Shoppers earn cash by making purchases and donate part of their earnings to charity organizations.

CouponBirds provided scholarships to fund college students every year in the past. Growing to be a leading savings platform, CouponBirds always does the best to take social responsibilities. The Seedling Project initiation is an effective way to aggregate and amplify the power of a million-user community and give back the best.

How’s The Project Going

The team outreached hundreds of non-profit organizations in the first month, notified them of the event and guided those who were interested to get verified and join in the platform. The team set up the whole application, verification and management process online. Non-profit partners could use CouponBirds charity portal to finish all the preparations and watch the donations they receive from CouponBirds shoppers.

Although the whole economy is slowing down and most charities are working from time to time due to the spread of COVID-19 pandemic, The Seedling Project has welcomed more than twenty certified non-profit organizations joining in and started to raise funds from the platform. Organizations like Arise Children’s Fund, Louisiana Alliance of Children’s Advocacy Centers and Kids Saving the Rainforest have received more than $100 donations in this month.

The Prospects

CouponBirds supports a limited number of non-profit organizations, creating and leading active community engagements for the charity cause. With a small amount of funds raised every month for every non-profit organization, It hopes that every CouponBirds shopper could realize that each of them could do something, even give $1 to the vulnerable and disadvantaged groups and that $1 means much to them, that CouponBirds is doing what they can to help more people and give back to the society.

The project is still open to apply, qualified charity organisations can apply and join to raise funds from CouponBirds Seedling Project.

About CouponBirds

CouponBirds is a leading coupon and deals platform for millions of online shoppers. Customers can easily find their favorite brands such as Amazon, eBay, Best Buy on CouponBirds. To learn more, visit https://www.couponbirds.com/us/about-us or follow @couponbirdscom on social media.

https://www.couponbirds.com/

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PR Newswire

Educational Platform Toolshero Offers Global Support in Self-development During Quarantine

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ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, April 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The Coronavirus has surprised us worldwide and forced many people to stay indoors. In trying to make the best of the situation, students and professionals are finding ways to study and work from home. And as the usual day-to-day activities become less or no longer possible, the daily hustle and bustle is replaced with quiet time. This creates new opportunities. For those who want to use this valuable time to educate, develop and empower themselves, Toolshero offers immediate support.

Toolshero ambassador Sheryl Lynn
Toolshero ambassador Sheryl Lynn

Toolshero is an educational platform that makes personal and professional development attainable for everyone by making access to knowledge easy and affordable. During quarantine, toolshero will provide our global community with free access to its online platform for a full month. This gives visitors access to 750+ practical scientific articles on a wide range of topics such as leadership, communication, creativity, marketing, psychology and personal development. These high-quality articles are enriched with templates, worksheets and images, making learning easier and faster.

More than 10 million people in over 100 countries already use the toolshero platform and with its continuous expansion, toolshero is realizing its vision of contributing to a more empowered world. “I’m very proud to be a toolshero ambassador,” says international DJ and former beauty queen Sheryl Lynn Baas. “Especially during these challenging times, I think it’s amazing that toolshero is offering global support. Ever since I competed at Miss World in 2006 and founded the Sheryl Lynn Foundation, education and empowerment have been my advocacy, so I’m excited to help spread the good news!”

More information

Toolshero supports people worldwide to empower themselves through an easily accessible and high- quality educational platform for personal and professional development. The goal is to provide students, professionals, scientists and interested people everywhere with the opportunity for growth by offering them educational tools for further self-development. This valuable know-how can be used in daily practices and the gained expertise of our platform users can be shared with the people around them. This is how we empower our world together.

Kindly visit www.toolshero.com/subscribe for more information.

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PR Newswire

‘Study With Australia’ to Open Doors to Education Globally

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LONDON and CANBERRA, Australia, April 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) has partnered with social learning platform, FutureLearn.com, to provide free online courses and help students stay ahead of the learning curve.

The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) has partnered with social learning platform, FutureLearn.com to provide free online courses and help students stay ahead of the learning curve.
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) has partnered with social learning platform, FutureLearn.com to provide free online courses and help students stay ahead of the learning curve.

Austrade promotes Australia as a preferred destination and partner for international students through its Study Australia initiative. FutureLearn is jointly owned by Open University UK and the SEEK Group and has 12 million learners globally and almost a quarter of the world’s top universities in its partnership.

Austrade Global Education Lead Rebecca Hall said, “Many students have been impacted by travel restrictions globally. Providing access to high-quality online learning resources from leading Australian education providers is a simple way we can continue to support international students in their education and learning goals during this challenging time.

“While Australian universities have been quick to embrace digital technologies and innovation, recent events have necessitated a rapid transition to online learning and FutureLearn will give our international students a digital pass to online learning.

“This pilot with FutureLearn will enable us to provide free online access to a wide range of courses from leading Australian education institutions, leaving the door to learning open while international travel is restricted,” said Ms Hall.

FutureLearn CEO Simon Nelson said, “FutureLearn is proud to be partnering with Austrade to help shine a spotlight on Australia’s outstanding higher education offering.

“Our mission is to broaden access to education on a global scale. We are already working with a number of Australian higher education partners to do just that through a broad range of high quality courses, degrees and now micro-credentials. Through this partnership with Austrade, we will continue to deliver on our mission.”

The ‘Study with Australia‘ campaign will be available until the end of June, allowing Australian higher education institutions and English language training providers to showcase their online offering across business, digital technologies, STEM, healthcare and teaching courses, to name a few.

All Australian universities are invited to participate in this online learning showcase and are included in an Australian partner directory on FutureLearn.com.

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PR Newswire

Exadel Announces Appery.io COVID-19 Virtual Hackathon to Engage Global Developer Community

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Global hackathon invites developers to build digital solutions designed to support individuals and businesses during coronavirus pandemic

WALNUT CREEK, Calif., April 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Exadel (www.exadel.com), a global provider of digital platform engineering solutions and services, today announced it will be hosting the “Appery.io COVID-19 Virtual Hackathon” that invites developers from all over the world to build digital solutions that solve challenges posed by the Coronavirus. The Appery.io COVID-19 Virtual Hackathon begins April 22, 2020 at 9 a.m. PDT with final submissions due May 6, 2020 by 11:59 p.m. PDT. Applications will be judged by a panel of experts with up to $1,000 in cash prizes awarded.

Sign-up for the Appery.io COVID-19 Virtual Hackathon today: (https://covid.appery.io/)

Using Appery.io, a low-code application development platform created by Exadel and used by nearly 500,000 developers worldwide, participants are encouraged to build applications that help groups and businesses most impacted by COVID-19. Projects should focus on areas like healthcare, mental health, assistance for the elderly or vulnerable, improving remote work, financial stability or maintaining a sense of community. Developers are free to be as innovative and unique as possible with minimal restrictions on application type or theme.

Participants are welcome to register and submit their applications starting April 22, 2020. Submissions close May 6, 2020 and will be judged by a panel of experts according to a range of relevant criteria. A virtual, live ceremony will take place on May 10, 2020 where finalists will be recognized. Prizes will be awarded as follows:

  1. First-Place – $1,000 and an Appery.io Annual Pro Subscription
  2. Second-Place – $500 and an Appery.io Annual Pro Subscription
  3. Third-Place – $250 and an Appery.io Annual Pro Subscription

For more information on how to get started, FAQ’s and guidelines please visit: (https://covid.appery.io/)

“While physical interaction is being limited in many global communities, it’s important to find ways to connect and support one another in alternative settings,” said Fima Katz, CEO and President of Exadel. “By hosting this hackathon, we hope to bring together the developer community in a meaningful way where they can innovate and experiment with projects aimed at helping those who need it most. We look forward to reviewing and gaining inspiration from the submissions.”

Tweet this: .@exadel announces @apperyio COVID-19 Virtual Hackathon to bring together community to build projects aimed at solving common challenges faced today #ApperyHackathon

About Exadel

Exadel is a leading digital platform engineering services provider. Through technical software development, Exadel helps Fortune 500 clients accelerate their digital transformations by providing innovative solutions, services and engineering expertise. Exadel enables clients to engage competitively with their customers by delivering products and platforms at optimal efficiency. With 20+ locations and delivery centers across the US and Europe, Exadel solves the most complex engineering problems using recognized agile practices, offering a high-quality and skilled mix of multi-shore resources with deep knowledge of advanced technologies. 

About Appery.io

Appery.io is a low-code, rapid development, integration and deployment platform created by Exadel for delivering cross-device apps in the enterprise. It combines enterprise-grade integration middleware with a browser-based rapid development environment and mobile backend services to accelerate enterprise mobilization. Appery.io enables developers and business analysts to rapidly create and run apps that help businesses of all sizes increase revenues and improve productivity.

Media Contact:
Olivia Heel
Catapult PR-IR
303-581-7760
oheel@catapultpr-ir.com

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PR Newswire

SAS and IIASA call for crowd-driven artificial intelligence to help track deforestation

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SINGAPORE, April 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — SAS is committed to building a global community of innovators that use technology to ignite positive change for people and the planet. This Earth Day, SAS and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) are implementing the next generation of crowd-driven artificial intelligence (AI) to help power AI algorithms designed to help us better understand our planet.

IIASA is an independent, international research institute that is known for its expertise in systems analysis and providing policy solutions and baseline information on pressing concerns for humanity. IIASA is placing a spotlight on the issue of deforestation to learn about the application of AI to elucidate the interconnectivity of Earth’s ecosystems. Today, our systems are changing rapidly, approaching levels that exceed existing human experiences, scientific understanding and traditional modeling capabilities, making it increasingly difficult for humans to intervene efficiently, effectively and timeously.

“The urgency required to address these transformations requires the application of best of breed technology solutions. That’s why we turned to SAS,” said Albert van Jaarsveld, CEO at IIASA. “By combining the power of our environmental science research platforms, SAS’ AI and computer vision technologies, and the sheer intellectual power of concerned citizens, we will develop AI models that will exponentially increase the value of human insights and strive to deliver near real-time assessment of global environmental change.”

Powerful, accurate, useful AI models do not happen by magic. The development of an AI model starts with human intelligence. For this project, SAS and IIASA are jointly launching an online crowdsource-driven app to gather the collective intelligence of the crowd. They are asking volunteers — an army of citizen scientists from middle school students in today’s virtual classrooms to artists, engineers and professional data scientists — to kick-start this effort by reviewing and judging images of the rainforest. These images show land untouched and land that may have been affected by human development.

“Since image analysis is an important first step for the accurate assessment and projection of deforestation, we are asking people to see what technology can’t see, by examining and reporting on images of smaller incremental forestry incursions worldwide,” said van Jaarsveld. “Crowdsourcing helps improve the AI algorithms, expediting what used to take years to analyze, thus helping to drive vital policy responses to protect our forests more quickly.”

When people flag regions that have seen signs of human impact, they help make AI models become smarter. For example, it is easy for a human to distinguish between a road (which signals human impact) and a river (which does not), but an AI model will not know the difference until it obtains sufficient training through learning from human observations. Additionally, results from the model ensure that the crowdsourcing app focuses the attention of human judges where their expertise is most needed. The model will allow for increased efficiency of a volunteer human force that best makes use of their attention and insights for a broad array of projects aimed at monitoring and measuring important global change matters.

With the power of the crowd and the computer combined, SAS and IIASA will have a robust, extensive platform for empowering citizen scientists to assist in cutting-edge research that helps us all better understand, predict and thrive in the world we share. While the first phase of this partnership focuses on deforestation, there are plans to extend this platform to other environmental concerns where crowdsourcing can help serve the greater good.

As a start, everyone can play a role in making AI smarter and improve its ability to help protect our forests. From students who are currently out of the classroom to AI professionals and everyone in between, this activity allows each of us to make a difference just by looking at a few images. Head to sas.com/rainforest to categorize images that show signs of deforestation and help models learn and improve at each iteration.

This crowdsourcing partnership with IIASA is fueled by SAS’ commitment to both data literacy and the Data for Good movement, which encourages using data in meaningful ways to drive positive global change.

About IIASA

The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is an international scientific institute that conducts research into the critical issues of global environmental, economic, technological, and social change that we face in the twenty-first century. Our findings provide valuable options to policymakers to shape the future of our changing world. IIASA is independent and funded by prestigious research funding agencies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. www.iiasa.ac.at

About SAS

SAS is the leader in analytics. Through innovative software and services, SAS empowers and inspires customers around the world to transform data into intelligence. SAS gives you THE POWER TO KNOW®.

SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. ® indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies.  Copyright © 2019 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.

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