Contact
Catalog
Pro AV Catalog
Contact Us

Poly

345 Encinal St,
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
United States
Back to previous page
Project List
Global Nomads Group Uses Polycom® RealPresence® Video Solutions to Connect North American and Congolese Students for Social Entrepreneurship Project
Posted on Monday, July 2, 2012
Global Nomads Group Uses Polycom® RealPresence® Video Solutions to Connect North American and Congolese Students for Social Entrepreneurship Project
Video collaboration helps students devise and implement project to raise awareness and money for relief from ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo
 
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Jul 02, 2012 : Polycom, Inc. (Nasdaq: PLCM), the global leader in open standards-based unified communications, today announced that Global Nomads Group (GNG) is using Polycom® RealPresence® video solutions to provide video collaboration for a Students Rebuild project that unites students in North America and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to jointly create and implement business plans that support community rebuilding projects in eastern DRC.
 
Students Collaborating to Make a Difference
Students Rebuild is an initiative that is led by the Bezos Family Foundation, and is supported by GNG among other partners to mobilize students worldwide to connect, learn, and take action to address critical global issues. This year, the challenge focuses on creating awareness about humanitarian crises in Somalia and the DRC. The program has brought together 150 students from eight schools in the U.S. and two in Canada to work with 50 youths at the ETN Vocational School in Goma, DRC. Many of the students at the ETN school have been through tremendous suffering in their war-torn country. Most of the male students are former child soldiers, while most of the female students are survivors of gender-based violence.
 
Through video collaboration, the Congolese and North American students discuss opportunities to create handcrafted items such as necklaces, earrings, and bags in the DRC that North American students can sell. The profits are invested back into the Goma community, located in the Eastern part of the country on the border with Rwanda.
 
“Through the Students Rebuild program, we enable students around the world to engage in live problem-solving and knowledge-sharing discussions,” said Chris Plutte, Executive Director at Global Nomads Group. “Polycom video solutions and platform allow students to develop viable business plans, collaborate to accomplish common goals, and help to improve the lives of those living in the DRC. Video collaboration eliminates the barriers of time and distance separating the countries, and helps to enhance trust and understanding.”
 
A highlight video of the Students Rebuild program is available here.
 
Using Technology to Overcome Educational Challenges
More than 71 percent of the DRC population lives in poverty and the DRC has experienced a series of socio-political conflicts in recent years that have contributed to an environment in which Congolese students struggle to learn basic curricula. Recognizing the DRC’s challenges, GNG established a center to enable communication and inspire creative discussion between Congolese and North American youth as part of Students Rebuild.
 
Polycom® CMA™ Desktop, an all-in-one video collaboration software designed to improve productivity cost-effectively, enables Congolese students to communicate with students in North America via a laptop computer. The video display is projected onto a wall so the entire class can watch the conference feed. In addition, students have participated in a GNG pilot program that includes experiencing video discussions on tablets using Polycom® RealPresence® Mobile, a free app that extends video collaboration beyond traditional conference rooms. Polycom’s video collaboration software is powered by the Polycom® RealPresence® Platform, the most comprehensive software infrastructure for universal video collaboration.
 
“The discussions between students are unlike anything I’ve seen in a classroom,” said Plutte. “With video collaboration, students are able to share what they know about their own culture and economic environment, absorb new information and experiences from their worldwide counterparts, and bring their creative ideas to life. The clarity of the high definition experience makes it feel as though all the kids are in a room together. It's just incredible.”
 
In addition to the social entrepreneurship project, Students Rebuild partners including GNG, the Bezos Family Foundation, One Million Bones, and the poverty-fighting organization CARE International are inviting students to join the One Million Bones challenge to raise awareness about humanitarian crises that are occurring worldwide. Polycom’s video collaboration platform is facilitating cross-organizational and cross-border communication to organize students and support the One Million Bones challenge, which will result in a collaborative art installation that will cover the National Mall in Washington, DC, with one million handmade bones in Spring 2013.
 
Related Videos
Students Rebuild, A Path Forward Conference Highlights, Spring 2012
Date: Apr 16, 2012
close
Request more information from a dealer near you
Emerald Terms  |  Privacy Policy  |  Powered by AV-iQ

Douglas Fearing- Co-Founder / President

A graduate of DeVry Institute of Technology, Doug has been in the Technology industry since 1976 and actively oversees Fearing’s daily operations. Along with his wife, Lois, and three others, Doug started Fearing’s in a 600 square-foot facility in Portage, Wisconsin. In the 25 years since, the company has grown to over 30 employees with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Doug likes to say he’s a “TV Technician with a dream� going back to his history with the family’s original business-Fearing’s TV and Appliance.

Doug values time with family, watersports, hiking, snowshoeing and skiing. In addition to being a devoted member of his church, Doug serves as Board President for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County, Board member of Schools for Haiti and Scripture Chair of the Gideons-Portage camp.

Lois Fearing- Co-Founder/Accounting, Human Resources

A graduate of MATC, Lois oversees Fearing’s daily book keeping along with various HR responsibilities.

Along with Doug, Lois is deeply connected to community outreach, serving as a Board member and Fundraising Committee Chairperson for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County. She also serves on the Schools for Haiti Fundraising committee. In addition, Lois’ ongoing passion and commitment to provide care for the elderly comes from her 10-year history of working in a Reedsburg, Wisconsin Nursing home.

Lois enjoys singing, hiking, sunny days on the pontoon, and spending time with her 4 grandchildren.

Ehren Tresner-VP of Technology and Innovation

Ehren drives Fearing’s technology by continually seeking out trends to enhance capabilities while supporting Sales, Engineering and Installation teams. Throughout his years with Fearing’s, Ehren’s talent and vision have joined forces to create a wide variety of projects and strategic solutions that exceed expectation.

Ehren loves music, family time, movies, nature, sustainability efforts and electric vehicles.

Ben Voeck-Director of Commercial AV

With 10 years with Fearing’s and over twice that long in the industry, Ben continues to lead, coordinate, and develop the Commercial AV team.

By consistently delivering an outstanding experience and outcome, Ben contributes to the Fearing’s legacy of long-lasting partnerships that truly make a difference. Whatever the Commercial AV need may be, Ben and team deliver at the highest level.

Ben is an avid fisherman and photographer. He enjoys coaching his sons and other youth.

Chris Matson-Senior VP of Sales

Chris has been with Fearing’s for 20 years and in the industry for over 2 decades. As a Certified leader in Sales Acceleration and trained in EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating Systems), Chris successfully utilizes his skills to lead the Fearing’s Salesforce. Chris and team are motivated and driven to develop new client partnerships while continuing to reinforce loyal long-term relationships with ongoing Service excellence.

Married for 19 years with 3 children, Chris enjoys skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, camping and golf. He’s also been actively involved as a Youth Football and Softball coach for his family and others.