Simpler and safer methods for making the Phase II TB drug candidate PA-824 have been proposed to the TB Alliance by two winners of a scientific challenge. These solutions may save the TB Alliance and end-users a substantial amount of money, thus allowing more patients to be treated for less.

The two winning proposals were identified as coming from a scientist in China, and a research fellow in Germany.

"These were unique ideas," said Dr. Takushi Kaneko, the TB Alliance chemist who oversaw the Challenge process. "It was certainly worth going through the exercise."

Under the InnoCentive Challenge agreement, which was funded by the Rockefeller Foundation, intellectual property related to the solutions goes to the TB Alliance, and each of the winners receives US$20,000. Following a tender process, the TB Alliance has now selected a contract research organization to see if these ideas can be reduced to a practical synthesis.

Forum One has promoted use of online communities in order to advance research for many years.  In 2000 we began working with an international group of researchers in AIDS economics and policy and hosted bi-annual calls for papers to leading researchers in the economic and policy implications of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in developing countries.  The reward for 10-20 winners each time was their fully funded travel and participation in a global HIV/AIDS conference and presentation of their research during a professional forum.

Welcome to Ushahidi, which means “testimony” in Swahili, where we are building a platform that crowdsources crisis information. Allowing anyone to submit crisis information through text messaging using a mobile phone, email or web form.

In order to document what is happening right now on the ground, on Friday the Ushahidi has deployed its software to the DRC after successfully using it during January's post-electoral violence in Kenya and in May during the xenophobic attacks on immigrants in South Africa. Ushahidi, that means “witness” in Swahili, is a tool that allowes anyone to submit crisis information through text messaging using a mobile phone, email or web form, and to visualize it on a map or timeline. The phone number to send the SMS reports to is +243992592111 and the site to view the reports is http://DRC.ushahidi.com.

Here are a few ideas on what this might look like...

American Express is looking for projects that will make a difference. Think about what inspires you and whether you want to make a difference in your neighborhood or across the globe. Submit a project in the following categories: Arts & Culture, Community Development, Education, Environment & Wildlife, and Health. The project should address a specific problem or issue, be achievable, innovative, and have a positive impact that touches the lives of people in a significant way.

The authors offer a framework that allows organizations to go beyond quick fixes and fundraising strategies to a broader paradigm that encompasses community and organization building. What if every person involved with an organization was fully engaged and shared a common goal? What if the efforts of a relatively small ring of staff and board members were amplified by everyone touched by the organization, including current and former volunteers, staff, board members, clients, constituents, funders and supporters? That, the authors show, is the way a charismatic organization operates. The book provides numerous examples of how successful organizations have made this shift, as well as action steps that all organizations can take to perform better.

The survey consisted of 41 issues, divided into three categories: Psychological, Skill and Organizational. Each participant ranked each issue on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 meaning the issue was highly significant in explaining why designers fail, and 1 meaning least significant (3 was identified as a neutral value).

• Know what you don't know - Not surprisingly, the two top reasons were "people in non-design roles making design decisions" (4.18 mean) and "managers making design decisions w/o design training" (4.14 mean). These were the only two to pass the 4.00 barrier. This point was drilled in to me a while ago at a Pragmatic Marketing seminar. You not only have to let people play their roles, but you also have to stop yourself from trying to do so as well. The instructors actual example was that 'a housewife with flair does not an interior decorator make.' I am really sorry to say I took this seminar well after 1956, but try to see the point.
  
• Let the design process happen - I am now picking and choosing a bit - many of the top reasons are about designers themselves - but another set of the top reasons related to management not giving designers space to do what they do. Items here were: "no time is provided for long term thinking" (#4, 3.81 mean), "only lip-service is paid to 'User centered design'" (#7, 3.64 mean), and "it’s never made safe to fail or experiment" (#8, 3.62 mean). I wonder if the last is understated due to people not realizing this is going on... The point is that designers need the time and space to plan a long-last approach, focus on users, and play with possibilities. Cramming them into a narrow approach is asking for trouble.
  
• You can't pin it all on organization - If I'd had to wager, I would have thought for sure that the organizational elements were the big drivers. This wasn't the case. Organizational issues had a mean score of 3.37, but this was not significantly higher than skill issues (3.15 mean) and psychological issues (3.11 mean). Again, I am curious to know if the organizational aspects are understated because respondents can't, due to human nature, recognize the full extent of some of these aspects.