Making Amends

Posted by Stuart at 11:40 AM on February 11, 2003

"Reconciliation is the Opposite of War"

Or so says the Jhai Foundation. I first heard of this group a few weeks ago from an article in the San Francisco Chronicle and I must say that what they are doing is incredibly cool. The group is led by a former Vietnam Vet and his desire and vision to help the people of Laos who he bombed 30 years ago.

The group has two main projects now: 1) helping the Lao farmers grow organic coffee and sell it online, and 2) giving small villages access to the Internet. The second project is the most interesting, I think (even though I did buy some coffee). They have built and are installing a "solid-state, low-wattage computer that can be powered by a foot-crank, a high-bandwidth wireless network, and support for village small businesses." Wow... somone who is actually using technology to improve people's lifes but is not looking to make a profit.

The Jhai Foundation website is a good read for now. We'll see how good the coffee is later.

No Launch for Jhai

Posted by Stuart at 01:38 PM on February 15, 2003

A few days ago I mentioned the Jhai Foundation's work to build a computer to wirelessly access the Internet from the jungles of Laos. Unfortuately, their hoped-for launch this week didn't happen. They aren't giving up, however, and I am sure they will eventually succeed.

The SF Chronicle has an excellent article on the ups and downs of the project so far.