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5 Reasons Blerds Have Created Their Own Space

Embrace Intelligence and Blackness

A debate has recently ensued over “The Acting White Theory,” suggesting Black students are less inclined to be studious and smart because it is associated with being white. This  theory originated in the 1980s with anthropologist and former professor at University of California Berkeley, Dr. John Ogbu’s research. It is commonly used to explain the present-day achievement gap between Black and white students, according to theroot.com.

Although this theory has been cited by President Obama as a call to action to bring education and intellect into our communities, author and Georgetown University professor Michael Eric Dyson pushes back, believing that these anti-intellectual stereotypes of Black youth  are not founded in reality.

Researchers over the last three decades have consistently found that Black students have more positive attitudes about education than their white peers, although academic achievement is lower overall, theroot.com reports.

Blerds have created their own space to support Black intellectual creative abilities, and the desire for achievement in our communities.

Separate From Stereotypes of Black Culture

In today’s culture, Blackness is confined to a small scope. Modern-day images of Blackness often revolve around star athletes, hip-hop moguls, gangsters or TV housewives and baller’s baby’s moms. Oftentimes, these stereotypes reinforce accepted violence, hatred and ignorance against African-Americans.

On Aug. 9, 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager who a witness says raised his hands in surrender, was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Missouri. Racial profiling may have led to his death and his race may have also influenced stories shared in the media about his possible criminal involvement, in attempt to justify and excuse the blatant disregard for his life.

Blerds have created their own space to separate from the stereotyped images of the Black culture and find sanctuary in the freedom to be who they were born to be.

Pay Homage to Intellectual Predecessors 

African-American intellectual Blerds, such as sociologist and activist W.E.B. Du Bois, educator and orator Booker T. Washington, academic and activist Cornel West and President Obama, all pushed the envelope, advocating the advancement of African-American rights, specifically, opportunities to higher education, reform of the criminal justice system, the end of the school-to-prison pipeline, and access to higher political office.

Blerds’ expression of themselves as intellectuals in their own space pays homage to the Black intellectuals, innovators and achievers that came before them.

Define Themselves and Their Narratives
Since 2002, Black journalists in the U.S. have lost 993 newsroom jobs, more than any other minority groups, according to The National Association of Black Journalists.
In An Open Letter to America’s Black Journalists, Eric L. Wattree, a Los Angeles journalist, declares that Black journalists do have a special and unique mission — to educate and help the Black community connect the dots and understand the complex structures of exploitation, prejudice and disenfranchisement of Black people in mainstream society.
As the number of employed Blacks dwindle across all sectors, it is even more imperative to create our own spaces in which we can thrive and support. Blerds have created their own space to define themselves and share their own narratives.
Document Their History For All Time
In today’s modern world, Africans and African-Americans have been misidentified by mainstream thought as inferior, lacking the skills, education and the drive necessary to succeed.
The little-told narratives of our ancestors , who created mathematics, martial arts, universal education and more, highlight the true nature of people of African descent, according to Atlanta Blackstar article, “When Black Men Ruled the World.”
Blerds have created their own spaces to document our successes so that our history is never again forgotten.
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Young Jamaican Animator Launches Arcade-Style Game App

A young animator, 24-year-old Stephen ‘Big Bomb’ Williamson, recently launched his  arcade-style game app called TapKat Fiesta.

Williamson is the director of Jamaica-based Island Interactive Studios, which is trading as Pandsoft. He launched the app in May.

As cellphone users turn to their mobile devices for entertainment, games such as Flappy Bird, Fruit Ninja and Temple Run are becoming more popular.

Williamson hopes TapKat Fiesta will also attract the huge number of players these successful games have managed to garner.

TapKat is very simple and allows the player the tap the screen to shoot healing balls at mutated birds.

“You have to watch out for bomb birds that explode on impact and also make enough shots before you run out of fuel,” Williamson told the Jamaica Observer about his game. “It offers classic arcade game-play that mixes elements from Duck Hunt, Fruit Ninja and Sonic.”

Williamson was experienced in the realm of animation and producing digital content, so he knew how to create and market the game.

“Given our background in animation and how attractive the market was, we had already been producing content for marketing companies which represent various major brands, so producing digital content for a global market wasn’t such a great challenge,” he said.

However, he is aware that there are harder challenges ahead. While introducing the game to the market was easy, standing out among a sea of video game apps is difficult.

The success of games like Flappy Bird is rare and the creator of the extremely simple game manages to pull in $50,000 a day.

“An effective growth strategy has to be carefully planned and executed or else the game will just be another game in the app store,” he said.

As of today, TapKat has earned high reviews but has only drawn about 50 downloads in the Google Play market on Android.

While users said they loved the simple game play, some suggested a tutorial to give clearer instructions.

For now, users have to “learn as you go,” but the simplicity of the game allows them to catch on quickly.

If the game attracts more attention, Williamson is prepared to move forward and make his next move quickly.

“If it manages to do well on its own, that success will be short-lived so marketing decisions for successful games are considered before the game is started and continue to influence the design and growth process when the game is launched,” he said. “We plan to grow naturally, like that of a well-nurtured tree seeking sunlight in a forest.”

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7 Black Scientists and Engineers Who Helped Make Space Travel Possible

 

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Robert Shurney (1921-2007)

Dr. Robert Shurney was a physicist from Tennessee State University, who worked at NASA. As a Marshall Space Flight Center engineer, he accomplished several major and significant tasks for NASA, including designing the tires for the moon buggy used during the Apollo 15 mission in 1972. His ingenious design used wire mesh in the place of rubber to save weight, yet still provide the needed flexibility.

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Christine Darden(1942-)

Christine Darden is an award-winning mathematician and mechanical engineer, who has worked with NASA since 1966 and became a recognized leader in the reduction of shock waves from spacecraft wings and nose cones.

After starting out as a data analyst for NASA, Darden was promoted to aerospace engineer in 1973 and moved into various leadership positions. In 1989, she was appointed technical leader of NASA’s Sonic Boom Group of the Vehicle Integration Branch of the High Speed Research Program, where she was responsible for developing the sonic boom research program internally at NASA.

In October 1994, Darden became the deputy program manager of The TU-144 Experiments Program, an element of NASA’s High Speed Research Program; and in 1999, she was appointed as the director in the Program Management Office of the Aerospace Performing Center at Langley Research Center where she was responsible for Langley research in air traffic management and other aeronautics programs managed at other NASA Centers.

Darden also served as technical consultant on numerous government and private projects, and she is the author of more than fifty publications in the field of high-lift wing design in supersonic flow, flap design, sonic boom prediction, and sonic boom minimization.

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Emmett Chappelle (1925-)

Emmett W. Chappelle is a scientist who made valuable contributions in several fields, including medicine, philanthropy, food science and astrochemistry.

In 1958, Chappelle joined the Research Institute for Advanced Studies where he discovered that one-celled plants could convert carbon dioxide to oxygen. This discovery helped to create a safe oxygen supply for astronauts. In 1966, he joined NASA where his research focus was bioluminescence, which is light without heat. He discovered a method for instantly detecting bacteria in water and developed techniques that are still widely used for the detection of bacteria in urine, blood, spinal fluids, drinking water and foods.

Chappelle has been honored as one of the 100 most distinguished African-American scientists of the 20th century, and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2007 for his discovery of the lyophilized reaction mixtures  on January 21, 1969, for which he received one of his 14 patents.

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Patricia Cowings (1948-)

Dr. Patricia Cowings is a psychologist who has been conducting space flight research for NASA and became the first woman in America to be trained as a scientist astronaut. Although she never made it to space, she has spent her 34-year career at NASA making it better for those who do.

Cowings helps astronauts better adapt to space by studying the effects of gravity on human physiology and performance. She was instrumental in developing and patenting the autogenic-feedback training exercise, a treatment for space motion sickness and headaches.

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Shelby Jacobs (1935-)

Shelby Jacobs was a mechanical engineer, who worked on the Apollo space shuttle program. These projects, including the Apollo-Soyuz orbiter space shuttle program for which he was the project manager, are still considered to be one of the most remarkable engineering achievements in the history of mankind.

Jacobs later went on to design the propulsion systems and hydraulics instrumentation, which included a camera ejection system in 1965. He is best known for his role in the design, installation and testing of the camera system, which flew on the unmanned Apollo 6 flight in April 1968. The video footage of the separation between the first and second stages of the shuttle is one of the most repeated images in space history.

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Dr. Vance Marchbanks (1905-1973)

Dr. Vance Marchbanks was a heart surgeon and medical specialist for NASA. During his time there, Marchbanks helped develop ways to monitor astronauts’ vital signs during space flight. It was Marchbanks who was responsible for John Glenn’s health during America’s first orbital flight.

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George Carruthers (1939-)

Dr. George Carruthers was an astronautical engineer, who built camera systems for NASA that produced some of the most enduring images from space. Carruthers is responsible for developing the far ultraviolet camera/spectrograph for the 1972 Apollo 16 mission, which was used to build the first and only moon-based observatory.

In 1970, using a sounding rocket, Carruthers made the first detection of molecular hydrogen in space. He also developed a rocket instrument that obtained an ultraviolet image of Halley’s Comet, and an instrument with two cameras, with different far-UV wavelength sensitivities, used on the STS-39 space shuttle mission in 1991.

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Romona Foster, Social Media Marketing Expert, Talks to Blerds About Finding Her Niche

Romona Foster, a Pennsylvania native, never imagined that her skills as an events planner would lead her to have a strong role in the tech field as a social media consultant. She is revered for her training style and her expertise in social media management and marketing. Foster shares her unexpected journey to becoming a social media trainer and consultant.

Q: What are three words you would use to describe your professional journey?

The first word that I would use to describe this journey is unimaginable. I would have not imagined in a million years that I would be doing what it is that I’m doing today. And I love what I do.

The second word would be difficult. When I first started doing social media management and marketing, I was out of work. Getting to this place where I am now was hard, and many people admire where I am and often think it just happened. It took a lot of hard work.

The last and final word would be amazing. When I look back at the times when I was down and out, I think about how far I have come, and the journey has been amazing. To know that people are looking for me, asking me to be places to help them, are excited about what I have to offer after all this time is still amazing to me. I thank God for the opportunity. Without Him, I wouldn’t be here.

Q: Social media management is definitely a fairly new profession in the technology industry. How far back would you date it?

For me personally, I would say 2003. This is from what I have seen. When I teach my classes, it’s important for me to share facts, and one that I share is that LinkedIn started in 2003. At that time, I didn’t know it even existed. It wasn’t until 2006 that I created a profile. Someone sent me a request. I opened an account and then didn’t look back until about 2010. According to Tom Standage (digital editor of the Economist), social media is actually 2,000 years old. He talks about his philosophy on why it is so old in an article on Tech Crunch. It’s very interesting. You should check it out.

Q: ‘Difficult’ was one of the words you used to describe your journey. What was difficult about it?

Well in 2007, I left my real job, as they would say. I was going to George Washington University for event planning and management. The program required that students do a full-time internship and 160 practicum hours. I completed everything in 2008. Unfortunately, when I was done, I couldn’t find a job; 2008 — that was when the economic crash happened, and so jobs were scarce.

Naturally, I was concerned about what I was going to do about making money. During my internship and practicum, I was building websites, doing email marketing and administrative work. So while I was unemployed, I began to assist people with those things.

Many of the [projects] I received were by request. I would go online and look things up, and then I would teach myself how to do it. I would do a lot of research, a lot of reading, and sometimes I would sign up for free trials for different programs and platforms just to gain skills to effectively help my clients.

About a year after doing this, my pastor asked me to build a Facebook page for the church. I said OK, but, in my mind, I was skeptical about doing it. Most of what I knew about Facebook was that people tend to post their personal business on the site, and that turned me off.  After I did the page, other people started coming to me and asking me about how to use Facebook and LinkedIn. I had no picture on my LinkedIn page, but I updated it and started showing people how to do things but for free.

A couple of years later, I had an idea. I wondered if I did teach a class on social media management and marketing would people come. I decided to try, and so I secured a small venue and advertised the class via email and through an online calendar.

Five people showed up. When the class ended and I did the math of what I made in two hours from five people, I was amazed. The cool thing was that the people who came were people who didn’t know me at all but were interested in what I could teach them. One of the five participants expressed the class was too short and she would have liked more. So I did another class for three hours, and the feedback from that was that that class was too short. So I started a boot camp course that lasted six hours. I could not believe that I could hold people’s interest for six hours. That’s how I got started with the training component of my work. I have to give my pastor credit because if he hadn’t asked me to create that Facebook page, I might not have ever done it.

Q: You mention that you did a lot of research and reading to learn more about social media marketing. Would you say that the time you put into researching exceeded the profits you made when you started?

Yes. In the beginning, I was doing a lot more research than I was making money. Looking back now, I can say that all that reading, researching and learning was all worth it. And now, I don’t have to do that much research, but I do keep informed by reading articles and stay up to date on changing trends and new platforms.

Q: Would you consider yourself an entrepreneur in the technology field?

Yes, I would consider myself an entrepreneur of sorts — or more specifically an independent consultant.

Q: What does a typical workday look like for you?

The first thing I do when I get up at around 5 in the morning is to start posting on various platforms for my clients. My workday consists of meeting with clients, conducting webinars and trainings.

Q: You will be facilitating a workshop at the Code(Her) conference Sept. 13 in Chevy Chase, Maryland. What are some things that attendees can look forward to?

They can look forward to learning new tips and tricks that will help them manage their social media platforms in 60 minutes or less. Many of the people I train are often social media managers, so I hope that if that is the audience for the conference that they walk away learning something new. What I hope happens is that they feel more empowered about the work they are doing and realize that social media management and marketing does not take forever.

Q: What advice do you have for aspiring social media managers?

My advice is to learn as much as you can in school about social media management and marketing. However, understand that even after you gain formal training in your school, don’t assume the learning stops there. Many people consider me an expert in this field, but I don’t. Simply because I know there is always some knowledge to be gained, hence why I am always reading about new changes each and every day. I would also encourage them to get into the habit of creating a content calendar.

Q: What is a content calendar?

A content calendar is similar to an editorial calendar for a magazine. Where the editors have each issue planned out a year in advance. For me, I usually create a content calendar for my clients 30 days out. That doesn’t always work depending on how often information is coming in. So some clients need updating every day because of how quickly the information comes in.

Q: What are your overall thoughts about women, specifically women of color, in the STEM fields?

I feel like I can only talk about the technology piece, but as far as technology is concerned, know that there are a lot of women of color in the tech industry, but I have to say that I don’t run into them. And the only reason I know this is because I see them on Twitter and Facebook. I don’t see a lot of women in my region doing what I do. Many of my trainees tell me that they don’t see anyone that looks like me doing what I do.

I hope that more women of color will surface in this field. This is a great profession. It is constantly evolving.

 

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How Might Big Data Affect You As a Minority

With almost everything we do, we are leaving trail bits of tech data. Think about where you are right now, the computer (PC, Mac, tablet, phone, etc.) that you are using, the websites you’ve visited today, the items you’ve purchased and posts you’ve made on social media platforms.

Now consider that process over time  – most of us won’t remember all of what we did this week alone. But if you collected the tech trail of information about yourself and performed an analysis on it, you’d be surprised by what the data tells you. You’d be able to identify trends  and patterns in your behavior, your moods, spending habits, and so on.

Now imagine what businesses, governments, credit authorities, and data resellers have on you. This is not meant to make you wary of the digital age, it is simply to make you aware. It’s a cliche, but “knowledge is power.”

Big data is a term used to describe large (possibly petabytes) and complex data sets that are oftentimes difficult to process with commonly used software for data management. However, with new technologies that can efficiently process large amounts of data, analytics can provide insights into patterns which can lead to a myriad of opportunities.

For those who have taken advantage of big data or at least kept abreast of the topic, it is known that there are some amazing benefits to big data analytics – tailored recommendations, fraud prevention, real-time traffic information, just to name a few. But there are always two sides of a coin.

So, how might this pile of data be used against individuals or groups of people? Let’s say you live in an underprivileged neighborhood; you might receive credit card offers with higher than normal interest rates. This could be because big-data analysis identified that many people living in your area are short of cash, maybe in need of a credit card and don’t qualify for good terms.

This doesn’t mean you aren’t financially responsible, don’t qualify for a better rate, and wouldn’t be given one if you had applied on your own. But people are put into categories, and categories are used for marketing and decision-making.

Perhaps you frequent retailers where a large majority of other shoppers, possibly of your same race, also frequent, but many of them make late payments on their credit cards. Your credit card limit may be automatically decreased because your credit card company has created an algorithm that analyzes big data and determines high-risk profiles. You may be categorized with those who have high-risk profiles because of your weak association with those shoppers.

Think about how your social network, your posts, tweets, etc., all could play a role in your creditworthiness. Some companies are thinking of using social networks to help rate their customers.

These are just a few theories and possible examples of how big data can be used in somewhat nefarious ways. If you are divulging information that can be used by others, be mindful of what you share, how you use these technologies, and what can be done with it.

Be the master of your digital mind!

Quiessence is an Information Security Professional with over seven years of experience. She is also the Curriculum Development Lead for Black Girls CODE NY, creator of the Girltechie Campaign, and a workshop called “Securing Your Web”. Find her on the web @ www.itsquiessence.com

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Broadcast by Blerds: New Technology Drives DIY Radio, TV

The dawn of podcasts (the digital medium of episodic audio-recordings that can be downloaded or streamed online) circa 2004, ushered in a new era of independently owned and produced media. Podcasts, a mash-up between the words “broadcast” and “pod,” of iPod fame, have become a popular platform for marginalized voices.

Essentially only requiring a recording device, an Internet connection and a podcast hosting website, podcasts are relatively inexpensive and easy to produce, allowing content creators to produce episodes regularly and frequently.

During the first half of the 20th century, radio broadcasting functioned as the foremost medium for delivering relevant news, music, public affairs, and current events to largely Black audiences. Black radio also played an important role in the development of disc jockeys with powerful on-air personalities that strongly influenced musical tastes and provided discourse and commentary on current events, such as the Civil Rights Movement.

However, with payola scandals and increased corporate sponsorship came increased censorship, standardized scheduling, pressure for ratings, and less focus on issues of concern to the audiences the radio stations were catering to.

In the Internet and smartphone age, podcasts have become a reclamation of radio broadcasting, opening the door  for those who typically have been shut out from producing radio shows where they do not have the backing of corporate sponsorships, access to stations, experience and training, or resources for broadcasting equipment. Many local, community-run organizations, such as PhillyCam in Philadelphia, teach workshops on how to produce podcasts, or provide shared broadcasting space, community radio stations and other resources.

Podcasting opens up the space for important cross-generational conversations, as youth and older generations alike can produce, or tune in to podcast and internet radio shows with the click of a button.

During many shows, the hosts will live tweet, take calls, or open a chat room to broaden the discussion across various platforms. In this way, podcasts deepen the connections and conversations that take place through the Internet, expanding them out in ways that a character-limited textbox cannot always capture.

The audio encapsulated on podcasts, easily archived and shareable, digitizes the oral traditions of our ancestors, allowing us to honor these traditions and tell our stories in ways that gel with our 21st century realities and technologies.

A look at the podcast scene reveals that self-described Black nerds are very active in producing all types of Internet radio shows, and in doing so, are helping to shift the image of the typical nerd to a more realistic view – that no one color, creed, culture, or gender dominates nerd culture.

Podcasts also expand cultural safe spaces for Black nerds who can express themselves directly and personally with other like-minded Black nerds. Below is a list of 9 podcasts and Internet radio shows catering to Black fandom, nerd/geek culture, pop culture, sci-fi, tech, comics, horror, and more.

What are your favorite Black alternative or nerd culture podcasts?

1. Black Girl Nerds

Black Girl Nerds is a place for women of color with various eccentricities to express themselves freely and embrace who they are, in a world where the concept of Black women as geeky-dorky beings is considered an anomaly.

The BGN Podcast broadcasts weekly and is available for download on iTunes.

2. Black Tribbles

The 2014 winners of the Philly Geek Awards for Streaming Media Project, the Black Tribbles toss around sci-fi, comic books, movies, video games, cartoons and anything a geek would love, twice weekly on G-town Radio.com and 900AM WURD.

The Black Tribbles reveal untold stories of geek history, showcase new and upcoming projects, engage in thought-provoking conversation and provide critical insight into a culture that is often devoid of Black influence; all with a humorous irreverent tone that delights as it educates.

3. Black Girls Talking

A pop-culture podcast with four Black women discussing representation of people of color in various forms of media.

4. Black Science Fiction Society

A community that highlights, celebrates and develops science fiction, speculative fiction, fantasy, horror, movies and games. Every Friday evening, BSFS hosts Genesis Radio with sci-fi author William Hyashi and Penelope Flynne.

The pair discuss relevant topics in science fiction from a Black perspective with special guest authors, illustrators, producers, and other Black sci-fi creators.

5. Blerds on Nerds

#SpreadtheNerd with Blerds on Nerds, a weekly podcast discussing the past week’s highlights in technology, movies, gaming and comics, while paying homage to Black nerds who have paved the way for us all.

6. Geek Soul Brother

Join Geek Soul Brother and The Five Nerdy Venoms in a conversation about the geek universe, including movies, television, comics and special topics, from the old school to the new geeky stuff coming out soon.

7. 3 Black Geeks

Three Black guys reppin’ all geeks everywhere, reviewing the best Black movies, martial arts, action, anime/manga, comics, and everything that white people think Black people aren’t into.

8. Fan Bros

The voice of the urban geek, Fan Bros discusses the week in geek while keeping an ear to the street for the topics and controversies that affect the world of fandom.

Show hosts DJ BenHaMeen and Tatiana King-Jones serve as the cultural guides for this unique show, along with a revolving cast of guests that run the gamut of interests – -from hip-hop and politics, to comics, movies, television and video games.

9. The Black Geeks Radio

A bunch of Black geeks get together and chaos ensues as they discuss movies, television, comics, technology, video games, and all things geek.

Rasheedah Phillips is a Philadelphia public interest attorney, speculative fiction writer, the creator of The AfroFuturist Affair, and a founding member of Metropolarity.net. She recently independently published her first speculative fiction collection, “Recurrence Plot (and Other Time Travel Tales).”

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7 Black Nerd Events Worth Attending in 2014

Did you tell yourself that this year would be different, and you were going to be a better professional by attending more conferences? Did you have hopes of expanding your professional network, improving your technical skills, or building your brand?

Were you hoping to get out and mingle with like-minded people who enjoy art in its various forms but haven’t had the chance? Are you disappointed in yourself because it’s almost the end of summer and you have not signed up for one conference or gone to one event?

The summer may be coming to a swift close but the year is not over yet. Here are some worthy conferences and events that you can still check out before 2015 rolls around.

 

1.Chicago Writers Conference

What: The Chicago Writers Conference is a conference for writers and those aspiring to be writers. The two-day conference offers programs and workshops to help attendees improve their writing skills.

When: Oct. 24-26

Where: Chicago, Illinois,

How: The conference supports writers by providing immersive writing courses and workshops that are focused on skill building such as, writing for the stage and screen, and finding your voice. It also features discussions from bestselling authors.

 

2. NSBE Professional Development Conference

What: The National Society for Black Engineers is hosting its third annual Professional Development Conference. The three-day conference is meant to create a space for professionals to network, improve skills, and engage with leaders in the industry.

When: Oct 2-Oct 5

Where: Phoenix, Arizona

How: Networking and skill building will occur through a variety of ways, and attendees will have the opportunity to receive one-on-one mentoring through the Executive Mentoring Suite.

There are a series of workshops that cover topics related to increasing success in the field. For example “Networking on the Green”  addresses how to use nontraditional networking skills on and off the golf course.

 

3. Art Miami

What: An international contemporary and modern artist fair. The fair brings in collection curators, museum professionals, and artists from all over the world. Important artwork from the 20th and 21st centuries will be showcased.

Where: Downtown Miami

When: Dec. 2

How: The fair encompasses seminars, Understanding the Artist: Permanence is Forever, a curator brunch that allows them to mingle and network with other curators around the world, and a variety exhibits.

 

4. Code(Her) Conference

What: A one-day conference that allows women interested in the tech industry to build a professional network, increase their knowledge of changing trends in the field, learn and improve skills.

When: Sept. 13

Where: Chevy Chase, Md.

How: The Code(Her) conference is unique as it has a series of immersive workshops to help women network and build skills to be competitive in the tech field. The workshops focus on everything from cyber security to branding through social media.

 

5. The Lean Startup Conference

What: The Lean Startup Conference has been helping entrepreneurs build networks and skills for the past five years. The conference gives entrepreneurs an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals who have proven success with their startups.

It allows participants to get the answers to questions such as: How can I get internal services like IT, finance, legal, and HR to act like startups and serve entrepreneurial teams throughout my organization? As well as questions that cover how to get buy-ins from leaders and managers to support entrepreneurial methods.

When: Dec. 8 – 12

Where: San Francisco, California

How: Attendees gain knowledge and support through a series of workshops, sessions, one-on-one meetings, Q&A panels, and group dinners over the course of five days.

 

6. DC Shorts Film Festival

What: A 10-day festival where the world’s top short films are screened to a wide audience. For this year, over 100 films will be screened from 25 countries. The main purpose of the fair is to create a space for filmmakers and lovers of film to mix and mingle and enjoy great cinematic art.

When: Sept. 11-21

Where: Several locations in Washington, D.C.

How: The film festival helps individuals engage with each other through film screenings, parties, and workshops and competitions.

 

7. Urban Tech Weekend

What: A two-day conference hosted by the National Black Info Tech Leadership Organization. The goal of the conference is to narrow the diversity gap for Black and Latino-Americans in the technology field.

When: Sept. 25-27

Where: Houston, Texas

How: The conference supports Black and Latino-Americans through networking from various companies. Also available will be  panels with speakers who are leaders in the tech fields, workshops,  and mentorship opportunities.

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Nigeria Has ‘Limitless Opportunities’ for Engineers in Burgeoning Economy

Several key sectors of Nigeria’s economy are suffering due to a lack of engineers who some say could provide the “backbone” for rapid development in the country.

Femi Akintunde, CEO of Alpha Mead Facilities and Management Services Limited (AMFacility), is the latest entrepreneur to publicly discuss the country’s shortage of engineers.

During the presentation of his paper, “The Engineer as the Prime Mover of Economic Development,” to the 2014 inductees of the Nigerian Society of Engineers at the University of Ibadan, Akintunde said the country is in “dire need of engineering solutions.”

“Today, the world and Nigeria is in dire need of engineering solutions,” he said. “This simply means that, if the simple economic rule of demand and supply is anything to go by, then there are limitless opportunities for engineers in the pool of problems that confront our nation.”

Akintunde went on to say that Nigeria’s “current economic indices and realities” can’t be solved without taking a close look at “engineering principles and practices.”

“These challenges therefore place a huge responsibility on the shoulders of engineering stakeholders; and as you join the league of this noble profession today, it is only ideal that we provoke your thinking to imbibe a solution mentality towards our nation’s economic problems,” Akintunde said. “You cannot afford to join the bandwagon of those complaining about Nigeria. The Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan is a document that highlights key areas of the economy, that can take our economy through the maturation circle of Vision 20:2020. You should make such documents a companion.”

The Nigeria Vision 20: 2020 document spells out a plan for Nigeria to become one of the top 20 economies in the world by the year 2020.

Akintunde also had a message for the lecturers at the ceremony.

“Our lecturers must also understand that, as the society advances, its challenges also advance, and the only responses that can contain such advancements are new researches,” he continued. “The new breed of engineers has to be equipped with contemporary knowledge to be able to move the economy forward.”

Earlier this year, The National Power Training Institute of Nigerian relayed a similar message.

Back in April, the director-general of the Institute, Reuben Okeke, revealed that Nigeria needed more than 50,000 engineers to boost the power sector reform.

At the time, that sector had only 200 of the 51,000 required engineers.

Okeke said that since the employment embargo in 1998, the country has struggled to attract young, qualified engineers.

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Breaking Barriers: African Women in Tech Industry Continue to Defy Odds

The technology industry has long been reserved for male entrepreneurs, but an online discussion among female tech experts all across Africa sheds light on how many women have already made their presence known in the field.

Statistics show that the number of women in the technology world is low.

In June, Yahoo’s Equal Employment Opportunity statistics revealed that although nearly 40 percent of the company employees are female, only 15 percent are in tech-related positions.

Other major companies, such as Dropbox, have a little over 8 percent of their female employees involved in software engineering, according to a 2013 spreadsheet released by Pinterest software engineer Tracy Chou.

Female tech entrepreneurs, like Ethel Cofie of Ghana, are on the way to reversing these troubling statistics.

Cofie is one of the pioneering members of a “Women in Tech” group that is working to create an alliance of female tech experts all across Africa.

According to Cofie’s guest article on CNN’s website, her own online efforts marked the first time someone had attempted to “build a pan-African Women in Tech network that would allow [women] to compare [their] challenges, learn from each other and connect across borders” to increase their influence.

Cofie teamed up with four other African women, all from different countries, to organize a digital meetup earlier this month.

More than 150 women signed up to be a part of the meetup and the online movement spread like wildfire.

By the time the Aug. 2 meetup ended, the hashtag #WtechAfrica had reached nearly 75,000 people and made close to 200,000 impressions on Twitter.

The online event certainly did not go smoothly, however.

Cofie explained that technical difficulties threatened to put an end to the massive meetup, but the determination by the participants kept the discussion alive and allowed it to have more reach.

The meetup was originally supposed to take place on Google Hangout, but when poor connections and other technical difficulties made it nearly impossible for the large group of women to effectively communicate, it appeared that Cofie’s efforts were doomed.

That’s when she realized many of the participants had moved the discussion to Facebook and eventually over to Twitter.

As it turns out, problems with Internet connections and power shortages are some of the major obstacles facing tech entrepreneurs in Africa, and Cofie admitted that those challenges will make diversity in the tech realm an uphill battle.

“The problems that African women in tech face are not very different from the ones female techies in many other parts of the world also come across,” she wrote in her guest piece. “Yet, these challenges, coupled with some Africa-specific problems like power shortages and broadband inaccessibility, create an uphill task for women wanting to enter the industry and develop the high-level technical skill required in order to progress.”

With successful female tech experts like Regina Agyare of Soronko Solutions in Ghana, and Rebecca Enonchong of AppsTech in Cameroon, Cofie knows it is still very possible for women to continue thriving in this male-dominated field that she hopes won’t be quite so male-dominated in the near future.

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5 STEM Grants and Scholarships for African-Americans

STEM careers are growing at a much faster rate than other industries. The growth is apparent on both the national and global levels. There are many opportunities available to Blerds who have a strong interest in pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Here are five grant and scholarship programs created to support innovation, education and entrepreneurship in the STEM fields.

1. Small Business Innovation Research

Five years ago, entrepreneur Kendra Ough attended a Small Business Innovation Research conference. While there, she discovered that there was funding available for small businesses with big ideas.

The Small Business Innovation Research program has been around for more than 30 years with the primary goal of supporting small businesses plan development. They provide grant money to fund research and development, which inevitably gives small businesses a competitive edge in the global marketplace.

There are several agencies that participate in the government-funded program, such as the Department of Agriculture, Education, and Transportation. The basic eligibility requirements include a three-phase process. Some additional requirements are: 50 percent of the business must be owned or controlled by one or more individuals who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents; the business cannot have more than 500 employees; and it must be for profit and located in the U.S.

*Please note that every participating agency has its own additional guidelines. Visit the SBIR site for additional information on eligibility requirements.

2. New York State Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics

This past May, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the launch of the New York State Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Incentive Program. The Higher Education Services Corporation-funded grant is designed to encourage high school students interested in STEM majors in college.

To be eligible for the grant, students must attend a New York state high school, be ranked in the top 10 percentile of their class, and enroll full time in a State University of New York (SUNY) or City University of New York (CUNY) school. For more information visit the HESC website.

3. Conrad Spirit of Innovation Challenge

The goal of The Conrad Foundation is to promote innovation and entrepreneurship. One way the foundation accomplishes this is through the Conrad Spirit of Innovation Challenge. The program, which supports future inventors, scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs, was created in 2008 in honor of astronaut Charles “Pete” Conrad Jr.

There is a five-step process to becoming a Conrad Scholar through the Conrad Spirit of Innovation Challenge.
The first step to is to join a team and register for the challenge. Registration is currently open but will end on Oct. 16, 2014.

The second step is to develop an idea or a solution to current problem in one of the four industries: aerospace and aviation; energy; environment and energy; cyber-technology and security; and health and nutrition.

The third step is the initial round and also referred to as the “Investor Pitch.” This pitch is submitted in the form of a short video where teams describe why their innovative idea is valuable. This video is submitted online.

If a team moves on to the second round, which is the fourth step, they will present a business or technical plan that will be a developed from the pitch presented in the initial round. This is also submitted online.

For the final step, teams that advance to the final round will present their innovations in person through marketing and Q&A’s.

If a team wins the third round, the participants will be honored as a Conrad scholars. This honor affords them an opportunity to access seed funding for their innovations, patent support, as well as additional scholarship funding.

4.The STEMPREP Program at Southern Methodist University

Southern Methodist University is on a mission to increase education and resources for middle-school minority students with an interest in STEM-related careers.

This year the U.S. Department of Defense offered the enrichment program $2.6 million to fund the program. The program promotes early awareness in STEM subjects. and those who complete it often become college graduates and pursue careers in the STEM fields.

The STEMPREP program is available to students anywhere in the U.S. who qualify. Students usually enter the program in their seventh-grade year. If they are successful in the summer program (based on behavior and academics), the student has a chance of being invited back each year until the program ends in the 10th grade.

For a student to be eligible they must complete the application, write an essay, take the SSAT, a standardized exam for students interested in admission to independent schools, and they must provide transcripts from their past three years in school.

The program is an excellent opportunity for students because after their 10th grade year the program helps them access other opportunities, such as research work with the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. Many of the students who complete the program often become college graduates and pursue careers in the STEM fields.

5.MIT 100K

MIT100K is a dynamic program that has been supporting future entrepreneurs in the STEM fields for the past 25 years.

Through this competition-based program, like-minded individuals from MIT and the outside community come together to strengthen their skills and build on their talents to create new tech firms for the future.
Each year MIT100K awards hundreds of thousands of dollars to winners to help them start their businesses.