Kenya’s Ushahidi Brings Tech Help Where It’s Needed Most

“If it works in Africa, it will work anywhere.” It’s something that’s occasionally said about the mobile market on the continent. And it’s something that Juliana Rotich has lived as the head of Ushahidi, a nonprofit tech organization born during the chaos of post-election violence in Kenya that has since evolved with the development of an open-source platform for sharing and mapping information.

One recent breakout moment for Ushahidi occurred in the wake of the Haiti earthquake, when people in need of help or rescue were able to send text messages that appeared on a map that first responders could use to reach them. Meanwhile, a network of volunteers in Boston and New York and elsewhere translated messages from Creole into English in order to help direct aid to people on the ground. [...]