What a year we’re wrapping up! As we celebrated our #NERD10 anniversary year-round, we were thrilled to utilize technology throughout the year to support communities, governments, and individuals on the ground looking to empower themselves and others. We can’t wait to see what 2018 has in store for us!
A look back at an amazing year on the Microsoft New England Blog:
January
Data for Good – Joining a Team Effort
Elizabeth Grossman
DataKind is a national initiative that uses public data to create projects that impact municipalities, from forecasting water demand during a drought to reducing injuries and deaths from traffic incidents or house fires to tailoring care for people with mental illnesses. We’re excited to have Elizabeth Grossman, Director of Civic Projects in the Tech & Civic Engagement Group at Microsoft, join the board of DataKind in 2017.
February
#NERD10: Microsoft R&D Celebrating 10 years in Kendall Square
T.K. “Ranga” Rengarajan, CVP — Engineering, Microsoft
2017 marks ten years that Microsoft has hosted one of its Global Development Centers in Cambridge. The Microsoft New England Research & Development Center, fondly referred to as NERD, celebrated its anniversary with stories and events year-round.
March
The Future [Of Computer Science] Is Female — A DigiGirlz Story
MSNE Staff
As part of our commitment to education, we are honored to be part of DigiGirlz, a program that promotes STEM education in young women nationwide. In this blog, we heard from Ameena Sajjad, a DigiGirlz alumna who is now studying computer science at Bunker Hill Community College.
April
Urban Farming: From Microsoft to the Dinner Table
Aimee Sprung
We’re focused on environmental sustainability worldwide, so of course we jump at every opportunity to promote sustainability here in Boston. This April, our own Aimee Sprung showed us sustainability initiatives in Boston and Redmond alike.
May
All I Ever Needed to Know about Civic Engagement I Learned From my Mom
Aimee Sprung
This Mother’s Day, we decided to do something a bit different — we reached out to local civic leaders for a look at how their mothers impacted their drive for civic engagement and leadership.
July
Making Data Matter at Museum of Science Boston
Ben Wilson, Director & Senior Producer of Digital & Interactive Media, Museum of Science, Boston
Through a partnership with the Museum of Science Boston, we have helped the Museum as they updated and modernized the visitor-facing technology in the Hall of Human Life.
August
Using Data to Transform Somerville Public Schools
MSNE Staff
When Code for America (CfA) Fellows came to the Boston metro area, they sought out projects that would help improve our community in strong, impactful ways. Since CfA helped Somerville Public Schools transform their curricula and classroom planning through an open data dashboard, our Microsoft fellows have joined on to streamline this process using Microsoft technology.
September
Boston Promotes Youth Civic Advocacy Through Pokémon GO
Engagement Lab at Emerson College
During the months of July and August, the Engagement Lab at Emerson College and ENGAGE Boston, in partnership with the City of Boston and Niantic, Inc, the publisher and developer of the interactive mobile game Pokémon GO, launched a youth-led, city-wide creative competition to promote equitable representation of Boston neighborhoods in the popular mobile game, Pokémon GO.
November
#Tech4Vets: MassChallenge Startups Aid Veterans
MSNE Staff
How do we make this transition easier for veterans? That was a big question for this year’s MassChallenge cohort, as various startups at MassChallenge — like Operation Code and Athletes of Valor — were geared toward veteran transition. As a proud MassChallenge partner, we were honored to work alongside some of these startups and get to know the brilliant minds behind them.
December
An Hour of Code at Amigos School
MSNE Staff
We love supporting computer science education at local schools and organizations. As part of our celebration of Computer Science Education Week, we joined Resilient Coders student Pariss Chandler at her alma mater, Amigos Elementary School in Cambridge, MA. There, she guided 7th graders in an Hour of Code game, “Hero’s Journey.”
Thank you to all who helped us make 2017 an incredible year. We look forward to working for change in 2018.