About Us
NetHope's mission has a clear focus: to be a catalyst for collaboration among international humanitarian organizations. By working together to solve problems and share knowledge, we help ensure that our members have access to the best information and communication technology and practices when serving people in the developing world.
We do this by working across our membership as a highly collaborative team, solving common technology problems, fostering strong relationships with private industry, and educating our members and the wider community of humanitarian organizations worldwide.
NetHope focuses on five strategic initiatives, all enabled by the power of collaboration:
Values & Guiding Principles
- Technology Matters,
- Benefitting all benefits one,
- Learning through collaboration,
- Build for the Field,
- Bias for action, and
- Trust above all else.
NetHope Timeline
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'01
"Wiring the Global Village" paper presented to Cisco
Dipak Basu, first Cisco Fellow, coins the name "NetHope"
First Summit hosted by Cisco in San Jose with seven organizations represented
Save the Children
World Vision
CARE
Mercy Corps
Catholic Relief Services
Winrock International
Children International
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'02
NetHope's first pilot launched, from planning to implementation
Oxfam
Plan International
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'03
Spring 2003 Summit hosted by Catholic Relief Services in Baltimore, Maryland
Fall 2003 Summit hosted by CARE in Atlanta, Georgia
Christian Children's Fund
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'04
Spring 2004 Summit hosted by Cisco in San Jose, California
NetHope incorporated as public charity in Delaware
Ed Granger-Happ elected as NetHope's first Chairman
Fall 2004 Summit hosted by Microsoft in Redmond, Washington
Honored as Tech Museum Awards Laureate, NetHope receives the Agilent Technologies Equality Award for the use of technology to benefit mankind
Earliest version of the Network Relief Kit developed
ActionAid
The Nature Conservancy
Relief International
International Rescue Committee
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'05
Wall Street Journal covers NetHope's work during the South Asian tsunami
Leadership transferred from Dipak Basu to Molly Tschang, Cisco's second NetHope Fellow
NetHope signs long-term VSAT contract with Skylogic/Eutelsat; Phase II Project begins
Spring 2005 Summit hosted by Save the Children in Westport, Connecticut
501(c)(3) tax exemption application filed
Fall 2005 Summit hosted by The Nature Conservancy
Heifer International
Wildlife Conservation Society
Save the Children - UK (Federated Member)
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'06
NetHope receives 501(c)(3) nonprofit status from IRS
Board of directors elects Bill Brindley as its first Chief Executive Officer
Microsoft provides $40 million grant for NetHope members
NetHope's first chapters form in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand
Spring 2006 Summit hosted by IRC in New York City
NetHope selected as Grand Prize winner of Cisco's Growing with Technology Awards
NetHope strategy refresh project launched Newest version of Network Relief Kit developed and deployed
Fall 2006 Summit hosted by WCS in New York City
Opportunity International
Concern Worldwide
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'07
Ed Granger-Happ, NetHope's chairman, deemed by eWeek and CIO Insight to be one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in IT
NetHope's chapter is launched in India, hosted by ActionAid Bangalore Spring 2007 Summit hosted by Microsoft in Redmond, Washington
NetHope's chapter is launched in East Africa, hosted by ActionAid Nairobi
NetHope goes live with new Collaborative Platform NetHope hosts "NetHope 3.0" strategy working session at Accenture in New York City
NetHope India Chapter hosts two-day meeting in New Delhi, hosted by CARE India
Fall 2007 Summit hosted by CCF, Plan, IFRC, TNC, and Winrock, and sponsored by Dell and Fundacion Ciudad del Saber in Panama
NetHope achieves goal of over 100 NetHope VSAT installations to date
Shared Services program launched
Innovation for Development program launched
American Red Cross (Federated Member)
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
Family Health International
WaterAid
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'08
Spring 2008 Summit hosted by Cisco in San Jose, California
Intel Chairman Craig Barrett announces strategic relationship with NetHope
NetHope's chapters developed in East and West Africa
Shared Services program road map and business plan completed, initial pilots launched, with substantial funding and support from members, Accenture and the Rockefeller Foundation
Innovation for Development program creates business model and road map; with support from Intel, Microsoft and other partners, launches initial pilots
Innovation for Development road map developed and pilots launched, focused on agriculture, health, education, natural resource management and financial service platforms
ICT Skills Building program piloted in Africa, Asia and South America
Fall 2008 Summit hosted by IFRC in Geneva, Switzerland
NetHope Leads First Advanced VSAT Installation and Maintenance Workshop in Nairobi
Ashoka
PATH
Christian Aid
VSO
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'09
Stories about NetHope appeared in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, the Stanford Social Innovation Review and the Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Over $3,000,000 in new Gifts-in-Kind obtained for members
Launched social networking strategy and sites
Completed launch of ICT Database capturing member connectivity solutions globally
NetHope Members Win Two of Four Intel's INSPIRE•EMPOWER Challenge Awards Demonstrating Innovative Uses of ICT
NetHope awarded major new grants by The Rockefeller Foundation and the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation
In response to Economic Crisis, NetHope obtained deeply discounted scale procurement deals and services for members and launched online conferencing task force
Obtained funding to reach 10,000 field workers by offering instructor-led live online training and expand course offerings for members and professionals
Shared Services pilot launched in Africa and India
Spring 2009 Summit hosted by Microsoft in Redmond, Washington
ACCION
FINCA
CHF
Canadian Red Cross (Federated Member)
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'10
Responding to Haiti earthquake, NetHope engineers connected 12 member organizations through VSAT/wireless solutions
NetHope, their partners and members help to bridge Haiti's broken telecommunications infrastructure by sending 1.5 tons of donated equipment and hardware
NetHope Africa Summit held in Nairobi, Kenya
Adobe Systems Incorporated provides largest software donation in company's history to NetHope members
NetHope Chairman, Ed Granger-Happ, is recognized for contributions to nonprofit community and receives NTEN Lifetime Achievement Award
SOS Children's Villages
Habitat for Humanity
Pact
AED
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'11
Thirty-nine Haitian IT professionals graduated from the NetHope Academy
NetHope sends 250 refurbished laptops to humanitarian organizations in Japan with help from Microsoft, Dell, HP and InterConnection
NetHope's work restoring connectivity and building ICT skills in Haiti is featured in a World Economic Forum report
Compassion International
This update highlights the impact of NetHope's focus on making the billions of dollars of revenue received by its member agencies go further through the effective use of technology.
Approximately 92% of NetHope's budget is dedicated to programs. Download past financial statements here: 
This one-page document outlines NetHope's mission, strategy and member base.