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Will 2013 Be a Bonanza Year for Crowdfunding?

Dec-31-12 By IdeaConnection
Before the champagne flows and the fireworks pop New Year’s Eve is a time of predictions. And there’s one in particular that has caught our attention.

According to a guest post on the Forbes website by David Drake, founder and chairman of LDJ Capital, a New York City private-equity firm, ‘crowdfunding will make 2013 the year of the gold rush.’

Crowd to Tackle Killer Fungus

Dec-30-12 By IdeaConnection
Ash dieback is a killer fungus that is threatening Britain’s woodland areas.  Experts say it poses a real threat to the country’s 80 million ash trees, and since its presence was confirmed in October 2012 the disease has received extensive media coverage.

To try and beat the fungus, scientists are seeking the wisdom of the crowd to help analyse some of its genes.

Black Hole Hunting with NASA

Dec-28-12 By IdeaConnection
NASA is giving space lovers a new opportunity to help it expand its knowledge of the Universe.

The space agency has launched a new citizen science game on the Zooniverse website. It’s called Clouds and allows players to identify space clouds and black holes from their computer, tablet or smartphone screens.

How the Crowd Can Help You Avoid Excursion Disappointment

Dec-27-12 By IdeaConnection
You know the score with best laid plans and all that. They can be ruined by bad weather, misinformation or lack of details. You turn up to a countryside picnic only to be soaked through by a rain spell, visit a restaurant to find it closed, or head out to some event and discover that it’s been cancelled.

Koozoo is a website that’s hoping to put an end to such excursion blues by creating a network of live video feeds so anyone can check out locations before they close their front door.

Is Open Innovation for You?

Dec-26-12 By IdeaConnection
Has your organisation yet to embark on its first open innovation initiative? Will 2013 be the year you take your first steps toward engaging external sources of knowledge to help with your innovation efforts? If you are still weighing up the odds and wondering whether it’s the right move for you, consultancy company Fuentek has produced a free webcast that explores some of the important points to consider when deciding whether or not to adopt open innovation.

 

Crowdfunding Platform Gives Young Talent a Career Boost

Dec-24-12 By IdeaConnection
With an overcrowded, over qualified job market, college leavers don’t have it easy when it comes to embarking on their chosen careers. Underemployment, unemployment and a mountain of student debt are just some of the hurdles they have to face.

However, the cavalry has appeared to offer a helping hand in the form of Pave, a New York-based start-up that takes a crowd-based approach to helping young adults achieve their potential.

Crowdfunding Student Loans

Dec-21-12 By IdeaConnection
The financial cost of education can be crippling for some students who are saddled with a mountain of debt before they even enter the workforce.

To minimize the debt burden a small collection of start-ups are offering inexpensive loans to those going through college. One of these is Social Finance Inc. (SoFi), a crowdfunding initiative started by a group of Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni who graduated in 2011.

Only Open Innovation Can Solve the Global Food Problem

Dec-20-12 By IdeaConnection
The scale of the challenge has been reported on many times before. Can we feed a projected population of nine billion people by the year 2050?

According to Jeff Bellairs, senior director of the General Mills Worldwide Innovation Network (G-Win) it is critical for food companies to look outside their four walls and collaborate to solve the global food security challenge. He explained why in an exclusive article in Food Navigator USA.

Crowdsourcing Takes the Stress Out of Christmas Gift-Buying

Dec-18-12 By IdeaConnection
With only a few shopping days until Christmas it’s a nail-bitingly worrying time for those who haven’t yet decided what to give their loved ones. Gift buying should be one of the most pleasurable times of the festive season as you pick out items that you feel sure will delight kith and kin.

But it can also be a colossal headache if you can’t think of what to buy. Fortunately, the crowd can help as a number of websites have emerged where you can receive guidance from hundreds of strangers.

Crowdfunding Colombia’s Tallest Building

Dec-17-12 By IdeaConnection
According its developers BD Bacatá is the world’s first skyscraper to be built by common people.

At 66 stories the structure will be Colombia’s tallest building when it is completed, and the first ever crowdfunded skyscraper.