Author: Elizabeth Lemmonds

Black Girls CODE is a nonprofit based in San Francisco whose vision is to increase the number of women of color in the digital space by empowering girls of color ages 7 to 17 to become innovators in STEM fields, leaders in their communities, and builders of their own futures through exposure to computer science and technology. As described by founder Kimberly Bryant, a Memphis native and Vanderbilt alumna:

When I was first introduced to computer programming, as a freshman in Electrical Engineering, Fortran and Pascal were the popular languages for newbies in computing and the Apple Macintosh was the new kid on the block. I remember being excited by the prospects, and looked forward to embarking on a rich and rewarding career after college.

But I also recall, as I pursued my studies, feeling culturally isolated: few of my classmates looked like me. While we shared similar aspirations and many good times, there’s much to be said for making any challenging journey with people of the same cultural background.

Much has changed since my college days, but there’s still a dearth of African-American women in science, technology, engineering and math professions, an absence that cannot be explained by, say, a lack of interest in these fields. Lack of access and lack of exposure to STEM topics are the likelier culprits.

So how did Kimberly become the change she wanted to see? By launching Black Girls CODE, and providing hands-on opportunities through workshops and after-school programs for girls to learn technical skills like video game design and mobile app development. BGC recently earned a first place Award Laureate in the 2012 Innovation in Philanthropy Awards.

Now Kimberly is bringing program home to Memphis, with the help of local champions Pamela W. Kelly, Meka Egwuekwe, Dominique Anderson, Tonya Meeks and Brenda Buckman. On February 16 they will host Black Girls CODE: Build a Webpage in a Day Memphis, a day-long workshop hosted by Rhodes College. Girls from ages 10-17 are encouraged to sign up and enjoy a fun and educational way to start heading toward — or creating — the jobs of tomorrow.

And here is where you come in: girls can apply for need-based scholarships, but for those to be available we ask that you support BGC and select the “sponsor a girl” ticket option here.

Also they need volunteers! Certainly those with relevant web developer skills are encouraged to step forward, but no matter your technical skills the organizers need event volunteers (including pre- and post-event). You can fill out a volunteer application online, but you are also invited to a Black Girls CODE Memphis launch reception at EmergeMemphis (516 Tennessee St.) on January 15 from 6-8pm. The event is free but please RSVP online here.

As part of the new Upstart Memphis initiative focused on fueling women’s innovation and entrepreneurship, LaunchMemphis and Upstart Memphis present a special edition of the signature 48 Hour Launch. Entrepreneurs, developers and diverse professionals converge to launch innovative concepts and build the companies of tomorrow.

Are you a woman with an innovative idea and an entrepreneurial streak? You have two minutes on Friday night to pitch your concept and inspire the crowd. If successful you’ll get to publicly introduce your new company on Sunday evening.

More interested in applying your professional skills toward a goal that fuels economic development and elevates creative talent? Then vote for your favorite pitch, join a team and dive into development. Startups need marketers, lawyers, accountants, graphic designers, developers, and UX specialists. In short, they need you.

Please note: while we’re kickstarting women’s owned businesses, we invite men and women of all skills and backgrounds to be part of the teams that build these companies of tomorrow.

On Sunday evening each proud albeit exhausted team will present its business to the community. For every 20 attendees we create opportunity for another startup to be built. And the more entrepreneurs we recruit, the higher the chances of discovering bold, audacious ideas with high growth potential.

More than community engagement, this event fosters true community investment. Where else for only 48 hours and $40 can you:

– Launch brand new tech-supported companies, contributing toward our local innovation economy and creating jobs;
– Learn by doing, experiencing firsthand entrepreneurial principles that can be applied to any endeavor or work environment;
– Connect with like-minded and talented professionals, developing your network;
– Play an active role in Memphis’ entrepreneurial community, volunteering your current skills while learning new ones;
– Eat and drink well, including all meals and copious amounts of coffee and Red Bull; and
– Be a part of something this collaborative, creative and cool?!

So what are you waiting for? Register today for the one and only 48 Hour Launch, and get ready to spend your weekend doing something extraordinary- building both companies and community.

We asked a group of Memphis’ most tech savvy to share their latest app obsessions, and why they’re wowed. You definitely want to check out these recommendations, and please add your own in the comments below.

Kyle Sandler of Nibletz introduced me to my own app du jour: Voxer, a free “all in one messenger” for Apple and Android that lets you send audio, text, photos and location to selected recipients. The audio messages are key: Voxer turns your smartphone into a walkie-talkie, and is a nearly hands-free alternative to texting for those “don’t forget to pick up coffee” messages.

Tal Frankfurt, Cloud for Good
@cloud4good
Dropbox provides cloud-based storage for documents, photos and other files. Your account can connect to all of your devices – including iPhone, iPad, Android, BlackBerry and Kindle Fire – so it’s easy to access all my files from anywhere at any time.

Rachel Hurley, Kangaroo
@rachelanthecity
The app that I really can not live without is Feedly. It’s a reader that makes it super easy to share content. It’s one of those apps that you are almost scared to tell people about because it gives you such an edge. It works with iPhone, iPad, Android, Kindle and Firefox. And its free!

Brad Montgomery, Work for Pie
@bkmontgomery
Zombies, Run! ($7.99, iOS, Android, Windows mobile) is THE most awesome running app, EVER. It turns your run or workout into a zombie apocalypse game.

Trish Kalbas-Schmidt, University of Memphis Crews Venture Lab
@crewsventurelab
This is old school but one of my favorites is TurboScan. You can create PDFs of by taking pictures of documents with your phone. In a world where we still do need hard copies or at least PDFs of documents it comes in pretty handy! It was $1.99 and I use it all the time.

James Kegel, GeekBlog.tv
@geekblogtv
My favorite app is AirDroid. It is free from the Google Play store, and allows me to use my droid from my browser. You can send text messages, install apps, and do just about anything without touching your phone.

Cheryl Hurley, The Stylist Quo
@thestylistquo
Right now my obsession is with Keek, a social network for short video uploads. I’m trying to develop an early following before it explodes. It’s free, and available for iPhone and Android; you can also upload via webcam.

Carrie Brown-Smith, University of Memphis Journalism Department
@brizzyc
I couldn’t live without Delicious or Evernote for productivity to store and tag useful articles, research, and information so that I can find it later.

Kenn Gibbs, The Knowledge Co.
@kenngibbs
As much of a tech junkie as I am, I just started using a password manager and really like LastPass. It’s $12 a year to keep all your passwords secure on any OS. There are other free options out there, but I liked the higher security (I’m a little paranoid), and I can easy go between my Mac, Windows, and Linux machines.

Hello. My name is Elizabeth Lemmonds, and I’m a reformed Luddite.

And now I spend my days working with some of Memphis’ top innovators, tech-based entrepreneurs and the developer community through my work with LaunchMemphis, Seed Hatchery and EmergeMemphis.

To be fair, when I started college mainstream technology included clunky word processors and answering machines. “Computer Literacy” – a class which taught you to send an email – was a required Gen Ed course.

By contrast, my daughter Ripley just moved into her dorm with a laptop, Netflix and an iPhone. `

When I finally had my moment of conversion, I didn’t accept technology grudgingly; I dove in with ferocity.

In short, it finally dawned upon me that technology is neutral. Technology is a tool. And perhaps more significantly, technology facilitates access. Access to information, goods, services, resources and people.

And access breeds opportunity.

Technology can level the playing field, putting global resources at the fingertips of students or providing a microphone to nonprofits, artists and startup companies who were formerly lost in the blitz of high-dollar advertising and marketing campaigns.

Of course, like any other tool technology can be used for less-noble purposes like disseminating mundane breakfast updates, cat photos, and incessant political tirades.

But it also helps us share baby pictures with far-away friends and family members, engage with elected officials, discover new products and services, streamline our ubiquitous multitasking, and meet soul-mates. In recent months, technology-driven services like Twitter have amplified social outcry and driven political revolutions.

This is a but a sampling of reasons that excite me about this opportunity between LaunchMemphis and the Memphis Flyer to launch Ones and Zeros.

Among other things, we envision Ones and Zeros becoming a platform for spotlighting the leading edge innovation that is happening right here in Memphis.

For example, Paytopia, a startup company from our Seed Hatchery business accelerator, is launching an online payment system that requires no credit card details.

BioNanovations from Zero to 510 (the nation’s first cohort-based medical device accelerator that graduated its inaugural class in August) is using nanotechnology to identify strains of bacterial infections in groundbreaking time.

Work for Pie has proclaimed the death of the traditional job board for developers, and deserves credit for its demise.

The University of Memphis FedEx Institute of Technology houses interdisciplinary research like the Institute for Intelligent Systems where studies include artificial intelligence systems.

Memphis Bioworks Foundation is a nonprofit that supports and expands our bioscience industry in the areas of biomedical, biologistics and bioagriculture.

The Medical Education and Research Institute (MERI) trains medical professionals and first responders through remarkably lifelike anatomical simulators that can cry, bleed, give birth, and die.

FedEx SenseAwareSM earned CIO Rob Carter a spot on Fast Company’s list of Most Creative People in Business with its near real-time tracking of a package’s location, temperature and humidity readings.

And then there is the Power Center Academy in Hickory Hill, a Memphis City Charter School providing 6th-9th grade students a curriculum anchored in entrepreneurship, financial literacy and technology. And the North Memphis Community Technology Center, a nonprofit passionate about improving lives through technology accessibility and literacy.

The above stories – and more that you’ll see here in the coming months – serve to reinforce my recovery from luddite to tech-evangelist and my loyalty to this community as my City of Choice.

Make no mistake, the future is here. In Memphis.

LaunchMemphis is proud to play a role in that future, and excited to bring you along for the ride with Ones & Zeros.