NGO migrates to Free software

December 13, Gudalur SPACE has been functioning as a source organization in increasing the practical uptake of FOSS desktop and tools amongst the voluntary sector in Kerala and around. Here is the story of ACCORD, a mass organization migrated to Free software. ACCORD, a non-governmental organization set up in 1986 by Mari and Stan Thekaekara, is active among the adivasis of Gudalur area of Tamilnadu. Functioning as an umbrella organization, accord has initiated a mass organization called Adivasi Munneta Sangam (AMS). It is a tribal organization of over 13,000 members to support the adivasis (tribal people) of Gudalur in Tamil Nadu to assert their right to a livelihood by reclaiming the land that had been taken away through fraud and exploitation. ACCORD also initiated a number of other organizations that all act as satellite organizations of the AMS. The AMS has today grown a federation of nearly 200 village organizations with a total membership of 2500 families. 'Just Change' is another notable initiative of ACCORD in establishing an alternative trading mechanism that will benefit the poor communities. ACCORD found the rational and ethical implication of using free software in Ngo sector. Free software gives user the freedom to own, use, modify and redistribute software to his fellow being. It promotes a philosophy of sharing and community building. Free software does not mean that it is free of cost. It is of course true that most of the time you will get it free or very nominal rate. But there are instances that you have to pay well for the services you avail. Free implied the ‘free’ as in freedom. This is like 'free thoughts, not free coconut'. Free software is a stable alternative to proprietary softwares. Many cases, they exceeds the costly proprietary software in performance. Also Free software is more likely to use open standard formats: formats not owned by one company, and with a much longer and more stable shelf-life. So it is the philosophy and ethics that matter most. Of course money involved is also a factor, taking into consideration that Ngos are run on public funding. From SPACE, Arun( Coordinator) and Vimal(Asst. Coordinator) spent 5 days with ACCORD to train them in free software. The training helped ACCORD to use GNU/Linux in their office premises. They are now using Ubuntu Operating System, Open Office and Mozilla Firefox. The training was first of its kind that SPACE plans to extend out to other NGOs in Kerala in the coming months. Why Should NGOs use Free Software Story From Accord on Shift to Free software