HELPIFIC NEWSLETTER | February 2018
4:18:00 PM
HELPIFIC NEWS & ACTIVITIES
Helpific is a web-based support environment that brings innovative, digital solutions to the social field. Active communities can involve citizens through Helpific to help with transportation needs, household chores or activities outside of household.
The crowdfunding participants helped Helpific take off!
Do you remember the video in which Tom Rüütel, one of the co-founders of Helpific talked about his dream of becoming an astronaut and called upon investing in Helpific? The project "Live by yourself, be responsible by yourself!’’ turned out to be vastly successful – 577 people invested in the project and all in all 10 835 euros was raised.
On the project’s webpage all eight videos can still be watched and one can read about the outcome of the project as well as where the investments go.
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| Dear crowdfunding participant, we wholeheartedly thank you for appreciating the communal mindset and in believing in what we do! Thanks to your contribution we can improve Helpific’s environment and make it safer and more convenient for our users. |
Service innovation in Võrumaa, Estonia
As a part of an international consortium that consists of 24 different European Universities, NGOs and service providers, Helpific will have an opportunity to participate in an innovative research and development program called CoSIE – Co-creation of Service Innovations in Europe.
Tallinn University, Võrumaa Omavalitsuste Liit, and Helpific will co-operate over the next three years to pilot an innovative method for service development in the field of disability care and mental health in Vorumaa county, Estonia.
The European Union’s Horizon2020 program finances the Estonian part of the program with €386,066.
The summer has brought many positive surprises for Helpific
The summer has been an extraordinarily great time for the Helpific platform. We have received a lot of good news both from our home country, as well as from abroad. The campaign carried out in the Hooandja was very successful and soon we will start pilot projects in Croatia and Romania so that the community members would notice and support each other more.
HELPIFIC - MASSACHUSETTS
4:05:00 PM
Helpific gets a warm welcome in the US
Text: Kerti Kulper
Ashley Misleh, Helpific's International Correspondent in the US, says that they are still testing Helpific in the States, but the reaction has so far been very positive. We asked Ashley some questions to find out how Helpific is doing in the US.
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| Ashley: "Helpific will enlighten, educate and make huge impacts through it's use!" |
HELPIFIC NEWSLETTER | JUNE 2017
3:10:00 PM
HELPIFIC SUMMER NEWS & ACTIVITIES
Helpific is a web-based support environment that brings innovative, digital solutions to the social field. Active communities can involve citizens through Helpific to help with transportation needs, household chores or activities outside of household.
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| Tom Rüütel - Helpific co-founder who dreams about an independent life and becoming an astronaut. Tom (Awesome Dude): "We have taken off - give us an extra push!" |
Helpific connects people with special needs who need help with everyday activities to people who want to help them - using smart solution for it
What is your grand idea?
Helpific is an open web-environment (marketplace) that connects the person who needs help to the person who offers help. Our idea was born from an actual needs of thousands of people with special needs or people who need help in the community face every day. We are one of those person- and business service start-ups that pave the way towards developing a more caring society and implement the opportunities of innovation, sharing economy and information and communication technology (ICT) in shaping the social welfare system of the future.
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| JCI Nordic Inspiration Conference 2015. Helpific executives with JCI presidents - Ismail Haznedar, Steven Wilson & Kaspar Ilves and representatives of organizations of people with disabilities. |
ICT changes the world of young with disabilities
Helpific is an online platform that connects people with special needs with volunteers who are ready to help them in their local community. The platform was established in 2014 in Tallinn by young, enthusiastic people from different professional areas to build this trustful relationship between vulnerable people and fellow citizens in the community.
In a traditional welfare model vulnerable people, such as people with disabilities, elderly, people with mental health problems, families with many children, minority groups are served by social and health services. And these services are provided by the state and/or by local governments. Well-established welfare states like Finland and the Netherlands spend 30-33% of their GDP on social expenditures in order to provide proper services.
Estonia follows a different economic model where the state only spends 15-16% of a relevantly lower GDP on social expenditures. We created Helpific as we realized that in this special Estonian model we need to mobilize existing community resources to meet the needs of vulnerable people.
Introducing the fascinating sharing economy model and relying on modern Information and communication technology (ICT) can be a relevant solution to the continuous lack of public resources in the welfare system of Estonia. Sharing economy is a hybrid market model and social phenomenon which refers to peer-to-peer based sharing of access to goods and services using modern information technology.[1] Sharing economy is not only successful in market oriented business models but also represents a new approach in welfare, providing a unique opportunity to empower individuals and communities.
The sharing economy relies on the will of the users to share, but in order to make an exchange, users have to be trustworthy. Sharing economy organizations are committed to building and validating trusted relationships between members of their community.[2]
Young people, the modern new generation of Estonians are very important in this project. We believe, that modern technology, internet, the different gadgets we are using every day, are not only about fancy apps or entertaining computer games. This technology can serve people, strengthen communities, and we can create more connection between each other.
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| Helpific connetcs young people with disabilities with other young people, helps to find friends and live life without boarders |
In Estonia apr. 25% of the population participates in informal voluntary activities, and young people are even more active. 27,5% of 16-24 years old Estonians are involved into voluntary work, while this figure in the age group of 25-29 is already above 31%. (Source: Eurostats)
Helpific tries to reach this generation by bringing modern ICT technology into a traditional field. Usually, voluntary works happen through non-governmental or charity organizations and churches. Helpific creates direct, peer-to-peer connection between people without any necessary affiliation to formal organizations. The platform is an easy to handle website that works on every devices. It can be managed on PCs, laptops, tablets and also on smartphones that are the most popular personal devices of young people nowadays. Knowing that the young generation is already shows growing activity in community and voluntary work we wanted to create a tool that makes helping easier and faster than ever.
Our other aim is to reconstruct the perception of disabilities and the status of people with disability in the society. Young people are again very important in this process. If we can deliver a new, different message about disabilities the new generation will grow up with an attitude where disability is one of the many qualities of a person and not the person itself. We try to get rid of the gray, medical picture of mental health and disability care where people are turned to be a patient or a client, surrounded with the feeling of pity and their entire identity is around their disability and its care. People with disabilities are people like us. We need more encounter with each other in a normal, community setting and disability will be fading away giving space to other, more individual characters of a person. Helpific would like to create encounters like this.
Zsolt Bugarszki, Head of Helpific International
[1] Hamari, Juho; Sjöklint, Mimmi; Ukkonen, Antti (2015). "The Sharing Economy: Why People Participate in Collaborative Consumption". Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology. doi:10.1002/asi.23552.
[2] Charles, Green (May 2, 2012). "Trusted and Being Trusted in the Sharing Economy". Forbes. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
Yksinkertaisuus on taikaa!
Yksinkertaisuus
on taikaa. Tämä sanonta kuvaa Helpific -nettiyhteisöä, joka on tarkoitettu
erityistarpeita omaaville ihmisille ja heille, jotka haluavat auttaa muita
ilman pitkäaikaista velvoitetta. Sinun ei tarvitse olla koulutettu sosiaalialan
työntekijä auttaaksesi muita - tarvitset vain hyvän sydämen ja tahtoa auttaa.
Joustava ihmiseltä ihmiselle -ratkaisu on tarkoitettu sekä nuorille että
vanhuksille, tavoitteena vahvempien yhteisöjen luominen. Mikset siis auttaisi
itseäsi auttamalla muita?
Kuinka kaikki
sai alkunsa?
Tallinna-Harjumaan
alueella toimivan Vammaisten naisten yhdistyksen (Tallinna ja Harjumaa Puuetega
Naiste Ühing) puheenjohtaja, Keiu Roosimägi, esitteli ensimmäisenä idean
yhteisöllisyyteen perustuvasta vapaaehtoistyöstä ja auttamisen yksinkertaisuudesta
Garage48:n järjestämässä startup-kehittämisen kilpailussa. Kilpailuviikonlopun
aikana Keiu tapasi ihmisiä, joilla oli samanlaisia ajatuksia ja ideoita
yhteisöpohjaisesta auttamisesta, joten he yhdistivät voimavaransa, ja näin
muodostui vahva tiimi kehittämään ajatusta eteenpäin. Ryhmään kuuluu mm.
kauppatiedetaustainen Annika Amenberg, sosiaalipolitiikan professori Zsolt
Bugarszki Tallinnan Yliopistosta, pitkään henkilöstöhallinnon tehtävissä
työskennellyt Triin Üksvärav sekä hieman myöhemmin joukkoon liittynyt
IT-asiantuntija Antoni Anikin. Ryhmää tukevat Jüri Lehtmets ja Tom Rüütel –
kaksi esimerkillistä nuorta miestä, joilla molemmilla on erityistarpeita.
Ryhmän mentorina toimii Estonian Business Angels Networkin (EstBAN) jäsenenä ja Telegrupp AS:in lautakunnan puheenjohtajana
toimiva Ivo Remmelg. Helpificin toiminnassa on mukana myös aktiivisia ja
motivoituneita vapaaehtoistyöntekijöitä, jotka ovat kiinnostuneita
yhteisöllisyyden edistämisestä sekä sosiaalialan työstä.
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| Helpific-tiimi alussa |
Tulevaisuuden
viestintä- ja palveluportaali
Mitä Helpificin
yksinkertaisuuden taika pitää sisällään, ja tuleeko se olemaan yhtä suosittu
kuin Facebook? Avun löytämiseen vaikuttaa niin käyttäjien sijainti kuin
vapaa-ajan määrä, joten mitä enemmän käyttäjiä, sitä tehokkaampi nettiyhteisö
on. Helpificin toimintaa voi edistää parhaiten liittymällä käyttäjäksi!
Sisäänkirjautuminen onnistuu helposti Google- tai Facebook-tilin kautta.
Helpific haluaa panostaa turvallisuuteen, ja siksi suunnitelmissa on ottaa käyttöön
tunnistautuminen ID-kortilla. Käyttöön otetaan myös mahdollisuudet kommentoida
ja “tykätä”, joilla voi antaa palautetta auttajille, mikä puolestaan vähentää
kaltoinkohtelun riskiä.
Käyttäjä voi
omassa profiilissaan määritellä, mitä apua hän tarvitsee ja mitä apua hän voi
mahdollisesti tarjota. Erityistarpeita omaava henkilö voi pyytää apua
esimerkiksi kulttuuritapahtumaan, kävelylle, ostoksille tai ikkunoiden pesuun.
Helpificin käytäjien tarjoamien palveluiden avulla erityistarpeita omaavien
ihmisten mahdollisuudet osallistua muun muassa
koulutukseen ja työelämään paranevat huomattavasti. Apua tarjoava
henkilö voi puolestaan kertoa, minkälaista apua hän toivoo saavansa vastapalveluksena,
esimerkiksi apua kirjoittamiseen, käännöstyöhön jne. Jos vapaaehtoistyöhön
osallistuminen ei ole mahdollista, voivat halukkaan auttaa myös
rahalahjoituksella, joka käytetään maksullisten palveluiden hankkimiseen
asiakkaille.
Helpicin
bisnesmalli
Markkinatutkimukset
ovat osoittaneet, että moni ihminen, jolla on erityistarpeita, olisi valmis
maksamaan pienen summan palvelusta. Opiskelija ja pienituloiset ovat myös
antaneet palautetta, että jos vapaaehtoistyön tekeminen ei ole mahdollista,
olisivat he kiinnostuneita auttamaan pientä korvausta vastaan. Helpificin
avunpyyntöihin onkin mahdollista laittaa rahasumma, jonka on valmis palvelusta
maksamaan - mutta tämä on täysin vapaaehtoista.
Helpific auttaa
elämään arvokasta elämää
Yleisön
suosikiksi Garage48:ssa kruunattu Helpific on saavuttanut paljon huomiota.
Syyskuun 23. päiväna 2015 Viron Kuurojen Liitto (Eesti Kurtide Liit) antoi
Helpificille tunnustuksen erinomaisesta kommunikaation ja kulttuurisen
saavutettavuuden tukemisesta. Helpificin visio on tulla Euroopan parhaimmaksi
ja suurimmaksi tukijärjestelmäksi vuoteen 2020 mennessä tukemalla
erityistarpeita omaavia ihmisiä vapaaehtoisten auttajien sekä ostettujen
palveluiden avulla.
Missiona on
edistää erityistarpeita omaavien ihmisten itsenäistä elämää ja osallistua
yhteisöllisyyden rakentamiseen - tule mukaan auttamaan!
Jokainen on
tervetullut rekisteröitymään palveluun, lähettämään pyyntöjä ja tarjouksia.
Seuraa uutisia blogistamme ja liity joukkoon!
Teksti: Laur Raudsoo
Käännös: Aliisa Mikkola
Article | Helpific's past and the future
10:07:00 PM
The magic of simplicity!
Magic lies in simplicity. This apothegm can be used to describe the web-platform Helpific, which is meant for people with special needs and for those who want to help them without taking long-term obligations.
In order to help someone, one doesn’t have to be a certified social worker – you only need a heart and a will to help. Flexible from person to person solution is meant both for the young and the elderly, helping to create stronger communities. Why not please yourself and others just when the opportunity presents itself?
How did it all start?
Volunteer work and the simplicity of helping each other in small communities was presented in start-ups’ development contest Garage48 by chairwoman of Tallinn and Harju County Union of Disabled Women, Keiu Roosimägi. On the development weekend she met with people who were carrying the same ideas and dreams in their hearts. The forces were united and a strong team was formed to develop the idea. For instance Annika Amenberg with economic background, Zsolt Bugarszki - professor of social politics in Tallinn University, Triin Üksvärav who has been in personnel field for a long time and a bit later IT-specialist Antoni Anikin all joined. They are supported by Jüri Lehtmets and Tom Rüütel – young men with special needs, who are an example to many. Mentor of the team is a member of Estonian Business Angels Network (EstBAN) and chairman of board of Telegrupp AS, Ivo Remmelg. Helpific successfully involves in their activities also interns and enthusiastic volunteers who have a deep interest in contributing to the formation of wiser and more caring communities and in social business field in the world.
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| Team of Helpific at the beginning |
At first it was planned to offer personal assistance in Tallinn and Harju County Union of Disabled Women on a voluntary basis in a way that people shall be brought together by so called telephone operator. Within the development week the approach turned easier and more innovative, but it also presented more challenges: people were offered a single opportunity to help each other in the local community with the help of modern technology.
The idea of a web-platform simplifying the life of persons in need and social workers came to Keiu Roosimägi who works in legal- and social field because the State and local governments are in difficulties with offering essential services promoting independent life for people with special needs, but at the same time there are communities whose help could improve the situation. On the other hand it is easier for the community members to participate in voluntary work through Helpific. Volunteers can for example help with single transport service, offering companionship for going out or spending free time or support in domestic activities. People with special needs and the elderly can also offer their help to the others. Community will be stronger and more supportive, at the same time volunteers shall help to solve quite a big state deficiency. There are other this kind of voluntary organizations, but most of them are still organization-based and don’t carry the idea of sharing-economy. Helpific is unique both in Estonia as well as internationally for the simplicity, speed and security of the solution to both parties.
Information tour "Life without borders"
Support environment Helpific has presented itself with an information tour "Life without borders" in Paide, Haapsalu, Tallinn and Tartu. In discussion rounds it has been discussed how people with special needs could participate in the job market and how dominant stigmas affect the promoting of employment capacity, why it is rewarding to popularize voluntary work, how modern information- and communication technology promotes social enterpreneurship and how to involve communities to carry out the desired changes.
Representatives of employers (for example Swedbank, ISS Estonia, Tartu Kaubamaja, Selver), public sector (Astangu Vocation Rehabilitation Center, Unemployment Fund, Tallinn Mental Health Center, Arcada University of Finland) and third sector (Vabatahtlike Värav, Network of Social Enterprises, Estonian National Youth Council, Estonian Human Rights Center) and organizations of people with disabilities were met within the tour. British Ambassador to Estonia Chris Holtby and Estonian Social Defence Minister Margus Tsahkna also had a word.
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| British Ambassador to Estonia Chris Holtby giving valuable examples at the information tour |
Those interested in the web-platform could test their abilities and knowledge at the meetings. They learned sign language, walked the leading dog for blind people,examined technical widgets and appliances that enable visually impaired people to surf the social networks, rode a wheelchair on a ramp and tried to open a candy jar with boxing gloves to experience the every-day challenges of muscle diseased.
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Minister of Social protection Margus Tsanka testing dog-guide skills and capabilities
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Within the tour an artistic installation was installed to the cityscape, its’ heroes being six youngsters with special needs: Merlin, Maris, Jakob, Merilyn, Oliver and Katariina. Despite their disability, they all have a very positive approach to life – with their interests and knowledge the youngsters can live a more full life with the help of volunteers. These six magical stories invited the community members to break the prejudices and attitudes prevailing in the society. It was desired to contribute to the creation of wiser and more caring communities, sharing the faith that caring and simple helping of each other will help people with special needs to use their knowledge, skills and abilities in their full extent.
Future communication and service portal
What Helpific’s magic of simplicity consists in and will it become as popular as Facebook? To answer that a helper or a person applying for assistance has to create a user account for the web-page, because the more users, the more efficient is the platform since people are helped according to free time and location. One can log in with Facebook or Google+ account, which makes the use of Helpific relatively easy. Helpific wants to put bigger emphasis on security, for instance soon there will be a respective mark on the account of the person who has been ascertained by ID-card. In addition there will be a possibility to comment, like, also to collect bonus points which enable to get products and services more favorably from partners. This acknowledges the helpers, but also lessens the risk of mistreatment of a person with special needs, who due to his/her disability might be more vulnerable.
User can describe on the account what kind of help he/she needs and what kind of help he/she can offer. For instance if you are a person with special needs, you can post a request for help to find a guide to a cultural event or for a walk, shopping or window cleaning. While using all the possibilities of the application, the opportunities for people with special needs to enter work life or gain education will improve substantially.
In addition a person can write what kind of help he/she wants to offer in return: for example to help to write an interesting piece of work, translate etc. If one cannot contribute one’s time as a volunteer, one can make a donation so that the money could be used to order a more specific payable service.
Helpific presents it’s versatility
Since November 2015 Helpific is a member of Estonian Voluntary Work Network. Network draws together efficient organizations promoting voluntary work in order to jointly have a say in developing the policies related to voluntary work, share opportunities and obligations in developing the field and being a consistent partner to official institutions co-ordinating the field and Ministry of Internal Affairs. In the context of this Helpific participates in the project "Involvers of volunteers are weaving a web" in the course of which an agreement of joint action will be completed and connections with European Voluntary Work Network will be made. Helpific also joined Estonian Diversity Agreement, stating so that it values the principles of diversity both in it’s employees and clients and treats them equally. Together with other joined organizations a community will be formed to share experiences together and promote equal treatment theme both in own organization as well as broadly in society.
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| With the Diversity Agreement joined Adcash, the Estonian Chamber of Disabled People, Helpific, the Ministy of Culture, SEB Bank, the Ministry of Social Affairs, Theater NO99 and TransferWise. Photo: Tõnu Tunnel |
Helpific's business model
In conducting market analyses, many people with special needs informed that they would be willing to pay a small amount for the service. Also feedback from undergraduates and people with average or smaller income states that they could not offer to be a volunteer but they would help fellow citizens for a small payment. Therefore, if a request for help or an offer to help is entered, it is possible to name it’s price – but this is optional. There is a wish to show that there is demand for payable services and users are encouraged to try the new function of the web-page.
Competing to get the development funds
Chivas enterprise 1 million dollar prize fund is for enforcing special start-up companies, that are creating positive changes while doing business – whose mission is to inspire enterpreneurs to change the world. A lot of start-ups used this opportunity and sent their applications. Applications were examined and from every participating country, the best ideas were chosen to compete in the local final. Helpific became among top 5 locals, but it did not qualify for the international finals. The local round was won by Sentab which offers social network environment on television for the elderly.
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Chivas The Venture five local finalists: from left Tauri Kärson (Autolevi), Tõnis Kusmin
(Tebo), Tarmo Pihl (Sentab), Annika Amenberg (Helpific) and Marko Kiisa (Upmade)
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Helpific helps to live with dignity
Helpific, the winner of the title audience’s favourite at Garage48, has received quite a large attention. On September 23rd 2015 Estonian Association of the Deaf acknowledged Helpific with a letter of thanks for outstandingly supporting communicational and cultural accessibility.
Helpific’s vision is to be the best and the biggest support system in Europe by 2020, through which people with special needs can buy services and find volunteers to live an independent life.
Helpific’s mission is to promote the individual life of people with special needs and to contribute to forming stronger communities – please, help along!
Everyone applying for help and offering help are welcome to register and post appeals, feedback and suggestions are very much welcome. You can read interesting news from Helpific blog and think together with us.
Text: Laur Raudsoo, Helpific
Translation: Liina Martinson
© Helpific
Welcome to Helpific!
3:12:00 PM
We are delighted that You are on our blog page!
If you are interested in how things actually get done in Estonia, then please continue reading, because you will be pleasantly surprised!
The words that are in front to you are by someone who is not from Estonia, but cherishes every bit of its culture and mentality. Very important element of Estonian spirit is good will and eternal mental activity that is immediately transformed into results. Helpific is a true example of the Estonian way things get done. It has been created in only 48 hours. Yes, you are reading it correctly and I am sure that you have doubts in it, but you should not.
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| Helpific team |
Estonian will to help each other has brought together number of individuals with various skills (from technical, as programming, to the ones with a very untechnical skill, but the most important one, which is having a big an open-minded heart) in an hackathon event organized by a very famous Estonian start-up hub, called Garage48. The theme of that particular hackathon was enabling people with disabilities through technology.
Our group met that day for the first time, and created Helpific platform in just 48 hours. It has been very strenuous, but we did it. And finally I can tell you what Helpific is all about: it is a simple platform that directly connects people who need help with the ones that can and want to give that help.
We all are working very hard to have the system running smoothly and as soon as possible, but meanwhile a lot of interesting facts and news about Helpific, and its progress, will be available through our blogs.
Our group met that day for the first time, and created Helpific platform in just 48 hours. It has been very strenuous, but we did it. And finally I can tell you what Helpific is all about: it is a simple platform that directly connects people who need help with the ones that can and want to give that help.
We all are working very hard to have the system running smoothly and as soon as possible, but meanwhile a lot of interesting facts and news about Helpific, and its progress, will be available through our blogs.
© Helpific
