Basically, what they did was open up a contest that allowed contributors to find ways to use various pieces of data and combinations of web applications to yield new results. People from all different sectors submitted ideas for how they would like to see technolgy work for them, and then the NetSquared people put teams to work to figure out how to make it happen.
For example, the third-place project found a way to present information on more than 29 social change campaigns so that potential donors and supporters, as well as those involved in the campaigns, can learn how to work together for change.
The outcome is called "Social Actions," and this is how they describe their project:
Social Actions helps individuals and organizations use social media to plan, implement, and support peer-to-peer social change campaigns so that grassroots solutions to local and global problems can flourish.
While Social Actions is probably worth their own post, they are just one of the twenty-one amazing projects that resulted from the Mashup Challenge. This model seems to have incredible potential to solve some of the problems that nonprofits continually face.
So, what do you want technology to do for you and your organization? NetSquared is now taking idea submissions for new Mashups.
