Join the discussion on philanthropy and corporate advertising. The key question is how can non-profit organisations sustain free educational services for those who can’t afford traditional education provision?
Consider the following issues:
As a learner, how would you feel if the course materials included corporate advertising? If advertising were supported, how would you feel if the OERu course sites required you to switch off any add blockers before gaining access to the course materials?
Is it appropriate for public funded institutions and charities working in education to generate revenue from corporate advertising to support and sustain free online services? What are the risks and opportunities?
Should education institutions and educational charities accept significant corporate sponsorship in return for profiling their products?
The OERu has recommended that learners use free blogging services to share their learning outputs. Many of these services carry advertising. How do you feel about using these services being the product rather than consumer? Would it be better for OERu to recommend that learners use a paid service without advertising? How would this impact on learners who do not have sufficient funds to have a domain of their own?
#LIDA102 It is not good to generate a revenue by adding commercial advertising to non-profit institution. If they will do this advertising company can misuse data for personal use and earn money. By excepting educational charities and sponsorship will create problem for them, better to have paid domain, company can make use of your content to sale it or misuse it.
#LiDA102 I guess it would depend on what practice is being adopted by the organisation. Either way would then be detriment to the user (learner) choice on whether to proceed or not. Ideally of course a user like me would want to have the best learning environment without the ads being a distraction or worse, using my details as a trade-off. But for whatever reason that this does not support the organisation sustainably then perhaps options need to be considered further… the discussion continues
As a learner, how would you feel if the course materials included corporate advertising? If advertising were supported, how would you feel if the OERu course sites required you to switch off any add blockers before gaining access to the course materials? As a learner I would feel really bad or I will not agree to the idea of corporate advertisings because I am just a student starting my educational journey and I do not have the money to pay for every single advertisement.#LIDA102
After looking around abit i think these are three good ways non-profit organizations can sustain their operations:
Fundraising: Reaching out to individuals, companies, foundations, and government grants can provide diverse sources of financial support. This method allows non-profits to tap into various funding opportunities and secure the necessary resources.
Partnerships and Collaborations: Working with other organizations, educational institutions, or businesses can yield benefits such as shared resources, expertise, and potentially increased funding. Collaborations can expand the reach and impact of non-profits by leveraging complementary strengths.
Volunteer Support: Relying on dedicated volunteers can reduce staffing costs and save money. Volunteers donate their time and skills, allowing non-profits to allocate resources effectively and focus on fulfilling their mission.