Ken Banks Explained

Ken Banks
Birth Place:Jersey
Nationality:British
Alma Mater:University of Sussex
Occupation:Social entrepreneur, mobile technologist
Years Active:2002 - present
Known For:mobile technology
Founder of kiwanja.net and FrontlineSMS

Ken Banks (born 1966) is a British social entrepreneur and author. He is the creator FrontlineSMS, a mobile messaging platform that allows communication in areas with limited internet access worldwide.[1] He is also the founder of Kiwanja.net, an NGO dedicated to the use of mobile technology for social and environmental change, with a particular focus on Africa.[2]

Early life and education

Banks was born in 1966 in Jersey, Channel Islands. Banks attended Hautlieu School and Highlands College. In 1995, he attended his undergraduate degree at the University of Sussex, studying social anthropology and development studies, graduating in 1999.[3]

Career

In 2001, Banks became a project manager at CERCOPAN in Nigeria. His time there was cut short by a traffic accident in Calabar in 2002, after which he returned to Jersey to recover. During this period, Banks was approached by Fauna and Flora International (FFI), an international conservation organization, and his work there lead to the launch of the Wildlive! Mobile Portal in December 2003. The initiative provided images, animal sounds, conservation-themed games, and live news to Vodafone subscribers.[4]

In 2003, Banks founded kiwanja.net, an NGO dedicated to the use of mobile technology for social and environmental change, with a particularly focus on Africa.[5] In 2004, Banks was approached by Kruger National Park officials in South Africa, asking for a solution to update Bushbuckridge community members on changes in the park using their mobile phones. This inspired him to develop FrontlineSMS, a platform that sends and receives text messages (SMS) via mobile phones without requiring internet access, in 2005.[6]

FrontlineSMS

FrontlineSMS was used by a Nigerian organization called Humanitarian Emancipation Lead Project (HELP) to assist Nigerians in reporting on their 2007 national elections.[7] The BBC ran a story, Texts monitor Nigerian elections, mentioning FrontlineSMS. User downloads and global interest accelerated as a result.[8] In 2009, Banks started a two-year FrontlineSMS Ambassadors Programme with the Clinton Foundation.[9] FrontlineSMS received partnerships and supports from numerous international donors including the MacArthur Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Open Society Initiative, Rockefeller Foundation, and Omidyar Network, among others.[10]

Additional career

In 2012, Banks launched Means of Exchange, a project aimed at rebuilding local communities through technology.[11] One of the first initiatives was a "cash mob" during the London Olympics.[12]

In 2012, Banks stepped down from the day-to-day running of FrontlineSMS, handing leadership to Laura Walker Hudson and Sean McDonald, respectively.[13] He transitioned to the role of Chair of the Board, and in 2015, he took on new positions, including Entrepreneur in Residence at CARE International and Visiting Fellow at RMIT University in Melbourne.[14]

Other considerations

In 2011, Banks was invited to join the UK Prime Minister’s delegation to the Africa.[15]

Books

Banks has authored three books:

Impact

Banks's work with FrontlineSMS and kiwanja.net, has impact on the use of technology for development and social change, particularly in under-resourced regions.

Recognitions

References

  1. Web site: Burbank . April . How Ken Banks Built a Startup One Text Message at a Time . 2024-10-15 . Forbes . en.
  2. Web site: Butler . Rhett A. . 2007-04-15 . Cell phones, text-messaging revolutionize conservation approaches . 2024-10-15 . Mongabay Environmental News . en-US.
  3. Web site: 2018 . Ken Banks, BA in Social Anthropology and International Development (1999) talks about his career . https://web.archive.org/web/20181218130948/http://www.sussex.ac.uk/development/about/kenbanks . December 18, 2018 . December 18, 2018 . University of Sussex.
  4. Web site: Sitas . Nadia . 2008-04-16 . Mobile game to help save gorillas . 2024-10-15 . EDGE of Existence . en-GB.
  5. Web site: Imani M. Cheers . 2013-02-25 . Changing the World, One SMS at a Time . https://web.archive.org/web/20131203182716/https://internationalreportingproject.org/stories/view/changing-the-world-one-sms-at-a-time . 2013-12-03 . 2017-12-03 . International Reporting Project.
  6. Web site: 2022-05-13 . Ken Banks revels in extraordinary pursuit of life as a social innovator in new book . 2024-10-15 . Cambridge Independent . en.
  7. Web site: Stuart Thornton . 2011-01-21 . Spreading the Message . https://web.archive.org/web/20171207123905/https://www.nationalgeographic.org/news/spreading-message/ . 2017-12-07 . 2017-12-07 . National Geographic Society.
  8. News: 2007-04-20 . Texts monitor Nigerian elections . https://web.archive.org/web/20171207140510/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6570919.stm . 2017-12-07 . 2017-12-07 . BBC.
  9. Web site: FrontlineSMS Ambassadors Programme . https://web.archive.org/web/20161110113809/https://www.clintonfoundation.org/clinton-global-initiative/commitments/frontlinesms-ambassadors-programme . 2016-11-10 . 2017-12-12 . Clinton Foundation.
  10. Book: Bits and Atoms: Information and Communication Technology in Areas of Limited Statehood . Oxford University Press . 2014 . 978-0-19-994159-9 . Livingston . Steven . 84–85 . FrontlineSMS:Grassroots M4D Innovation and the Challenges of Success . 2017-12-07 . https://books.google.com/books?id=kMgVDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA84 . Google Books.
  11. Web site: Kathryn Cave . 2015-01-15 . Ken Banks interview: Technology for social good . https://web.archive.org/web/20150806004106/http://www.idgconnect.com/abstract/9306/ken-banks-interview-technology-social . 2015-08-06 . 2017-12-10 . IDG Connect.
  12. News: Monty Munford . 2012-08-15 . Cash Mobs: how the internet can revive local shops . https://web.archive.org/web/20171210113218/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9476691/Cash-Mobs-how-the-internet-can-revive-local-shops.html . 2017-12-10 . 2017-12-10 . The Daily Telegraph.
  13. News: Monty Munford . 2012-08-15 . Cash Mobs: how the internet can revive local shops . https://web.archive.org/web/20171210113218/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9476691/Cash-Mobs-how-the-internet-can-revive-local-shops.html . 2017-12-10 . 2017-12-10 . The Daily Telegraph.
  14. Web site: Rob Goodier . 2016-05-12 . Five Questions with Ken Banks: ICT4D Writer, Editor and FrontlineSMS Founder . https://web.archive.org/web/20160811153733/http://www.engineeringforchange.org/five-questions-with-ken-banks-ict4d-writer-editor-and-frontlinesms-founder/ . 2016-08-11 . 2017-12-10 . Engineering for Change.
  15. Web site: 2018-04-17 . In the Spotlight with Ken, Head of Social Impact at Yoti . 2019-03-10 . Yoti Blog . en.
  16. Web site: The Rise of the Reluctant Innovator . 2024-10-15 . LPP - The London Publishing Partnership . en-GB.
  17. Book: Banks, Ken . Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation: International Case Studies and Practice . 2016 . Kogan Page . 978-0-7494-7591-8 . en.
  18. Book: Banks, Ken . The Pursuit of Purpose: Part Memoir, Part Study - A Book About Finding Your Way in the World . 2022-02-21 . Ken Banks . 978-1-7397717-0-6 . en.
  19. Web site: Tides . Tides Awards the 2011 Pizzigati Prize to Ken Banks . 2024-10-15 . www.prnewswire.com . en.
  20. Web site: Zeichner . Baruch . 2015-11-01 . Curry-Stone Design Prize Winner 2011: Frontline SMS - Ken Banks, Sean McDonald & Laura Walker McDonald . 2024-10-15 . Paradigms Podcast . en-US.
  21. Web site: The Association for Computing Machinery Awards Ken Ashoka . 2024-10-15 . www.ashoka.org . en-ke.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Ken Banks".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2025, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.