Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Tech Citizenship

MMRF sponsors charity run at Empire State Run-Up

The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF), based in Norwalk, Conn., recently served as the first nonprofit to be chosen as presenting sponsor in the 34-year history of the Empire State Building Run-Up, held by the New York Road Runners. The MMRF, focused on pursuing innovative means that accelerate the development of next-generation treatments for patients with multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer, has funded a number of New England biotech companies. Among those are Constellation Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Cambridge, Epizyme Inc. of Cambridge and Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc. of Natick
 Previously, the field of 300 participants in the Run-Up has been filled at the sole discretion of the NYRR by invitation only. This year the MMRF filled a charity wave of an additional 100 spots with MMRF PowerTeam members. MMRF Founder and CEO, Kathy Giusti, a myeloma patient, held the finish line tape.
Members of the MMRF PowerTeam tapped into their power to make the difference in the search for a cure for multiple myeloma. Each runner committed to raise a minimum of $2,500, and funds raised by this inaugural MMRF team for the Empire State Building Run-Up exceeded $250,000.
 

Verizon Foundation gave $350,000 in R.I. community grants in 2010
Nonprofit groups in Rhode Island received some $350,000 from the Verizon Foundation in 2010, with the majority of the funds going to organizations that support education, domestic violence prevention and Internet safety. In addition, Verizon employees volunteered more than 3,600 hours to nonprofit groups throughout the state in 2010. In total in 2010, the foundation awarded nearly $67 million to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. Programs and organizations supported by the Verizon Foundation in 2010 include: Think Ahead with Thinkfinity Awards, which landed $50,000; and the Rhode Island Network for Educational Technology (RINET) and the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which won $25,000. In addition, Women’s Fund took in $20,000 for Domestic Violence Technology Solutions.

Vistagy donates FiberSIM software to UMass Amherst
Waltham-based developer of engineering software Vistagy Inc. has given 10 FiberSIM composites engineering software licenses to the University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Engineering. Using the new software, researchers in the Wind Energy Center will be able to improve their design of wind turbine blades. The Center for e-design can use the software to explore ways to model some of the manufacturability information that FiberSIM enables design engineers to capture in the native CAD tool using formal information modeling techniques. Newly hired faculty member Frank Sup will be able to use the software to improve the design of robotic prosthetic devices.

First Wind to be a sponsor at LADWP Science Bowl
First Wind Holdings Inc., a Boston-based wind energy company, sponsored some scholarships and a school award at this year’s Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) Science Bowl. First Wind owns and operates the Milford Wind project in Utah, which delivers clean, renewable power to Los Angeles and some nearby communities. Recently, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and LADWP announced that the city has achieved its goal of receiving 20 percent of the city’s power from renewable energy sources in 2010. Students vied for a combined $25,000 in college scholarship funds for themselves and prizes for their respective high schools.