Why we chose Taylor as a Fellow

Taylor is a technologist who has spent the past 7 years designing data systems for leading international development organizations. Before founding Open[Fn], Taylor lived in South Africa working for Grassroots Soccer and consulting on intervention design and training with over a dozen NGOs around the world. He then co-founded Vera Solutions -- an organization that has now served 136 impact-first clients around the world -- and recently shifted to focus on open-source technology integration as a way to accelerate the entire "technology for development" sector. His passion for technology and his frustration with clunky, expensive data systems that didn't help organizations in the field led him to think differently about how to use technology for development programs.

Organizations fighting poverty must make use of emerging technologies to amplify their impact, but the array of available tools is bewildering and the cost of picking the wrong one is high. OpenFn has created a platform that helps nonprofits find, integrate, and implement the right technology solution -- from monitoring and evaluation software to connecting community health workers in the field. Their approach has the potential to save money and drive impact throughout the social sector.