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Facebook Asks You to Donate to Fight Ebola

Facebook is about to ask all of its users to donate to the fight against Ebola. Not since Facebook pushed its users to sign up for organ donation has the company been so forward with a health/humanita...
Facebook Asks You to Donate to Fight Ebola
Written by Josh Wolford
  • Facebook is about to ask all of its users to donate to the fight against Ebola. Not since Facebook pushed its users to sign up for organ donation has the company been so forward with a health/humanitarian issue.

    Over the next week, Facebook is going to prompt users to donate to a few nonprofits using a banner atop their news feeds.

    “Organizations involved in the fight against Ebola are using Facebook to raise funds for their relief efforts,” says Facebook. “We want to amplify these calls for action and help organizations raise awareness and connect directly with people around the world. Over the next week, people on Facebook will see a message at the top of News Feed with an option to donate…”

    If you choose to donate, you’ll have the option to give to International Medical Corps, the Red Cross, or Save the Children. After you make your donation, Facebook would, of course, like you to share it with your friends.

    Facebook has also announced a partnership with UNICEF that will see the company push Ebola-related health information to the news feeds of people in affected areas (in the appropriate local languages).

    And in a truly proactive move, Facebook is donating 100 mobile satellite communication terminals to areas of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to boost voice and data services in underserved areas.

    “Focusing on areas where there is little to no existing communications capacity, NetHope will deploy these terminals to help medical and aid workers with contact tracing, communication, case management and community mobilization. Response organizations estimate that for each patient, at least 10 other people will provide health care, contact tracing and other services that may require telecommunications — and improvements are most important in rural areas where infrastructure is weakest and case loads are highest,” says Facebook.

    It’s clear that Facebook, and most importantly its CEO, are taking the Ebola epidemic seriously. You might recall that Mark Zuckerberg recently gave the CDC $25 million to help fight the disease.

    Image via Facebook

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