Game Changers Summit 2014 News Coverage

Summit Coverage on Social Media

The Game Changers Summit, held Sept. 3-5 in Nashville, Tenn., addressed how information and communications technology (ICT) can be used to help parts of the world left behind by the technological revolution.

Participants heard from globally-renowned leaders about how to solve problems in education, wellness, and community development by leveraging the world's growing access to cell towers, Internet and hardware.

Explore the stories below to learn more about the life-enhancing and life-saving potential of technology and how your congregation can become part of this innovative, technology-based mission.

News Coverage

Isaac Broune (left) and April Gonzaga-Mercado lead a panel discussion on using communications as aid as part of the Game Changers Summit at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Mike DuBose, UMNS

Grab your cell phone in typhoon, flood, or war

When disaster strikes a community, cell phones and other communication aids can help with emergency response and recovery. Read More

 
Eric Youngren (right) and John Macdonald view a solar-powered light during the Innovation Fair at the Game Changers Summit at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Mike DuBose, UMNS.

Text messaging can be lifesaving

Technology such as mass text messaging can be lifesaving.
Read more

 
The Rev. Betty Kazadi Musau of the Democratic Republic of Congo gives the sermon during opening worship at the Game Changers Summit at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Mike DuBose, UMNS.

Leveraging information for development

Game Changers Summit draws people from nine countries to hear experts on how technology helps the social good." Read more

 

Meet the summit speakers


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Theology and Education
Mykal Jones (right) recalls how short Isaac Sakala (center) was when he and wife Traci Jones (left) last saw him 10 years before. The Joneses, who are from Dallas, Texas, supported Sakala’s education from primary school through his graduation at Africa University in Zimbabwe on June 6. Sakala is a beneficiary of the Excel Beyond program run by Family Legacy, a Zambian organization caring for orphans and disadvantaged children and youth. Photo by Eveline Chikwanah, UM News.

From foster care to Africa University grad

A partnership between the United Methodist university and Zambia’s Family Legacy helps orphaned and vulnerable students get their degrees.
Mission and Ministry
A student signs for her classmates as Michael Pius (standing in black shirt), a United Methodist health officer, provides information to Deaf students at Buhongwa Secondary School in Mwanza, Tanzania, in 2021. Part of the Tanzania Conference’s Yatosha Deaf Ministry, the outreach includes spiritual guidance and teaching practical skills that empower Deaf students to live healthier and more fulfilling lives. File photo by Robert Aloyce, UM News.

Deaf ministry advances inclusion in Tanzania

The goals of the United Methodist program are to restore dignity, build confidence and empower parents to understand and communicate with their Deaf children.
Social Concerns
Church members from Ebenezer Temple of the Methodist Church of Togo greet Africa Methodist Council visitors after Sunday worship service on May 17 in Aného, Togo. Ebenezer, built in 1895, is the church’s oldest sanctuary. The council gathered leaders of Methodist denominations in Africa to discuss challenges on the continent and strengthen cooperation to help position the church as a prophetic voice for justice and peace. Photo by Eveline Chikwanah, UM News.

African Methodists pledge to speak out against injustice

Wesleyan leaders discuss challenges on the continent and applaud the impact of social amenities run by the church.

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