The GLAD Vision

- Ben Eastvold, Founder

The seeds of GLAD’s work were planted in Nakuru, Kenya, as I taught computers to twenty young adults on the patio of a building under construction. Open to the elements and with folding tables full of Chromebooks, we studied and practiced together technology skills that would serve them well as they entered university. Many of these students were leaving behind the poverty of the Nairobi slums or remote rural areas, in pursuit of something more. Though some of the students had never even touched a computer before, they finished the class knowing how to type, collaborate on a Google Doc, draft a resume, research using the internet, and even learned a little coding. It was striking to see how significant an impact education made in these students’ lives, highlighting the stark difference between a struggle for economic survival and the hopefulness of a meaningful career. It would be an understatement to describe them as motivated.

At the same time, I was reading books on the topic of vocation. I reflected, “Is ‘vocation’ only a word that the privileged enjoy?” The idea of a “calling” or “meaningful purpose” to one’s job and career can often feel like a luxury that many can’t afford. When food needs to be put on the table and rent needs to be paid, the mere fact of keeping a steady job and having an income feels like a victory, Yet here I was living on a farm, taking bucket baths to stay clean, walking to the village market for the day’s vegetables, and living everyday life with my family and a group of students eager for learning and relationship. There was a feeling of wholeness and deep joy in the experience, leaving a lasting impression of “this is how education should be!”

I came across a quote by Frederick Buechner: “Vocation is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” What if vocation is more than a career, but a way of living? Vocation could then be summed up as the joining together of self-love and other-oriented love, in whatever place we find ourselves in life. And I began to notice intertwining threads that ultimately led me to this work of GLAD Technology.

Giving

For those involved in community outreach and support, there is an awareness that giving is not a one-way street. On the surface it might look like the giving goes one direction: providing meals for the hungry, giving medical care to the uninsured, or teaching in under-resourced communities. Yet when one sees these acts as opportunities for compassion and as possibilities for relationship, the recognition of our common humanity brings us together. A mutuality grows in the connection, and the boundaries between giving and receiving become amazingly blurred. I myself found this to be true while teaching in Kenya, often receiving more from my students than I was giving, as they brought to the table creativity, inspiration, and friendship.

Learning

While working in Kenya it became strikingly apparent that, for my students, education was a significant avenue leading towards a better life. It was not taken for granted, and they were fully aware of the possibilities that could become realized through their own growing knowledge and skills. This awareness fostered a learning environment filled with hope and collaboration; they saw that we were in this together - and the classroom became a place of belonging and wholeheartedness. We were learning not just the subject matter but even more, learning about each other and inspiring one another towards bigger and greater things.

Development

With GLAD Technology, an organization that focuses on technology education, it is easy to just think of “development” as “software development,” learning to code, building apps and websites. But in the context of an interconnected and interdisciplinary learning environment, education is far more about personal development and community development. How does this learning help you become the person you were meant to be, the truest expression of yourself? And how does this gift of learning become a benefit to others, to your community, to the world? Our world desperately needs teachers and learners who work from this foundation. In the ecosphere of the tech industry, instead of looking for the greatest profit margins or the next “big thing” to hit the market, what if the foundation for our work started with seeking the next “good thing?” We can encourage learners and developers, using their knowledge and skills with technology, to make their communities and the world just a little bit better. And rather than seeking out what we can gain, we instead seek out what we can give - because true development reveals that we belong to one another.