Alternative Technologies

06/18/2026

06/10/2026

Happy Pride Month!
This month, we celebrate the diversity, resilience, and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community. We also recognize the important role policy makers and law offices play in advancing equality, protecting civil rights, and helping individuals navigate legal challenges with dignity and respect.
From advocating for workplace inclusion to supporting families, businesses, and communities, legal professionals help ensure that justice is accessible to all. We are grateful for the groups who work every day to foster fairness, representation, and equal opportunity.
This Pride Month, we stand with those committed to building a more inclusive future—where everyone can live, work, and thrive as their authentic selves.

Lambda Legal
National LGBTQ+ Bar Association
The National Center for LGBTQ Rights

06/09/2026

Nonprofits truly do hold our community together. From helping seniors to the homeless, cleaning up the environment to providing food to the hungry. There is no sector they do not touch.

We’d like to shout out one nonprofit that helps to support many, with the work they have recently completed.

California Association of Nonprofits helped to celebrate the 11th annual California Nonprofits Day luncheon, celebrating Nonprofits of the Year from across the state. The luncheon was held on the lawn of the state Capitol earlier this month. About 430 people attended, including 73 legislators.

05/26/2026

This Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, let’s celebrate technology innovators in U.S. history:

Nainoa Thompson, Native Hawaiian navigator (born 1953) combined traditional wayfinding principles and modern science to develop the star compass, a conceptual direction system.

Ajay Bhatt, Indian and American computer architect (born 1957) created Universal Series Bus (USB) technology, allowing users to connect different components to computers without extra hassle.

Ching Wan Tang PhD, Hong Kong and American physical chemist (born 1947) invented the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) in 1987. It produces a more vibrant display than LCD because it generates all colors, provides higher contrast and does not require a backlight.

Steven Shih Chen, Taiwanese and American entrepreneur (born 1978) co-founded YouTube, and served as YouTube’s first chief technology officer, ensuring that users did not run into issues when uploading and streaming videos.

AANHPI month gives us an amazing opportunity to highlight and thank these innovators in our shared U.S. history.

Source: https://ideas.ted.com/8-asian-americans-and-pacific-islanders-whose-innovations-have-changed-your-life-really/

05/20/2026

Alternative Technologies can’t stress strongly enough how important nonprofits are at bringing communities together; through their commitment, effort and compassion. California nonprofits keep people housed, healthy, and able to defend their rights, to name just a few.

Here are some of our favorites. Check them out. They do great work and are always looking for volunteers or donations to keep them caring for people in the way that is most needed.

Middle East Children's Alliance - MECA
EBALDC (East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation)
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area
Clinic by the Bay

05/13/2026

Are you a co-op or thinking about becoming one? The CCCD is a great place to meet like minded people with a wide range of experience in the co-op world.

We’ll be there!
Hope to see you too.

https://cccd.coop/

05/06/2026

What if you only had to remember one password ever again? tl;dr: Password manager apps like Bitwarden save time and headaches by keeping track of all your passwords in one place.

The backstory: every app and website requires a password these days. That can mean you have to come up with countless unique passwords, 16 digits long, a mix of letters, numbers and symbols.
New research suggests the common number of passwords used by an individual is about 168 across personal accounts.
That’s a lot of passwords to keep track of, which is why on World Password Day, we’re here to say that a password manager might be right for you. We recommend Bitwarden , but there’s also Dashlane, LastPass , 1Password and more. Many integrate with browsers to autofill passwords in commonly used websites.

Password manager apps are a cornerstone to digital security, along with strong unique passwords and passphrases. Keep yourself and your organization safe in these troubling times: keep your passwords locked up.

05/01/2026

This International Workers Day is your opportunity to get involved in the movement for better workplaces. Consider giving a follow to these organizations:

Workers’ Rights
* UFW
* Athena
* SBWorkersUnited

Worker Ownership
* Democracy At Work Institute
* US Federation of Worker Cooperatives
* California Center for Cooperative Development

Workplace rights and workplace democracy are great places to start for a more inclusive and just society.

04/27/2026

As we close out Earth Month, share the love. Consider giving a follow to these terrific environmental and environmental justice groups:

* 350 Bay Area sponsors monthly climate action meetings where you can learn more and get involved right here in the Bay Area.
* Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) is turning a beloved rec center into a hub of climate resilience in Oakland’s Chinatown.
* San Francisco Baykeeper just won a major court battle over water pollution in the South Bay’s Creeks.
* California Environmental Justice Alliance is celebrating a coalition victory against big oil which means that the hard-won SB1137 (establishing 3,200 ft setbacks between oil drilling and communities) will go into effect immediately.
* California Environmental Voters just issued its 2025 scorecard for California legislators.
* Center for Environmental Health is exposing chain stores selling products that contain lead, cadmium, and BPA.
* Communities For A Better Environment is pushing California's lead air quality agency to stand up to big oil.
* Justice Outside has expanded its No Child Left Inside advocacy to include children incarcerated and impacted by ICE.
* Rising Sun Center for Opportunity inaugurated the first Heat Pump Week in California (heat pumps use electricity to heat and cool homes instead of gas, and are one of the most effective ways to reduce carbon emissions from homes).
* Sunrise Movement Bay Area chapter is organizing against fossil-fueled fascism and Flock surveillance. Get involved if you want to make supersized protest art!

04/24/2026

📣 CCCD is hiring a new Executive Director!
The California Center for Cooperative Development is seeking their next Executive Director to help grow cooperative enterprises and shape the future of cooperative development in California!

CCCD believes in the power of cooperation to build more just, sustainable, and democratic communities. Help CCCD find it’s next Executive Director to do just that!

Learn more and apply at: https://cccd.coop/hiring-executive-director

Applications due: May 21st