04/05/2026
A month ago I posted the following
The other day, in conversation with a friend, I found myself reflecting on an experience that continues to shape how I think about technology, equity, and Ubuntu.
In 2009, while you were leading technology at United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), George Price, Vision21 Networks received a large number of end‑of‑cycle workstations—complete with monitors, keyboards, mice, and mouse pads—through your support. Around the same time, our interns from Katherine Gibbs and I were inspired by Nelson Mandela’s explanation of Ubuntu—that our success should help the community around us to improve.
Together, we designed and built the “St. Paul’s Community Church Ubuntu Linux Technology Center” in Harlem, New York, using LTSP and Ubuntu 4.10 “Warty Warthog.” In collaboration with UNFPA, Verizon provided a year of internet service and the email address [email protected] to support the center’s mission.
Before “Project Manager” was a common title, one intern served in that role, and the other intern and I operated as independent 1099 consultants. We handled the design, installation, configuration, optimization, and security of all desktops—turning donated hardware into a community asset.
Once completed, the "St. Paul’s Community Church Linux Technology Center" offered computer literacy classes for seniors, recently released individuals building resumes, and the wider Harlem community. The vision and mission were simple but profound: democratize education and digital access at the neighborhood level.
I wanted you to know, George, that your decision to release those workstations into the community was not in vain. Your generosity helped ignite a technology center rooted in the spirit of Ubuntu—one that lives on in the work I continue to do around open‑source, education, and community‑driven ICT.
Thank you. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA); Canonical; Verizon, hashtag
