The guest speaker for the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce in San Francisco/Silicon Valley’s monthly luncheon in October was none other than Craig Newmark, Internet entrepreneur and founder of craigslist.org.
It was not hard to convince Craig Newmark to show up at the luncheon, as long as we promised to serve Swedish meatballs with mashed potatoes and lingonberries. The interest in hearing Newmark talk about his career and different projects was big and the event was sold out.
Newmark is a great advocate for keeping the Internet free, and he views it as a tool to help a community as well as international causes.
Moving to a new country, city or just from your parents' house is a big step and the beginning of a whole new experience. The first thing you need is a place to live. If you do not know anyone local, it might be hard to find—even harder if you are from a different country with no previous renting experience or credit. Craigslist.org is the solution. Here you can find anything from a place to live and a new job to unique antiques you didn't know existed.
Craigslist is used all over the world and has more that 20 billion visitors each month. The Web site is, of course, very popular in the U.S. where more than 50 million people use it for one thing or another. During the event SACC-SF member Pete Johnson and his wife shared their most memorable Craigslist experience:
While on their honeymoon in Hawaii, the Johnsons went surfing off the coast of Maui. After a whole day of catching waves Pete noticed that his wedding band was missing. He assumed the ring was lost forever but his wife suggested they should put an ad on Craigslist. The ad provided details about the ring and the approximate coordinates of where they had gone surfing. Two months later, the Johnsons received an email from a treasure hunter who had conducted a grid search of the area with a metal detector and found the ring!
Craigslist is not the only project Newmark is involved in. During the speech he also mentioned working with Kiva.org and LendforPeace.org, organizations which supply micro loans in third world countries. These loans greatly impact people's lives as they provide an opportunity for people to improve on their own circumstances.
Newmark is also involved with DonersChoose.org, an organization which allows people to donate money to various classroom projects posted on the site by teachers in need of items—such as instruments for a school recital or paint for a project—in an effort to provide all students with the resources they need to learn.
While Newmark talks about all his projects it's clear that he is a giving person. His life’s mission is, simply put, to help others by making their tasks easy and convenient ... and there is just no excuse not to do so.
By Ella-Magda Axenram and Maria Larsson
