By Sam Wainwright – Special to CNN

New communications tools and behaviors are spurring innovation worldwide, revolutionizing finance, community, business, giving and government.  Here are some fascinating examples:

Finance: Mobile phone technology is empowering individuals to directly exchange money through their cell phones, bypassing traditional banking institutions. Companies like Square and their headphone-jack card reader let anyone with a smart phone accept credit card payments.

Mobile banking has developed even faster and spread far wider around the world. In Kenya, M-PESA connects over 65% of households to mobile money services. Websites like Kiva.org turn individuals into micro-financiers, allowing them to make $25 loans to anyone in the world.

Community: P2P technology is also facilitating near-free global communication through technology like Voice over IP (VoIP), turning even niche marketplaces into global exchanges.

Start-ups like Speak Shop, a web-based marketplace of Latin America Spanish tutors, allow  anyone, anywhere to brush up on their Español via Skype.

Alternative “mesh” Internet architectures are also emerging as challengers to traditional notions of centralized, institutional control over the web. When the Egyptian government attempted to shut down the country’s Internet last February, Egyptian hackers turned to mesh networking to bypass the blackout.

Business: People aren’t the only ones connecting in new ways. There are new direct company-to-person interactions, whether as simple as announcing deals on Twitter, or as complex as a Spiroxil’s system for detecting counterfeit prescription drugs in the developing world with a cellphone camera.

Companies are connecting with new workforces by crowdsourcing small tasks with Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, or by partnering with not-for-profits like Samasource to build sustainable internet-based jobs for people in poverty.

Giving: Charities have also benefited. Direct giving through text messages became a major source of international philanthropy – especially disaster relief – following the Haitian earthquake last year. Meanwhile, sites like GlobalGiving connect individual donors to grassroots charity projects with unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability.

A free service called ChildCount+ uses text messaging to coordinate community-based health providers in Africa. Beside providing for the social good of improving the delivery of health care, ChildCount+ means more patients end up coming back for follow-up appointments.

Government: Lower barriers to communication are also allowing individuals to hold governments accountable in ways never before possible. Ushahidi maps have been revolutionary in increasing government transparency. The free and open-source software allows anyone to report location-tagged information, and has been tweaked to track everything from street violence in Kenya to infrastructure damage from the Haitian earthquake. Residents of D.C. even used it to track snow removal during 2010’s “snowmaggedon.”

Perhaps most strikingly, many of these new interactions begin with the ethos of “free” and seek out new ways to monetize innovation outside of traditional cash-for-goods-rendered transactions. For example, Ushahidi software generates revenue by offering set-up and hosting services.

As Chris Anderson noted in his book Free: The Future of a Radical Price, “free” is “a word with an extraordinary ability to reset consumer psychology, create new markets, break old ones and make almost any product more attractive.”

Taken together, all these breakthroughs suggest that the truly innovative work in the global economy is increasingly divorced from traditional models of individual ownership and old boundaries of communication. Indeed, new forms of communication are leading the way.

Boomers and seniors learning to speak Spanish are seeing real advantages in working one-to-one with personal Spanish tutors via the Internet. These adult students love the convenience, personalized curriculum, and fun of conversing with a native Spanish speaker in Central America using online videoconferencing.

Students have used Speak Shop, a seven-year-old company, to take more than 20,000 lessons online from Spanish tutors in Guatemala. Using their personal computers, students reserve a 50-minute lesson that fits their schedule and then videoconference with their tutor using the free software application, Skype.

Carol Griffin, a 70-year-old student, said, “Before Speak Shop I tried group classes at our local community center and CDs to learn Spanish. I love Speak Shop because the one-to-one classes really focus on my level, interests, and needs. My tutor, Rebeca, is patient, encouraging, and always fun to work with.” Carol and her daughter, Margo, who also learns Spanish at Speak Shop, recently traveled to Guatemala to meet their tutors and be immersed in the Spanish-speaking culture. “It was incredible to meet Rebeca and Mayra,” said Margo who had never thought of going to Guatemala before taking Spanish lessons through Speak Shop, “They are wonderful people, and my mom and I are already talking about returning someday.”

Guatemala is a world-renowned destination for learning Spanish. Hundreds of Spanish immersion schools comprise one of the country’s primary tourism industries. Speak Shop tutors have been teaching Spanish for 10 to 25 years at these schools. In addition to teaching Spanish language skills, they are able to explain culture and customs from an insider’s perspective and can customize the lesson on any number of topics to match each student’s interests.

Speak Shop has seen a spike in boomer and senior students. This trend may be due in part to an interest in preventative health care. A 2010 study from the Rotman Research Institute and York University found that being bilingual may delay the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease compared to those who spoke only one language.

Americans are finding it increasingly useful to be able to speak Spanish both at home and abroad. Spanish is the second most common language spoken in the United States and the second most common language spoken by native speakers in the world. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that Latinos are the largest minority group in the U.S. and 1 of every 6 Americans, about 50 million people, are Hispanic.

In Guatemala, Spanish tutoring is a seasonal business, and Speak Shop enables its tutors to work throughout the year. “Speak Shop is a blessing because I am able to work from home and better able to provide for my family,” said Claritza Morales, 2010 Speak Shop Tutor of the year.

From now until Mother’s Day (Sunday May 8th, 2011) Speak Shop is offering adults age 50 and older the Unlimited Monthly Membership for $19.99—a 50% discount off the regular monthly price of $39.99 (lessons purchased separately). Details are available at http://www.speakshop.com/seniors.

Speak Shop is using 21st century technology to re-establish the benefits of learning Spanish from a human instructor. Speak Shop is a Certified B Corporation founded in 2004 to increase access to cross-cultural foreign language education and to generate economic opportunity for people in developing countries. For more details watch a demonstration video: http://www.speakshop.com/01_demo

In this series social entrepreneurs discuss the importance of sharing their big idea and reaching out to others. From  making business partners out of strangers to saving flooded headquarters, our contacts and future contacts routinely prove integral to every aspect of creating and running a social enterprise.

Speak Shop seeks to create inter-cultural dialog and understanding through language lessons. People use the service to take Spanish lessons with tutors in Guatemala one-on-one by webcam, and the founders hope to expand to other languages and countries.

Their business model makes tutors micro-business owners instead of seasonal teachers and gives the student a cultural and language experience without the overhead costs of travel.

Dowser: What’s something concrete and tangible you’ve learned in the last three months?
Cooper: You need to find at least one other person you can let your guard down with who really gets it. I’m lucky I have that with Clay who is not just a co-founder, but also my husband. But sometimes you need someone outside your organization or family. Most people do not want to hear about your problems, but other social entrepreneurs are usually pretty receptive, and that’s where I go first. I recently heard a venture capitalist say, ‘As an entrepreneur, you need to show your passion. When you ask people which Winnie-the-Pooh character they want to be, no one says Eeyore’ (the gloomy one). He has a point. But entrepreneurship is notoriously up and down, so it’s really important to know who will be there on your Eeyore days.

What is a mistake or mishap you’ve learned from?
One of the biggest mistakes we made early on was waiting to launch for fear of failing. When Speak Shop started out in 2004 we were very hesitant because no one had ever offered or heard of one-on-one Spanish tutoring by webcam, and we did not have the resources to prove that webcam-based tutoring would work. After unsuccessfully trying to get beta testers for several months, we just started marketing Speak Shop using Google Ads. People came. We were really excited, but still worried we might have launched too soon. I remember asking our first customer, Poppy: ‘Do you think you can learn Spanish this way?’ She was probably wondering: Why do you need to ask me, but she said, ‘Yes, absolutely!’ That was one of the best moments. We had a real customer who was excited and happy. I now notice that even huge companies like Twitter and Facebook fail some times. By temporarily suspending the drive for perfection, you can create something that really works and truly helps people. You aren’t an entrepreneur until you’ve made mistakes.

Speak Shop Spanish tutors provide one-on-one Spanish lessons to people all over the world using videoconferencing technology. The tutors are certified Spanish instructors who operate their own micro-business through Speak Shop.

Based in Antigua, Guatemala, Claritza has nearly 20 years of Spanish instruction experience and started teaching Spanish online at Speak Shop in 2007. She also teaches students at the local PROBIGUA Spanish Academy. Claritza has taught nearly 3000 hours of Spanish online and consistently receives outstanding feedback ratings from her students who often mention how fun, supportive and truly kind she is.

Spanish tutors in Guatemala, one of the poorest countries in Latin America, rarely have the opportunity to operate their own businesses and few can afford computers at home. In appreciation of Claritza’s kindness and support during a serious illness, one of her students sent her the money to buy a computer, which not only helped her with her business, but also gave her more time with her five children. This story was chronicled in the Omaha World-Herald http://press.speakshop.com/2009/03/31/friendship-grows-from-online-lessons/ .

Jean Wakefield, one of Claritza’s students, uses Spanish as a nurse and says, “Claritza teaches from the heart, with patience and humor. She encourages me to practice my Spanish with her and at my workplace, and she explains Spanish usage and Guatemalan culture. I have seen such great improvement in my Spanish since working with her. She is such a positive and inspiring teacher, and the hour-long tutoring session just flies by.”

“I am very excited and honored to win Tutor of the Year for 2010,” says Claritza, “I feel very fortunate to be working with Speak Shop because I am able to teach from home which allows me to spend more time with my family. I’m grateful to God, Speak Shop, PROBIGUA and each of my students who give me the opportunity for dignified work.”

Speak Shop CEO Clay Cooper says, “Claritza is not only a great Spanish tutor, she also has the unique ability to put just about anyone at ease – from the young to the young at heart. I was one of those people who would get nervous about making mistakes in Spanish, and I know what a difference it makes when you feel comfortable with your Spanish tutor. Claritza is a wonderful asset to the Speak Shop community.”

About Speak Shop
Speak Shop is a certified B Corp founded in 2004 to increase access to cross-cultural foreign language education and to generate economic opportunity for people in developing countries. People around the world use Speak Shop to learn Spanish online by webcam. For more details visit http://www.speakshop.com.

Portland, OR (PRWEB) July 29, 2010

Speak Shop, the award-winning provider of live Spanish lessons by video chat, is pleased to announce that Marist College Spanish students have completed a short program of conversational Spanish practice with Speak Shop tutors.

“Anyone who has studied a language can appreciate how important it is to become comfortable verbally communicating with another individual,” said Dr. Kevin Gaugler, Associate Professor of Spanish, Marist College

Over the course of two weeks, two Marist College students used the service to communicate one-on-one by videoconference with Spanish tutors in Antigua, Guatemala. The students practiced their speaking and listening skills with tutors Rosa María and Osberto during eight one-hour conversational Spanish lessons. The tutors utilized immersion style instruction, a highly effective teaching method commonly used in study abroad programs. Tutors coached students on pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar while conversing about a variety of topics, including life in Guatemala.

“The students have a strong command of grammar and vocabulary, but Speak Shop gave them a unique opportunity to practice speaking while getting a first-hand perspective of life in another country,” said Dr. Kevin Gaugler, Associate Professor of Spanish, Marist College. “Anyone who has studied a language can appreciate how important it is to become comfortable verbally communicating with another individual,” he said, “the tutors are masters at developing that confidence because they have infinite patience and remain friendly and upbeat for the entire session.

About Speak Shop
Founded in 2004, Speak Shop is a certified B Corp (for benefit company) that increases cross-cultural foreign language education and generates fair wage businesses for talented teachers in developing countries. Customers take personalized, cross-cultural, conversational Spanish lessons at their convenience using a computer and high speed Internet connection. Speak Shop helps students learn Spanish online for good. For more details visit http://www.speakshop.com

Portland, OR (PRWEB) July 14, 2010

Speak Shop, the award-winning provider of live Spanish lessons by video chat, has now delivered more than 15,000 hours of one-on-one Spanish lessons.

“I remember asking our first customer, ‘Do you think you will be able to learn Spanish this way?’ Now we have the numbers to show that it works,” said Clay Cooper, Founder and CEO

“When we started Speak Shop, no one was teaching Spanish using videoconferencing technology,” recalled Clay Cooper, Founder and CEO. “I remember asking our first customer, ‘Do you think you will be able to learn Spanish this way?’ She gave us a lot of affirmation and that fueled us to keep going,” he said. “Now we have the numbers to show that it works.”

Speak Shop, a family-owned business, was created to bring the world closer through language instruction. Speak Shop’s 12 Spanish teachers are based in Guatemala and Nicaragua and have found greater independence and financial stability by teaching online. “I am a single mother and sole earner, and Speak Shop has been very important in helping me provide for my daughter and improve my economic situation,” says Speak Shop teacher Mayra Juarez.

About Speak Shop Founded in 2004, Speak Shop is a certified B Corp (for benefit company) that increases cross-cultural foreign language education and generates fair wage businesses for talented teachers in developing countries. Customers take personalized, cross-cultural, conversational Spanish lessons at their convenience using a computer and high speed Internet connection. Speak Shop helps students learn Spanish online for good. For more details visit http://www.speakshop.com

# # #

Portland, OR, (PRWEB) June 9, 2010 — Speak Shop, the award-winning provider of live online Spanish classes and certified B Corp (for benefit company),

is pleased to announce the Speak Shop Breakup Award. The award recognizes enthusiastic, happy customers who have stopped taking lessons with Speak Shop.

The idea was inspired by “breakup” emails from customers who were excited about achieving their goals and ready to move on. Cindy Cooper, Co-founder, says, “We get very nice notes from customers who are about to close their

accounts that basically say, ‘It’s not you, it’s me….’ I thought: We should have an award.”

Kara, a busy medical resident in Florida, is the first Breakup Award winner. Her breakup note said: “I hold Speak Shop in high regard and truly value the services you offer. I am now able to communicate with my Spanish-speaking patients.” She added, “You offer an invaluable service, especially to medical personnel and students. The classes are affordable and extremely flexible. Speak Shop has offered me the ability to fit Spanish classes into my very hectic and unpredictable schedule. I have been able to develop a personal relationship with my teacher, Aracely, who is in Guatemala. In addition to improving my grammar, she has helped me understand cultural issues which are very pertinent to my Latin American patients.” Kara will receive a Speak Shop t-shirt and lifelong thanks.

Speak Shop is a social mission business, created to make it easy to take live Spanish lessons online and to provide fair wages to language teachers in impoverished countries. For about $10 per lesson, customers use their computers to meet face-to-face with their Spanish tutor at their convenience. Speak Shop teachers are Spanish instruction specialists living in Guatemala and Nicaragua. Speak Shop enables them to operate their own tutoring business, set their own rates and hours and connect with customers all over the world.

Many of Speak Shop’s former customers return to brush up, or even travel to Central America to take lessons in person. “Even after they reach their goals and a comfort level with the language, our best customers continue meeting with their tutors,” says Founder and CEO Clay Cooper. “Working with a teacher who is completely focused on their needs, they learn more quickly, and they have fun. The fun factor is usually a big change from the methods they’ve tried in the past. It’s motivating for them and rewarding for us.”
About Speak Shop
Speak Shop is a certified B Corp (for benefit company) founded in 2004 to increase access to cross-cultural foreign language education and to generate fair wage businesses for people in developing countries. Speak Shop charges students a membership fee of $9.99 to $39.99 per month depending on the number of lessons they plan to take. Speak Shop makes it possible to learn Spanish online with live Spanish tutors in Latin America. Customers (i.e. Spanish students) schedule, purchase and take one-on-one Spanish lessons by webcam. Connected to a world market and empowered as micro-entrepreneurs, tutors move from poverty to prosperity. Customers are able to take personalized, cross-cultural, conversational Spanish lessons at their convenience using a computer and high speed Internet connection. For more details visit http://www.speakshop.com.

Portland, OR — February 10, 2010— Speak Shop, http://www.speakshop.com, the first and only registered B Corporation (for benefit company) offering online Spanish lessons via webcam, is pleased to announce Rebeca Gonzalez as the 2009 Tutor of the Year.

Speak Shop tutors are micro-business owners, setting their own hours and rates. Most have a minimum of five years experience teaching Spanish to foreigners, and Speak Shop trains them on the technology and business skills required to be strong online instructors. Each tutor’s success rests largely on her skills and motivation.

Based in Antigua, Guatemala, Rebeca started teaching Spanish online at Speak Shop in 2006. While balancing a challenging law school schedule, Rebeca taught 755 lessons in 2009. She has developed a growing and loyal client base, consistently garnering high lesson feedback ratings and praise from her students.

“I am very thankful for the opportunity to participate in Speak Shop,” says Rebeca, “I know that this award comes with great responsibility, and I am prepared to demonstrate that I can do even more.”

Speak Shop co-founder Cindy Cooper says, “Rebeca is one of those people who you know will go out of her way to do an excellent job. She cares about her work and has an ethic of constantly wanting to improve. We’re very fortunate to have Rebeca as a Speak Shop Spanish tutor.”

About Speak Shop

Speak Shop was founded in 2004 to increase access to cross-cultural foreign language education and to generate economic opportunity for people in developing countries. People around the world use Speak Shop to take live, face-to-face Spanish classes online by webcam. For more details visit http://www.speakshop.com.

Clay Cooper had always struggled to learn Spanish. It wasn’t until he studied in Guatemala at age 31 that he finally succeeded.

Untours Catalog Fall 2009

During that trip he also learned that hard work and education did not always pay off. With limited opportunities in Guatemala, even his university-educated tutor lived in poverty. That experience inspired (www.SpeakShop.com), an online fair trade language tutoring business Clay founded with his wife, Cindy Cooper.

Speak Shop gives language tutors the training and technology to become micro-entrepreneurs, reaching customers worldwide and teaching via webcam. While tutors improve their livelihoods, by setting their own rates and hours, people who hunger to learn a language log onto their website to take one-on-one lessons.  These are only two of the many reasons Speak Shop was a finalist for the 2007 Project Enterprise Contest on PBS, which highlighted social entrepreneurs.

Untours Catalog Learn a Language for Good

Currently, Speak Shop’s tutors come from Guatemala, Nicaragua and Brazil. Cindy & Clay hope their business will grow to include many countries and generate a variety of cross-cultural connections. In addition, the software they have created will be usable by other businesses that address poverty.

“For me, the true benefit of an immersion program was developing a friendship with my tutor,” said Clay. “I now care deeply about what happens in Guatemala.  I hope that through Speak Shop we can share this experience at a global level and increase cultural awareness and concern.”

Check out the website at www.speakshop.com, and try a free lesson!