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About Me

I grew up as a missionary kid bouncing back and forth between Sudan and Kenya. My youth consisted of two sisters, great parents and a Yorkshire Terrier trekking from Juba to Nairobi to Khartoum. I was able to attend, and am a proud alumni, of one of East Africa's premier schools, Rift Valley Academy in Kijabe, Kenya.

The constant bridging of worlds (African and American) started at such a young age that it has become embedded in my character. I find it easy to switch between cultures and enjoy friends and associates on either side of the ocean.

Constant moving, meeting new people and the resulting life-long friendships have helped craft my character and personality. I thrive on change, risk and new ventures. Few areas, or ideas, are too far out there for me to think and act on.

I am happily married to my wonderful and ever-supporting wife Rinnie, along with 3 beautiful daughters ages 3, 5 and 7.

Here's a more official bio:

Erik Hersman is the founder of AfriGadget, a multi-author website that showcases stories of Africans solving everyday problems with little more than their creativity and ingenuity. Fascinated by micro-entrepreneurs, gadgets and improvisation, he is proving that technology is changing Africa - daily.

Erik is also the co-founder of Ushahidi (which means "testimony" in Swahili), a website created to map the reported incidents of violence happening during the post-election crisis in Kenya. Currently, he is working with a team of mostly-African programmers to use what they have learned from building Ushahidi to create a free and open source engine that makes it easier to crowdsource crisis information and visualize data.

Raised in Sudan and Kenya, Erik brings unique energy and insight to the world of technology and innovation – bridging the gap between Africa and Silicon Valley. An avid blogger Erik writes two different technology blogs including: AfriGadget and WhiteAfrican. One dedicated to low-tech African ingenuity, and the other to high-tech mobile and web changes happening throughout Africa.

Location:
Kenya, Nairobi
Current organization:
Ushahidi
Past organizations:
AfriGadget, iHub
Current role:
Co-Founder
Gender:
Male
Areas of expertise:
Blogging, Web development, Ideas, Mobile phones, Africa
I am:
Blogger, Brainstormer, Christian, Entrepreneur, Idea generator, Parent, Social entrepreneur, Technologist, Web guru, World traveler
Languages:
English
My website links:
White African - where africa and technology collide, Ushahidi: Crowdsourcing Crisis Information, iHub - Nairobi's Innovation Hub
Universities:
Florida State University
TED conferences attended:
TEDGlobal 2013, TED2012, TEDGlobal 2011, TED2011, TEDGlobal 2010, TED2010, TED2009
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TEDCRED 200+ TED SpeakerTED Fellow

More About Me

I'm passionate about

Good ideas. Using technology to change Africa. Mobile and internet platforms that dynamically change society. Questioning the status quo.

An idea worth spreading

Let's talk about connecting Africans. A social network that's actually useful, free to the end user and manages to cause greater social interaction. The only platform worth talking about in Africa is the mobile phone (Africa's PC).

Let's talk about:
- Creating a mobile marketplace where buyers and sellers can connect.
- Providing a repository for news and information that users can upload their own local news to.
- Connecting employers with future employees.
- The future of African connectivity.

It's regional, and it's completely customized by the people wh use it at the local level. It's news, information and community by Africans for Africans.

Talk to me about

African ingenuity and technology.
Liberating information
Creating a mobile phone payment platform for Africa.

People don't know that I'm good at

Rugby and soccer. Most board games.

My TED Story

TED Global 2007 in Arusha was where we first came together. "We" being the young entrepreneurs, bloggers, thinkers and movers in Africa. It was out of this group that 3 of the 4 co-founders of Ushahidi would arise, just 7 months later in Kenya. One year after this, we've added yet another TED Fellow to the mix, so our team is made of 4 previous TED Fellows. If nothing else, TED brought together people with amazing ideas and catalyzed changes that will be felt for years to come.

Comments

  • TEDCred score: +310.10 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.

  • A comment on Talk: Daniel Suarez: The kill decision shouldn't belong to a robot

    6 hours ago: I've been a fan of Daniel Suarez's books for a long time, starting with the Daemon, then Freedom (TM), then Kill Decision.

    It was good to see Daniel take the world he painted in Kill Decision back to the issues we face today, and explain how where we're going might not be as good as we at first think. I wish he had more time to unpack the arguments around the march of democratized weaponry to what we're seeing today with a more top-down approach with drones.

    The future is written by sci-fi authors, I'm convinced of it.
  • +1

    A comment on Talk: Joseph Kim: The family I lost in North Korea. And the family I gained.

    6 hours ago: "Hope is personal. Hope is something that no one can give to you. You have to choose to believe in hope. You have to make it yourself."

    This is a powerful story of a courageous young man in more trying circumstances than any of the rest of us will likely have to withstand. One of the best talks that I've heard at TED.

    I was fortunate enough to curate this session with Adrian Hong, and Joseph Kim was a speaker brought in by Adrian. This meant that my first time to hear Joseph's talk was at the rehearsal that all speakers do before TED kicks off. I had no idea what to expect, and sat in complete shock as this story unfolded.

    Joseph Kim has given us a gift with this talk, so poignantly stating the hardships and explaining how he came out of it both physically and psychologically. Joseph became a friend in Edinburgh, and I truly am blessed to have it.

  • A comment on Talk: Renny Gleeson: 404, the story of a page not found

    May 16 2012: A fun reminder to take the little experiences seriously. Thanks!
  • +2

    A comment on Talk: Deb Roy: The birth of a word

    Mar 10 2011: Amazing, and definitely one of my favorite talks from TED this year.
  • +2

    A comment on Talk: Erik Hersman on reporting crisis via texting

    Apr 22 2009: You can find out more about the crowdsourcing filter tool that we call "Swift River" at www.swiftapp.org

  • A comment on Theme: Africa: The Next Chapter

    Aug 1 2007: Great to see these talks starting to surface. Watching these videos brings back the moments at TED Global that inspired so many of us. George Ayittey's speech in particular is incredibly stirring, and watching William restate "I try and I make" still humbles me.

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