This October, Team4Tech engaged 13 corporate volunteers from a leading Silicon Valley-based tech company in a two-day, virtual Design for Impact Workshop supporting our US-based NGO partner, Digital NEST. Volunteers collaborated to deliver recommendations for leveraging AI tools in programming and organizational operations.
Preparing Rural Californians for Career Readiness
Digital NEST (Nurturing Entrepreneurial Skills with Technology) is an NGO supporting youth ages 14 to 24 with digital skills, mentorship, and professional experience to help them build successful careers. Digital NEST has five physical workforce development centers in communities that have been impacted by Silicon Valley but not invested in: Watsonville, Salinas, Gilroy, Modesto, and Stockton. Bridging this gap, Digital NEST offers training in fields like digital marketing, IT, and web development, equipping young people with the skills they need to succeed in the workforce.
Digital NEST has partnered with Team4Tech since 2020 to support their efforts and help scale their operations.
Corporate Volunteers Generate Solutions Through Design Thinking
In Team4Tech’s third project supporting Digital NEST, a team of 13 technical volunteers collaborated with NGO staff in a Design for Impact workshop. Over the course of two days, Team4Tech guided volunteers through fast-paced, interactive sessions where they used the design-thinking process to address a key challenge aligned with Digital NEST’s strategic goals.
AI plays a central role in Digital NEST’s strategic initiatives. Building on their partnerships with leading AI companies and their growing experience in emerging technologies, Digital NEST continues to explore innovative ways to stay ahead of rapid industry change. Their efforts focus on deepening learners’ understanding of AI, promoting ethical implementation, and ensuring that all initiatives remain grounded in equitable access and inclusion.
During our skills-based volunteering program, Team4Tech facilitators guided volunteers through a human-centered design process to support Digital NEST with this work. Volunteers worked together to ideate and prototype solutions to the following design challenge question:
“How might we, as a tech-focused education nonprofit, prepare youth in our pathways program to be better prepared for the Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution?”
Divided into small teams to explore new ideas, volunteers collaborated to deliver the following solutions and prototypes:
- AI-Support Tool: A platform to help students bring their creative ideas to life using AI
- Personalized AI Learning Pathways: A holistic model that builds professional AI readiness through personalized, AI-driven learning and career support.
- AI Career Readiness Curriculum: A comprehensive course sequence to prepare students for the workforce, including using AI for resume building, interview preparation, and personal brand development.
Thank you for the opportunity to support Digital NEST! I really enjoyed the experience, especially using design thinking to approach the challenges. It was enriching to collaborate with such a passionate team!”
— Design for Impact Volunteer
“This collaboration with Team4Tech inspired fresh ideas for how we can bring AI learning to life for our members,” said Kelsey Flood, VP of Programs at Digital NEST. “The volunteers helped us explore ways to integrate AI into our curriculum and operations while staying true to our mission of equitable access. We’re excited to apply these ideas as we prepare youth for the future of work.”
Team4Tech is proud to facilitate connections between volunteers and education-focused NGOs like Digital NEST, improving education that ultimately prepares learners for better jobs. This is just one example of Team4Tech’s global contributions to education. Our organization continues to accelerate the impact of nonprofit organizations globally.