Acquaint

The United Nations reports that equitable exchange and dialogue among cultures and peoples is essential for constructing social cohesion, reconciliation, and peace among nations. Cultural exchange is also an invaluable opportunity to build communication skills and intercultural competence. Unfortunately, it is an opportunity unavailable to most people across the globe, especially underserved communities. Dr. Michele Gelfand, a cultural psychologist, and professor at the University of Maryland, said in an interview, "Cultural exchange is crucial for fostering understanding and empathy between diverse groups. However, many people struggle to find the time and resources to engage in meaningful interactions with individuals from different backgrounds." It is estimated that less than 1% of young people participate in exchange programs, and since most programs target students and youth, that percentage is likely even lower for older adults. Removing barriers to cultural exchange is more critical now than ever because a lack of meaningful communication between people of different backgrounds fuels hate, prejudice, misinformation, and toxic polarization worldwide. This is a global problem that affects everyone. If humanity is to tackle the world's greatest challenges, we must learn to communicate and collaborate across all walks of life.

Acquaint is a cultural exchange platform that combines gamified intercultural communication training, volunteerism, and collaborative virtual activities that inspire people to learn and share across divides while building valuable interpersonal skills. Our community currently includes participants from over 85 countries. They use the platform acquaint.org to connect for one-on-one conversations to share life experiences, culture, and perspectives. Sessions last an average of 50 minutes. There is no charge to use the platform. A self-scheduling feature allows participants to set their availability, making it more time-convenient. All Acquaint participants are considered volunteers because making an effort to connect across divides is a service to humanity. Volunteers sign up to join Acquaint after learning about our work through digital ads, organizations, schools, or word-of-mouth. 

One of our upcoming initiatives involves incorporating interactive educational modules for volunteers that will focus on civic engagement. Volunteers can learn together and gain portable certifications for their accomplishments. For example, imagine a volunteer in Canada connecting with a volunteer in Zimbabwe to learn about and exchange ideas regarding inclusive government. Preliminary data from volunteers suggests Acquaint has incredible potential to be both an economical and powerful way to transform intergroup relations at the macro level of society.  Acquaint also provides an invaluable and highly accessible way to learn and develop core social-emotional learning skills. For example 70% of volunteers report becoming better listeners.

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Anyone can click here to sign up as a volunteer!

Acquaint serves anyone who sees the value in human connection, communication skills, and cultural exchange. We have a track record of reaching underserved communities, including dozens of countries and hundreds of volunteers from the Global South, as well as many older adults (60+) and youth (15+). One Acquaint Volunteer living in the EU from Ghana had been trying to find volunteer opportunities there but was consistently denied valuable work experience because she was not an EU citizen. A single comment we posted on a UN Volunteers LinkedIn post generated dozens of applications to Acquaint from the Global South. Regular feedback suggests that people have trouble finding volunteer opportunities in many parts of the world and that Acquaint is helping fill this gap. Many students also use Acquaint as an option for gaining volunteer credit.

When trying to assess the impacts of Acquaint, we surveyed experienced volunteers:

• 94% reported that, since volunteering with Acquaint, they were more likely to get involved in other global impact initiatives.
• 75% who felt like they were in conflict with another group reported improved attitudes towards that group.
• 84% developed better intercultural communication.
• 70% reported improved listening skills.
• 48% experienced a boost in confidence.
• 19% noticed stronger workplace collaboration.
• 68% improved in understanding diverse accents and dialects.
• 91% became more interested in world events.
• 22% reported improved technical (computer) skills.
• 93% reported a more positive view of humanity.

Evidence shows that these skills and values dramatically impact a person's success and quality of life. For example, research suggests that poor listening skills affect more than 70% of all employees, resulting in misunderstandings, errors, missed opportunities, arguments, stalled projects, and damaged relationships. In addition to the benefits for individuals, we believe these types of personal growth have ripple effects within communities. In the same survey, we asked, "How has Acquaint impacted you?” Some answers included: 

• -“I've learned a lot about different cultures, backgrounds, and places. My communication skills have gotten better. When I first joined the Acquaint, I was really nervous and anxious. But now I feel comfortable striking up conversations with complete strangers and conversing for nearly an hour.” - Volunteer, Nepal
  
  
• -“After volunteering here i felt more like we people regardless to what we see on media, even if it’s because of the website’s rules, but i can feel some volunteers talk with real beautiful soul as if we known each other for a long time, i think i will try to be a familiar person to others as well, I was inspired by a volunteer with her very familiar personality and pure soul. Also the idea of this site inspired me to use the internet better.”
  -Volunteer, Saudi Arabia

• -“It has provided me with a platform to build bridges of trust and respect. I have had sessions with people from all over the world, and this has dispelled the negative stereotypes and personal biases about different groups of people.” - Volunteer, Kenya

We (Katherine and Alex, Acquaint's CEO and CTO) feel deeply obligated to continue building and growing Acquaint. As we are leading a global community, we must constantly listen and learn from Acquaint's team and volunteers. To achieve this, we talk to volunteers daily and regularly engage in cultural exchange sessions like all Acquaint volunteers do. We personally hold virtual Acquaint orientations, where we meet groups of new volunteers five times per week, two of which are at 6:00 AM our time to accommodate people's time zones in Africa, Europe, and parts of Asia. We also hold monthly meetings for experienced volunteers/mentors to gather and share feedback with the team and each other. Understanding our own bias and potential influences on the platform is something we constantly consider as we move forward. We reached a milestone in May 2023 when Acquaint gained a team member from Sierra Leone, our first international hire. Hiring more international team members and recruiting international board members will be critical for adequately representing our community. Leading Acquaint has been a humbling experience for our leadership team. By regularly seeking out and learning from diverse perspectives, we can continue to grow with our team and the community.

We are applying to Solve because Acquaint can transform the world, and we are responsible for seeing it through. Together with Solve's community, we can bring Acquaint to the next level. Our backlog of software features keeps growing as fast as we receive positive feedback from our community. We can't and shouldn't try to do it on our own, so we seek a supportive community to share in Acquaint's journey. We owe it to Acquaint's volunteers and supporters to do everything we can to make our shared vision a reality. 

Solve's program offers everything we need for the next step. 

One of our greatest strengths is our willingness to buck convention and build differently. However, this often requires potential supporters to question their assumptions. We need Solve's help in effectively communicating our vision and the unique value proposition of Acquaint to engage not only funders but also a broader community who can contribute to our mission.

Additionally, our core team needs expertise in various areas. We need guidance in perfecting our pitch, expanding our board, and broadening our network to include researchers and advocates who can help us amplify the impact of Acquaint. For example, assistance with managing administrative, financial, and legal considerations translates into our leadership having more time to focus on building software features and growing our team.

With its wide-ranging community, alignment with our mission, and commitment to transformative solutions, Solve can provide the resources, mentorship, and networking opportunities we need. We seek to be part of a community that shares our commitment to positive change and can give the diverse support we need to bring Acquaint to the next level.

Acquaint offers unprecedented access to cultural exchange for the world, including shared educational modules. A decentralized, volunteer-driven approach to cultural exchange at the grassroots level is a novel concept. It is the first cultural exchange with reasonable potential to scale to millions from all walks of life. There are also endless possibilities for introducing new modules, activities, games, and other collaborative experiences for people to engage in together. 

Most in-person cultural exchanges require significant time and money, excluding people with fewer resources. Even other virtual cultural exchanges are exclusive, accepting mainly students enrolled in educational institutions or people who can pay a fee. Steven's Initiative, a significant funder and maybe the loudest voice on virtual exchange, has a mission that focuses on young people. Therefore, most adults, particularly older adults and people with fewer resources are less likely to be included. For example,  the absence of data on seniors in their 2022 survey of virtual exchange suggests Acquaint may be one of the only virtual cultural exchanges to harness the incredible potential of intergenerational dialogue.

Another innovation is the model of pairing volunteer learners from all walks of life, virtually, for one-on-one dialogue around a particular educational topic like civic engagement. By including all voices, a global approach like this is the most powerful way to tap into humanity's immense potential to grow and learn together. The one-on-one nature of Acquaint dialogue also helps make conversations more equitable and less likely to favor one culture over another.

• Our impact goals over the next year:

  • Increase the number of volunteers impacted by four times to around 3000.

  • Volunteers develop strong core social-emotional learning skills, grow their appreciation for diverse people and perspectives, and can use this experience to find further opportunities.

  • Enhance awareness about the value of diverse human connection.

  • Intergroup conflict is reduced.

  • Volunteers continue to report life-changing experiences.

• How we achieve next year's impact goals:

  • Iterate on recruitment efforts and operational efficiency, allowing more people to participate in Acquaint. The more volunteers we have working to connect across divisions, the stronger the impact of each goal. 

  • Develop new educational modules that will increase the personal benefits to volunteers and help maintain quality as we scale.

  • Enhance our social media presence, blog, and gamified referral program to help bring in more volunteers.

  • Raise awareness about the benefits of global cultural exchange by talking to as many potential supporters as possible and showcasing volunteer stories/testimonials.

  • If possible, partner with researchers to further demonstrate the powerful impacts of diverse human connection.

• Our impact goals over the next five years:

  • At least 500,000 volunteers impacted by Acquaint.

  • Volunteers have joined from nearly every nation.

  • Acquaint is regularly recommended and endorsed in high schools, colleges, community centers, retirement communities, and other organizations whose members could benefit from volunteering to ensure broad access to the platform.

  • Role in Politics: When campaigning for office, politicians tout their Acquaint volunteering as a qualification due to widespread appreciation for respect, listening, and tolerance.

  • Data collected through research partnerships reveals powerful benefits to both individuals and intergroup relationships from meaningful, diverse human connections.

  • Underserved schools: Under-resourced schools incorporate Acquaint as a free, impactful cultural exchange solution.

• How we will achieve impact goals over the next five years:

  • Strong data collection and impactful mission attract researchers to collaborate with Acquaint.

  • Research partnerships draw in institutional support and recommendations from various authorities.

  • Improvements in reputation and social media presence combined with media exposure and abundant evidence lead to Acquaint being recommended as a healthy and impactful habit for everyone.

  • Establish a clear set of guidelines for schools to integrate Acquaint into their curriculums.

Acquaint aims to strengthen collaboration across divides and build global solidarity. As such, we can measure our impacts based on the following:

• Number of people with improved attitudes towards outgroups, especially outgroups with which they feel they are in conflict.

• Number of people who have attributed Acquaint to inspiring them to be more involved in other impactful projects or gaining employment.

• Number of people with improved core social-emotional learning skills.

• Number of people who have participated in our educational modules.
  

• Any measure of indirect effects, e.g., how many people have learned about Acquaint or heard our messaging? 

Macro-level impacts are much more challenging to equate to Acquaint (or any single organization). However, according to a recent UNESCO paper, "89% of all current conflicts are occurring in countries with low intercultural dialogue." While this is just a correlation, there is much support for the theory that boosting the number of people engaging in intercultural dialogue, such as on Acquaint, would help foster peace in those locations. 

Other measures of impact:

• Number of research papers to which Acquaint has contributed.

• Number of institutions that actively recommend Acquaint.

• Number of under-resourced schools utilizing Acquaint as a free cultural exchange option.

Activities: 

• Volunteers sign up and receive training on intercultural communication, active listening, and Acquaint’s rules and guidelines.

• Volunteers use the Acquaint platform to schedule and connect for one-on-one global conversations to share culture and perspectives.

• New content, including educational modules and virtual activities, is regularly added to maintain volunteer engagement and retention. 

Outputs (Observed in our survey data and volunteer feedback)

1. Volunteers improve their interpersonal and intercultural skills.

2. Volunteers learn new information and stories that often challenge previously held beliefs about groups of people.

3. Volunteers expand knowledge on topics like civic engagement and climate change with a mix of global perspectives on these issues.

4. After certain sessions, fear and misconceptions about other groups of people can be powerfully and completely uprooted.

Short-Term Outcomes:

1. Volunteers use their newfound skills, perspectives, and empathy to contribute to their communities and promote social cohesion.

2. The Acquaint community grows through word-of-mouth, leading to a broader cultural shift toward greater diversity acceptance locally and globally.

3. Volunteers' enhanced skills and experiences offer more opportunities for employment and growth.
   

Long-Term Outcomes: 

1. Regular, effortful exchange between people at the grassroots becomes the norm.

2. Stereotypes and prejudice about groups of people are reduced.

3. Hateful propaganda against groups of people is no longer an effective tool to gain influence.

4. Greater cooperation across countries and cultures reduces conflicts and increases trust.

5. Collaboration to address the world’s most pressing issues, like climate change, poverty, and health crises, becomes much easier.

Acquaint’s In-House Software Platform: 

• Unlimited Impact Growth: Acquaint's software allows us to scale. To date, there haven't been any one-on-one dialogue or cultural exchange models that have efficiently scaled. Many of our operational tasks, including matching, scheduling, and tech support, are becoming progressively more automated, allowing us to reduce costs while maintaining quality continually.
• Optimizing Outcomes: Our virtual exchange/dialogue experiences are easy to create, measure, and update, allowing us to enhance learning and exchange outcomes iteratively. For example, we could introduce a new educational module on voting and elections, release it to volunteers, and measure its efficacy within days. 
• Boosting Appreciation: Our in-development gamification creates a fun and rewarding experience where volunteers can track their impact, earn badges, and showcase their accomplishments. Volunteers can easily share the opportunity with their network and get credit for their referrals. 
• Automatically Measures Impact: We track many of our outcomes, including our volunteers' impact and participation levels. Automated surveys or other feedback mechanisms are easy to incorporate into our platform for research or outcomes.
• Tech Stack: Acquaint uses Ruby on Rails and AWS. We use Twilio for the remote audio connection and WebXR for virtual experiences (In theory, Acquaint supports VR, but very few of our volunteers have VR headsets).

Dialogue/Exchange Model 

• Combination of Great Product and Dialogue/Cultural Exchange: We often ask ourselves, "What if big social media platforms had been designed to build global solidarity?" The world would be much different. Acquaint takes regular user feedback and best practices in building modern software to create a rewarding experience that helps overcome divisions.
• Original Dialogue Model: We drew inspiration from exchange and dialogue approaches, interdisciplinary research, and lessons learned. 
• Decentralized & Volunteer Driven: Because volunteers drive the exchange sessions, Acquaint is uniquely inclusive as each conversation exclusively reflects the context and values of the participants. Self-determination optimizes educational and interpersonal outcomes. 
• Optimized for Human Connection: Semi-anonymous 1-on-1 sessions and other dialogue design aspects can lead to deeper conversations. We frequently hear that volunteers can talk about uncomfortable topics on Acquaint that they can't elsewhere.

At Acquaint, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are key values in achieving our mission as a global cultural exchange platform. We strive to ensure that all voices are valued and respected, fostering an environment where individuals from different backgrounds can thrive. Given that a large part of our mission is overcoming divisions, much of what we do requires leaning into conflict, soliciting regular feedback, and regularly questioning our attitudes and biases. 

As a small team whose organization focuses on dialogue and cultural exchange, we are uniquely positioned to open discussions and challenge systemic biases at their roots on our team and within our broader community. We are committed to addressing systemic barriers and ensuring all voices are heard and valued in decision-making. It is not enough for us to build the Acquaint platform to combat bias; we must constantly be on that journey within our core team.

A few specific ways we incorporate DEI principles into our work are our team and platform:

Team: Acquaint is a woman-led, international organization with team members spanning many cultures. As we serve a fully global community, we believe that diversity, in all its forms, is critical for the health and success of our organization. Our volunteer community represents a wide spectrum of perspectives and experiences, all of which we value and respect. We are committed to fostering a culture where all voices are heard, all human rights are respected, and all individuals are treated as intrinsically equal. Finally, we think a crucial part of long-term success is evolving our governance model to include representation from all walks of life. 

Platform: Volunteers on our platform agree to our "Anyone, Anywhere" commitment, which is a promise to treat all other volunteers with equal levels of effort and respect, regardless of any social, cultural, or identity-based human attributes. No hate speech is allowed on our platform, and we regularly consult with experts in culture, international dialogue, and conflict resolution to ensure that the well-being of all volunteers is protected while still leaving room for discussion. Accessibility of all kinds is a core design principle for our platform. For example, we have designed the platform to require less internet bandwidth because data can be expensive and fast internet access is unavailable in many locations. When there are challenges to the internet connection during sessions, we train volunteers to support each other and work through those issues. After feedback from one of our users, we are updating our website to better support WAI-ARIA standards. Additionally, we believe that our decentralized, one-on-one dialogue model is uniquely inclusive and respectful of diverse values.

Value Proposition For Volunteers:

• Many people have access to cultural exchange and engaging global citizenship education who previously did not, particularly lower-income communities, the Global South, and older adults.

• Volunteers can learn about and from people from around the world without significant expense or time commitment.

• Volunteers gain service opportunities and human connection. Evidence suggests these both have significant benefits to health and success.

• Volunteers develop core social-emotional learning skills through dialogue and sharing diverse perspectives.

Value Proposition For Society:

• Gradually erodes deeply entrenched divisions by increasing population-level tolerance and decreasing misconceptions. For example, 75% of experienced volunteers reported improved attitudes towards a group with which they were in conflict. Many of those volunteers never or rarely came into contact with that group on Acquaint, suggesting any diverse connection is impactful.

• Low-cost way to provide education, reduce conflict, and boost population health.

• More collaborative local communities: by developing communication, civic engagement, or other skills, volunteers become leaders and help share global perspectives, insights, and respect.

Channels:

• Organizations and schools

• Digital ads and promotions

• News media outlets

• Blogs and online articles

• Social media

• Influencer/Celebrity Endorsement

• Word of mouth - Many volunteers join after hearing about Acquaint from a friend, family member, or college.

We've successfully recruited people through a combination of free and inexpensive digital ads. We see growing numbers from organic sources and believe that the appropriate media exposure or endorsement could quickly swell our numbers by the hundreds of thousands.  

Key Activities:  

• One-on-one cultural exchange/dialogue sessions

• Create educational & virtual icebreaker modules to enhance one-on-one sessions and training

• Recruitment, Social Media Content & Outreach

• Software for gamification to reward volunteers for their contributions and achievements 

• Software for scalability & logistics - minimize costs/resources needed to operate the platform

• Impact measurement and iteration to improve outcomes of other activities

Costs and Resources:

• Platform development and maintenance 

• Content creation 

• Marketing

• Personnel expenses

Key Partnerships:

• Experts in Intercultural communication, civic engagement, and conflict resolution who can help develop educational modules and icebreakers

• Schools or corporations who want their community to volunteer and are willing to help Acquaint develop their program for institutions

• Researchers interested in studying dialogue, intergroup relations, or other topics synergistic with Acquaint

Approximate Revenue Sources (Current / Future - 5 years from now)*:

• Small-medium donors (most of whom are volunteers): 3% / 60%

• Medium-large donors: 80% / 5%

• Grants or similar: 17% / 5%

• Partnerships: 0% / 30%

*Please see question #27 below for more details.

Short-Term Goals:

Acquaint will bring in medium and large donations and grants to cover our relatively low costs to help reach our next level of sustainability.

Long-Term Sustainability:

We aim to reach a point where per-volunteer variable costs at least break even with average small donations per volunteer. To achieve this, we will grow our social media footprint and small donor fundraising capabilities. Our volunteers see the value in Acquaint's community-driven cultural exchange firsthand, and existing donor data suggests this is a reasonable goal. 

Because of the powerful societal impacts, including improved educational outcomes and reduced divisions, we think we can secure significant institutional support, grants, and large donations to grow our impact.

Finally, we believe that with such a large, diverse, and talented community with the ability to train and educate on critical job and life skills, we think there are many opportunities for partnerships to generate revenue. Examples could include referrals to: recruiting firms, dialogue programs, educational institutions aligned with our mission, corporate partnerships offering service opportunities, and a way to enhance DEI initiatives. These opportunities will become a higher priority as our reputation, volunteer community, and educational capabilities continue to grow.

In April 2023, Acquaint received $4000 in funding from the Atlas Corps Virtual Leadership Institute to support two new projects - one focused on volunteer recruitment and the other on building a new module for volunteers to engage with. Of our current volunteers, a small but reasonable percent are regular small donors, and we believe that with some effort, this alone could be a source of sustainability based on our low-cost model. We have received a total pledged amount of $57,890 for 2023 from our medium to large donors (including Atlas Corps). Even though our volunteer community has grown substantially since January 2022, we have reduced costs by 80% through automation and operational efficiency improvements. There is much opportunity to continue reducing costs without sacrificing quality.

In early 2023, Acquaint was a finalist for the Intercultural Innovation Hub, an initiative run by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in collaboration with the BMW Group. Although we weren't one of the organizations selected in the end, we consider it an achievement to have made it into the top 30 of an estimated 1200+ applicants (based on the # of submissions in previous years).