Recent reports circulating the net indicate the do-gooders are unhappy at giving too much credit to calls for help via crowdsourcing techniques, challenging the verity of messages for assistance without proper corroboration.

With the demands on time and money, people are becoming increasingly creative about their meal options to continue eating well. Popularly known as dinner co-ops, this crowdsourcing initiative taps onto foodies living within close proximity to each other and taking turns on cooking dinner (sort of like a supper pool where one is assigned to cook for 5 households for one day, and expect an entire work-week of fresh homemade meals without lifting a finger after having done his or her share). This is great for those who want more variation and quality for their meals, but lack the time to do so.

In this world of internet and better connectivity, people all over the world can easily bridge the distances and communicate with each other and establish meaningful friendships with a simple click of the mouse.  This is a primary reason why crowdsourcing has expanded to such great lengths. It is now being used for various projects, including recipe-sharing.

A new widget for Android phones has been doing the rounds with more user friendly features letting cycle users update community members of the availability of cycles for hire at each docking station.

Backed by strong international agencies and institutions such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), The Asia Foundation (TAF), the East West Management Institute (EWMI), and Cambodia’s British Embassy, human rights platform Sithi, utilizes crowdsourcing to expand initiatives and protect those who need it. It is the first of its kind in Cambodia. Spearheaded by the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR), this online portal has a virtual cartographic representation of various areas to help pinpoint locations where injustice, violence and crime occur. Through crowdsourcing, Sithi can effectively monitor what goes on in several places, making sure that people could legally take action in the interest of human rights.

The Fort Green online edition of The NY Times’ The Local has taken an interesting approach to identifying dangerous intersections:  Crowdsourcing.  With the tragic death of Aileen McKay-Dalton, came a barrage of comments pointing to the dangerous nature of that particular Fort Green intersection.

Actress Kristen Bell recently launched a new product benefiting the Humane Society of the United States.  In support of the organization’s efforts to care for rescued animals with special needs, she launched a fundraising campaign on crowdfunding site, crowdrise.  The actresses goal is to raise $5,000 for the Society, & dedicates her efforts to her Hurricane Katrina survivor, & favorite Labrador, Sadie.

London sets the stage for the 1st street art opinion crowdsourcing project.  I Could Do That integrates technology beautifully to interact with street art throughout London.  Each street piece can be identified with a unique QR code pasted nearby.  All that’s required to get begin conversing about each piece is a smartphone with a QR reader (downloadable from I Could Do That).  The company behind the idea, Digit, is attempting to solve the problem of aggregating opinions, which everyone seems to have.

We all have simple questions that we need a quick answer to but do not know who to ask. You can type your question into a search engine and hope to find an answer. However, that might require reading web page after web page of useless content before you get an answer. When all you want to know is where to find good Thai food in Boise, you do not want to search through page after page of possibilities. You just want a simple recommendation. Fortunately, there is a solution to this problem: crowdsource your question.

Philadelphia based band Disco Biscuits recently enjoyed tremendous success at Camp Bisco, their ninth annual three day musical extravaganza held on the weekend of July 15th – 17th in Albany, New York. The success of the event was due largely to crowdsourcing in which, prior to the event, the band’s bassist Marc Brownstein invited fans to post their fantasy playlist (or “setlist”) on his Facebook page. The lists and songs that garnered the most “likes” from fans visiting his page, were performed at the music festival.