Last summer, we were invited by our friends at SHM, a social change consultancy, to work with them on a project called Zumbido, which was set up to develop solutions to the problem of social isolation. The pilot was set up in Mexico, and focused on a community with a particularly acute sense of social isolation in that country: those living with HIV and AIDS

People living with HIV/AIDS in Mexico, particularly in rural areas, suffer from severe social isolation, due in part to the stigma attached to the disease. This isolation brings with it low levels of practical and emotional support, which in turn leads to poor health outcomes for example, when sufferers stop taking their medication because of unpleasant side-effects. SHM’s hypothesis going in to the trial was that, by using our group messaging technology to overcome this isolation, we would create or enhance social capital and improve health outcomes.

The pilot of Zumbido started on the 3rd of June 2007 in Jalisco, Mexico and ran for three months. The majority of the participants were living with HIV/AIDS, some recently diagnosed, and others who had been living with HIV/AIDS for over twelve years. In each group there was a professional with experience in HIV/AIDS and a family member of someone living with the disease.

All the participants were given a mobile phone, and with Zygos Zygohub technology they were able to simultaneously communicate using text messages with their nine co-members. The participants got to grips with the technology and started using it very quickly, sending 5,000 SMS messages in the first three days, and over 240,000 messages over the course of the whole three-month trial.

There was a clear need amongst the participants to communicate and share experiences. This result was particularly interesting, as over half of them had never used a phone before. Participants shared information about access to healthcare services, discussing human rights and how to deal with problems of discrimination and ignorance. They also gave one another support in day-to-day problems such as personal relationships, encouraging one another to take their medication, and dealing with isolation. In addition, those from rural areas received practical support from those in urban areas when coming into the city to receive medical attention.

The social capital that was generated in this project has had huge benefits for those who took part. A participant told his group before the project ended that “it was an amazing experience to be able to share and learn from all of you. These past three months have changed my life, thank you my friends.” Although the groups no longer have access to the ZygoHubs service, many of them are still keeping in touch with one another.

The technical challenges to making this all work in Mexico were considerable. In order to run the groups on local numbers we sourced four Movistar SIMS, brought them back to the UK and put them in modems in our data centre in Slough. We sent text messages out locally by connecting to a messaging platform in Mexico. Our pals at Anana helped us to deliver a voicemail and conferencing service on the same numbers hosted on a voice platform in Australia!

Anyway, it all paid off in the end because Zumbido was selected as a finalist in the prestigious Stockholm Challenge awards for the use of ICT in development projects. SHM invited us to join them at the awards ceremony on May 22nd at Stockholm Town Hall, home of the Nobel Prize, no less. We got to meet some truly inspiring people from all over the world who were as passionate about the transformative power of technology as we are.