ColaLife
Cola Life Limited ( a private company limited by guarantee ) is a non -profit company based in the United Kingdom. The company has set itself the goal of using existing commercial distribution networks (eg the network of Coca -Cola Company ( TCCC ) ) to increase the availability of simple, basic medicines in rural areas in developing countries.
History
1988 - 2008
The idea for Coke Life came Simon Berry in 1988 while working as an aid worker in northeastern Zambia. It occurred to him that he could get a Coke in each village, but there at the same time every fifth child died just treated diseases before their fifth birthday. This was the case because there was no well-developed distribution network for drugs. His idea was therefore to use the network of Coca-Cola for distribution of these drugs. He tried to win for his idea, which failed due to lack of communication facilities TCCC.
2008 to today
2008 TCCC took part in the Business Call to Action by the British government, which Berry decided to start a new attempt to promote his idea. He tried this mainly through the use of social networks and network communities, as some Facebook, Flickr and Twitter. Thus, the idea quickly gained supporters, but it did little to really Coca- Cola to penetrate. Any attempt to speak with the person in charge in TCCC's CSR department were in vain. To change this to Berry tried to arrange an interview with the IPM program on Radio 4, the BBC.
On 21 May 2008 Berry was interviewed by Eddie Mair by the BBC. The IPM team tried to obtain concerning the interview, which also achieved a comment by TCCC. Shortly before the broadcast, the IPM team received a letter from Salvatore Gabola ( TCCC's Global Director of Stakeholder Relations ), in which he signaled his willingness to talk with Simon Berry ..
Since this conversation Cola Life is in close contact with TCCC. Meanwhile, work Simon Berry and his wife, Jane Berry fulltime for the Cola Life Limited, founded in 2009.
Virtual Advisory Board
This committee is composed of experts and celebrities, which should help with their knowledge, contacts and reputation to advance the idea. Members of the Panel are:
- Professor Don Nutbeam, Professor of Public Health and Vice- Chancellor of the University of Southampton.
- Dr Ian Goldman, a specialist in social development in Africa
- Dr Prashant Yadav, Professor of Supply Chain Management at Zaragoza Logistics Center and a research partner of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics.
Concept
The concept of Cola Life is based on three facts:
Therefore Cola Life aims to be supplemented by the use of commercial networks, the distribution channels for drugs, so that they cover the so-called last mile. This is only possible if the medication does not displace commercial products. For this reason, a so-called Aidpod was developed, a wedge-shaped container, which uses, for example, the unused space between the bottle necks. In addition to WHO drinking solutions so could also be transported water purification tablets, and other useful social products.
At the destination, the receiving of Aidpods could be confirmed, for example, by a system based on SMS technology system. This also coupled with a micro payment could be triggered.