Skip to main content

Press release - Web2forDev 2007 conference

Dgroups is a joint initiative of Bellanet, DFID, Hivos, ICA, ICCO, IICD, OneWorld, UNAIDS and World Bank
--- You are currently subscribed to aisi-media-l as: infoelink@gmail.com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-aisi-media-l-1125880L@dgroups.org
speaking at this meeting
Kwami Ahiabenu,II

 

PRESS RELEASE - WEB2FORDEV 2007 CONFERENCE

www.web2fordev.net

IBM, Oxfam and UNESCO listed among 40 presenters and speakers

Southern grass-root organisations and northern development actors represented at first Web2forDev Conference 2007

 

The first conference on the use of Web 2.0 for rural development and natural resource management promises to be an exciting event: no less than 40 speakers have been selected from organisations with various backgrounds from both North and South. Among the listed speakers are representatives from well-known organisations like IBM, Oxfam and UNESCO, but also Southern grass-root organisations who lead the way when it comes to the use of modern technology for development.

The Web2forDev Conference which will take place from 25-27 September in Rome, will address three topics, the use and impact of: shared virtual spaces for remote collaboration and knowledge sharing, the use of appropriate technologies for online publishing, and online information retrieval and access. Following on a request for proposals, 130 proposals on Web 2.0 topics were sent in out of which the selection has been made.

Jon Corbett, chairperson of the selection panel for the Web2forDev Conference notes that 'Although the call for proposals is closed more than two months ago, people are still sending us proposals for presentations. Apparently there is a high level of interest in using Web 2.0 technologies, not only in the North, but also in the South. Almost all proposals have a strong Southern focus, with a number of notable exceptions from Indigenous groups from Australia and Canada'.

When asking him about the most exciting topics to look forward to, he finds it hard to pick up only a single example. 'There is such a diverse spectrum of interesting talks being presented from throughout the world that it is hard to identify just one or two. We have selected quite a number of very exciting presentations. They range from talking about the innovative use of blogs and social video sites for language revitalization by Indigenous communities in Canada through to the deployment of Agricultural Marketing Information Systems being developed to assist farmers in improving and selling their crops in Ghana.'

According to Jon Corbett not only are the topics exciting, but also the way the conference programme is built. Jon Corbett: 'This is a truly interactive conference. Instead of offering presentation after presentation, we will create open spaces and incubator sessions at the Conference, these will allow speakers and participants to build their own agenda and meet to discuss relevant topics and issues. This innovative conference approach encapsulates the overall aim of the conference - to provide a forum to allow experts, users, interested people and development practitioners from both Southern and Northern countries to interact in an informal, though structured, and lively way on issues and technologies which suit their own needs, interests and experiences.'

 

Note for the press

The Web2ForDev Conference takes place in Rome from 25-27 September. On Monday 24 September pre-conference seminars will take place introducing web 2.0 tools. During the Conference daily multimedia digests will be produced and put online to follow the outcomes of everyday presentations and discussions. For more information on the Web2forDev Conference, please visit www.web2fordev.net  

 

For questions regarding the Conference, please contact:

Sarah Bel

Communication Officer - CTA

bel@cta.int  +31 317 467 143

 

 

 

 

 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Vincent Chukwuemeka Ike's The Potter's Wheel

Currently reading Chukwuemeka Ike's The Potter's Wheel very interesting paper pack written by a prolific Nigeria writer the story set during the second World War and the only means of modern entertainment was the The Mobile Cinema Van. the book is very rich is proverbs and a lot of wise words The main character is Obuechina Maduabuchi ( mouthful) who happened to be the only boy born to his parents Mama Obu( short form of Obuechina) and Papa Lazarus Maduabuchi among six older sisters. Due to the "value" placed on the male child, he become a totaly spoilt brat, though academically brilliam Obu was growing into a hopelessly spoilt child to reverse this trend, Papa Lazarus decided to send him away as a servant to a schoolmasster with a dragon of a wife Of course, Obu goes and comes back very different published by University Press PLC Ibadan Nigeria 1993 email address is unipress AT skannet.com.gh though first published by Harvill Press 1973 ISBN 9780302832 WORDS FROM TH...

African Media To Promote Geospatial Science

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) has established a forum aimed at enhancing the capacity of the media in the promotion, advocacy and awareness-creation of Geospatial Information Science (GIS) on the African continent. Geospatial Information Science refers to the technology used for the measurement, analysis and visualisation of features or spatial phenomenon occurrences. For instance, in the mining and oil sector, resources on the earth's surface require sophisticated technology to discover, extract and manage and since mining and   drilling of oil require accurate knowledge of the earth's surface and subsurface.   Geospatial technology is best suited for the exploration and extraction of mineral deposits. Again, projects such as roads and waterways require geospatial technologies for planning, construction and implementation. According to the UNECA, GIS and related disciplines are now commonly found as the drivi...

SMS via Web

I took time off today to play with SMS via the web it was very cool, had to work on my database and convert it into a CVS which enable me to import it into the SMS databas thereafter, I was able to compose and send messages out, I am using this tool to remind people to check mails but more importantly since we need to wake up participants coming to our legal KM workshop early in the morning to drive two and half hours to the workshop venue, hope to use the tool of SMS to wake them up, hope they would not be cross with us about reminding them to woke up read more about our SMS solution provider SMSGH, http://smsgh.alcamidesign.com/smsgh/home/ or www.smsgh.net a youthful Ghanaian company with a dedicated team of professionals who develop this product locally, very impressive During my play time with SMS, customer care from SMSGH was superby. My contact person Alex was particulary helpful in walking me through the system, though easy to use, you need to learn some few things Recently...