Announcing The World Summit in Reflection: a deliberative dialogue on
WSIS

The journal of Information Technologies and International Development
(ITID) and the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law
School invite you to contribute to a special dialogue on the outcomes,
outputs, and experiences from the World Summit on the Information
Society. As an impartial academic platform, we will give voice to a
diverse range of thoughtful viewpoints ? some critical some
congratulatory ? but all constructive. These contributions will be
assembled into a series of deliberative reports that we hope will help
chart a course towards the 2005 meeting in Tunis.

For more on ITID: http://mitpress.mit.edu/ITID
For more on the Berkman Center: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu

Call for Submissions
Initial short editorial and opinion pieces are solicited for a special
edition of the ITID Forum to be published in early 2004 by the MIT
Press. Contributions should be 500-1000 words and submitted on or before
14 January 2004. We particularly encourage unique voices and
contributions, a range of opinion and style, and specific comment as
opposed to broad generalities.

Instructions for authors can be found at the ITID website,
http://mitpress.mit.edu/ITID, and submissions are preferred by email to
itid-ed@mit.edu.

Longer research pieces and commentaries on the summit are also
solicited; expressions of interest in developing longer pieces are
welcome and should also be sent to the Editors at itid-ed@mit.edu. It is
anticipated that these longer research and editorial works will form an
edited volume to be published in late 2004.

The WSIS Discussion Blog
Bloggers are invited to an open real-time discussion blog on the Summit
hosted by the Berkman Center. Please visit
http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/wsis/ to add your thoughts and read other
contributions. With the permission of the author, commentaries blogged
to this site will be considered for re-publication in World Summit in
Reflection outputs.

Project Editorial Committee
Michael L. Best, Editor-in-Chief, ITID
Ernest J. Wilson, III, Editor-in-Chief, ITID
Shanthi Kalathil, Managing Editor, ITID
Colin Maclay, Berkman Center for Internet and Society
Geoffrey Kirkman, Watson Institute for International Studies

John Daly,World Bank,has recently reported an opportunity for the Canadian youth in the Development Gateway portal:NetCorps Canada International offers volunteer internships in developing countries for people 19 to 30 years old with appropriate skills in information and communication technologies (ICT). These internships, of approximately six months, are implemented by some of Canada's largest volunteer-sending international development organizations (The NetCorps Coalition) in partnership with Industry Canada.
URL: http://www.netcorps-cyberjeunes.org/

This MTv sponsored resource Staying Alive will provide you a snapshot information on how you could fight against spead of HIV/AIDS in your society.Have a look!!!
Link:Staying Alive Take Action

Just gone through the project document i have put together!huh,looks fine.tushar will be compiling the technology assessment and budgeting,hope.feeling quite better now!

The success of EFA depends largely on social and political motivation than anything else.In many communities, resources are available,but the resources are allocated to defence,security and manufacturing sector rather than on basic and elementary education.
I have been following the EFA movement closely for a long time and feeling that sucess of much of the development efforts lies in the success of these EFA activities - both nationally and internationally.
I am trying to collate all necessary information that would give you a snapshot how the lack of coordination and exchange of information and knowledge among EFA stakeholders are prohibiting successful EFA achievements.
I know how valuable your support be in this effort.
http://projects.takingitglobal.org/efa

I found this directory INASP Rural Development Directory 2003/2004 very useful.It gives a lot of information on many aspects of rural development,including on the agencies active in ICT deployment in rural areas.
http://www.inasp.info/pubs/rd/index.html

Huh,feeling safe.after a long term sickness,it is refereshing to be getting well.feeling back to life.air,sun.people.

I am not advising you on this topic.This is the title of a recent article by Bharat Jhunjhunwala appeared in The Statesman dated Sept.14,2003.Prof.Jhunjhunala succintly argues the necessity of policy related approach besides action based initiatives.
Read:The Statesman.

AMARC
* PRESS RELEASE - COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE - COMUNICADO DE PRENSA *
- English -
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Cancun Forum on Communication Rights vs. 'Free Trade' meeting
Tuesday, September 9th, In the Ex Palenque, Cancun, 10:00am - 12:00pm
Cancun 08/09/2003 - This September at the World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting in Cancun, the US Trade Representative has proposed to expand the WTO's power over media and culture. The US wants to submit Communications and Audiovisual Services, including film, radio, television, video, and music production, as well as media
distribution services such as satellite, cable and broadcast, to the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).
This would spell disaster for vibrant media systems worldwide: public funding for media, including mass, alternative, community, and citizens' media, could be attacked as "barriers to trade." Media ownership limits, as well as laws and initiatives that encourage diverse, locally-owned media, could be considered outright trade violations. Public funding for cultural and artistic
production could also come under attack.
On September 9th, representatives from the Movements assembled in Cancun will meet to denounce the idea of surrendering media and culture to the WTO or any other 'free trade' agreement, and to strategize on how to build the international movement for Communication Rights.

Background
In Cancun, trade ministers from 146 countries will continue
negotiations on the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Critics argue that this agreement is used to override the democratic process, weaken national laws, and undermine public interest regulations around the world through trade mechanisms that favor the privatization of every sector of life and the sale of all public services - including education, health care, electricity and water,
just to name a few - to the world's largest, most powerful
transnational corporations.
Requests to include Communication and Audiovisual Services in GATS - film, radio, television, video, and music production, as well as media distribution services such as satellite, cable and broadcast - have been put forward before. To date, many countries have resisted these requests and fought for an (albeit limited) exemption from GATS known as the 'cultural exception.' So far, this stopgap has kept many media and cultural services out of the agreement. If Communications and Audiovisual Services do find their way into GATS this September, the repercussions will be severe.Certain measures taken by governments to defend or build media localism, diversity, and pluralism could be classified as 'barriers to trade;' other WTO member nations would be able to attack them
using the binding dispute mechanism of the WTO. Decisions on 'trade disputes' made by the WTO are enforced
by international law - member nations must comply with WTO rulings or face multi-million or -billion dollar punitive sanctions. A variety of measures crucial to delivering high quality public service broadcasting would be seen as clear violations of GATS rules, including limits on media ownership, specific restrictions on foreign media ownership, public service obligations, and rules regarding
cross ownership.
Even if a country exempts its broadcast regulations and programs that support media and culture from the current round of negotiations, the goal of GATS is "progressive liberalization." This means that there would be strong pressure to discard such exemptions in future, built-in negotiations. In addition, efforts to improve regulatory
structures would be impaired, since the legally binding trade obligations of GATS virtually "lock-in" the regulatory status quo.Any adjustments to regulatory structures that would change country commitments under GATS would require compensation to all trading partners. At a time of such dynamic change in the regulatory environment for media and broadcast, this would be a public policy disaster.For these reasons, concerned citizens in many nations (including the European Union) have so far successfully lobbied their governments to reject US proposals on Communications and Audiovisual Services, and
to block agreements that could impact their nations' media systems. People everywhere recognize that a free, diverse, local, and independent media system is a fundamental requirement for a functioning democracy, and that ensuring such a media system requires regulation in the public interest as well as support for public service, local, nonprofit and independent media.
Organizers:

AMARC - World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters, CENCOS,
Centro de Medios Independientes Cancun, COMCOSUR, CRIS -
Communication Rights in the Information Society, Free Press, Global
Project, Las Agencias, OURMedia/NUESTR@Smedios

- End -

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

International:
Sasha Costanza-Chock: schock@asc.upenn.edu - (011) 52 998.890.4768

Mexico:
isaurapool@hotmail.com - 998.887.8167

More than 300 participants from around the globe
gathering at the "Forum on ICTs and Gender: Optimizing Opportunities" in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur end of August stressed the importance of ICT as a tool to promote women's empowerment, rights and dignity and full participation in the information society.
http://portal.unesco.org/ci/ev.php?URL_ID=12859&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201
Source:UNESCO WebWorld Newsletter - 5 September 2003

"Poverty is not Created by the Poor People",says Prof.Muhammad Yunus.He opines that "Poverty is not created by the poor people. So we shouldn't give them an accusing look. They are the victims. Poverty has been created by the economic and social system that we have designed for the world. It is the institutions that we have built, and feel so proud of, which created poverty. It is the concepts we developed to understand the reality around us, made us see things wrongly. They took us down a wrong path, and caused misery for people. It is our policies borne out of our reasonings and theoretical framework, with which we explain interactions among institutions and people, that caused this problem for so many human beings. It is the failure at the top - rather than lack of capability at the bottom - which is the root cause of poverty.He believes that we can can we really reduce extreme poverty by half by 2015."We can set ourselves on a course to eliminate poverty from the world for all time to come. We can get ready to put poverty in the museum, where it belongs. Each human being is too resourceful and intelligent to suffer the misery of poverty. Poverty and the human species just do not go together. But in reality it has happened because we created wrong mindsets which did not allow poor people to know their own potential. All we have to do is to remove the heavy crust that keeps their abilities unknown to them.
Enabling people to explore their full potential is an agenda we must take up seriously, to make sure our efforts to reach 2015 goal become a thumping success. This goal of halving the poverty must be achieved by 2015 ? if we pride ourselves to be sensible, sensitive and creative beings."reaffirms Prof.Yunus in his Commonwealth Lecture,2003.

Bengali Localisation:Sourceforge.
Education,ICT,Asia-Pacific:UNESCO Bangkok.
India:Development Gateway.
India,ICT Projects and Youth:Development Gateway.

Debroy in this article opines that if non government managed schools are more flexible and if competetion is intended then we shall encourage the establishment of the non government run education systems.But in effect it is not the case.Instead,there are many obstacles in establishing such schools.
More:Ananda Bazar Patrika,07/31/03.(Bengali).

Thank you Jennifer for sending TYD2003 document.I am interested to celebrate a TYD in my community.Talking with Reggie soon.

When some people from Netherlands and Africa thought to build a bridge of communications,they aptly were thinking of Baobab trees.Baobab trees,known to be able to exist for over 1000 years,are the connectors of the ages,of societies, of people.BaobabConnections.Org then replicates that famous African Baobab through connceting young people of Europe and Africa through Internet.It is a database and a dialogue.It connects the expressions of youth.

Frequently Asked Questions About Conducting a National WSIS Consultation Process is the title of a guidebook developed by the The Association for Progressive Communication for national WSIS processes.This guide is its Version 1,June,2003 and the work is in progress.