CALL FOR PAPERS, SUBMISSIONS, SURVEYS & NOMINATIONS

Education and Information Systems, Technologies and
Applications: EISTA 2009

CALL FOR PAPERS, SUBMISSIONS, SURVEYS & NOMINATIONS

Call for papers for the 7th International Conference on Education and Information Systems, Technologies and Applications
Submissions Deadline: 26 November 2008

The Education and Information Systems, Technologies and Applications (EISTA) is announcing a Call for Papers for the 7th International Conference on Education and Information Systems, Technologies and Applications. The Conference will take place in Orlando , Florida USA , from 10-13 July 2009. Relationships between education/training and information communication technologies (ICTs) are increasingly accelerating, sometimes in unexpected ways, with original ideas and innovative tools, methodologies and synergies. The main objective of EISTA 2009 is to bring together researchers and practitioners from both areas, in order to support the bridging process between education/training and information communication technologies (ICTs) communities.

For further details:

http://www.iiis2009.org/imsci/Website/AboutConfer.asp?vc=5

Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, IITF and Indigenous Portal Project Joint Intervention

Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
October 2, 2008, Geneva, Switzerland
Item #4
Topic: Right to Education

Presenter: Lei Kaupu (kainoa_12@hotmail.com)
Joint Intervention:
Indigenous ICT Task Force, Indigenous Portal Project

Aloha. My name is Lei Kaupu. I am a Native Hawaiian, a student at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, and an editor for the Indigenous Portal Project. This is an intervention on behalf of the Indigenous ICT Task Force and the members of the Indigenous Portal Project.

The Indigenous Portal project is an outcome of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The indigenous caucus there called for universal indigenous connectivity and the development of Indigenous specific Information & Communication Technologies (ICTs). The development of an indigenous portal was endorsed as supporting this vision.

At the 2007 UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues the indigenous portal was launched and since then we have hired indigenous peoples to fill the positions of the manager and editors for 8 regions of the world.

A portal is much more than a web interface. It is a focal point where indigenous content will be available from our peoples and other stakeholders. Our portal allows us to share, with our own voices, our traditions, values, history and language as well as our aspirations for the future. The indigenous portal is run, for, and by indigenous peoples.

From September 27-29, 2008, Indigenous ICT experts gathered to train the board members, the portal manager, and editors here in Geneva. All participants learned to upload content to the portal including video and audio content. Video cameras and audio recorders were given to each editor and trained to use them effectively.

Indigenous to indigenous training is a model that works well in educational models in indigenous communities as we’ve experienced in various projects.

Another example of this is from the Pacific that our organization called Pacific Voices has worked closely on. I come from Miloli’i, a fishing village on the island of Hawai’i. My village doesn’t have any electricity or running water. Our ‘opio and children are choosing to not continue our traditional fishing practices and would rather leave the village to do other activities. However, since 2004, Pacific Voices has partnered with elders and other community members to bring indigenous ICT trainers into the village and have worked closely with our children and elders. We have used various technology tools to document traditional knowledge and to produce how-to videos where our elders teach our youth to prepare traditional fish bait, fish nets, and other practices. Our children are now becoming more and more interested in these practices and also using technology to document these soon to be lost practices. Our indigenous youth now ask us for more and more trainings and possible cultural exchanges with other indigenous youth which they have enjoyed over the years. Since then we’ve also hosted a film and multimedia festival with 5 other fishing communities from Hawai’i. We will submit more information about our project and other trainings that have worked for your considerations of lessons learned and challenges for this study on the right to education.

The Indigenous Portal would also like to offer it’s assistance in carrying out this study and any future work by posting all information regarding this study on the portal for example a call for papers, deadline postings on our calendar, and any other information regarding this study under the education category. Each of our editors can also assist with reaching out to indigenous organizations in their
region.

We are committed to working closely with members of the Experts Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and our indigenous brothers and sisters. We welcome all of you to visit us and share your voice at indigenousportal.com.

Thank you.

Open Consultation on the participation of relevant stakeholders in the ITU

Open Consultation on the participation of relevant stakeholders in the ITU

Deadline: 15 June 2008

As part of the process leading towards an increased inclusiveness of the International Telecommunication Union to civil society entities, in the aftermath of WSIS, the ITU is currently leading a consultation process on modalities for civil society participation in the Union . All entities that were accredited to the World Summit on the Information Society are invited to reply to the online questionnaire until 15 June 2008.

UN AND COMPUTER MAKER HP PARTNER TO BOOST IT SKILLS OF AFRICA’S YOUNG

New York, May 8 2008 - The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Hewlett-Packard (HP) have joined forces to help young unemployed people across Africa build their entrepreneurial and information technology (IT) skills, it was announced today.

The Graduate Entrepreneurship Training Through IT (GET-IT) initiative will initially be launched in six nations – Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia and Uganda – and eventually be expanded further to span the African continent.

The scheme seeks to train youth and graduates, who are between the ages of 16 and 25 and do not have jobs, acquire IT skills and run their own businesses.

GET-IT courses will focus on teaching practical solutions for businesses in finance, management, marketing and technology management.

“By providing IT technology, curricula and training for entrepreneurs, we aim to foster jobs and opportunities in Africa,” said Kandeh K. Yumkella, UNIDO Director-General.

HP started the programme last year in 18 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and its new partnership with the UN will allow it to extend its reach in Africa.

“It is essential that UNIDO assists developing countries in Africa in educating their young generation in information technology and creating achievable prospects,” Mr. Yumkella noted.

2008-05-08 00:00:00.000

International Indigenous Portal Launches Logo Competition

UCTP Taino News – The International Indigenous ICT Task Force (IITF) launched their logo competition at the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues on April 22, 2008. The logo will form the basis of the visual identity of the “Indigenous Portal” at http://www.indigenousportal.com/, the IITF’s premier project. The winning logo design will be published on the web site of the Indigenous Portal and will be used on publications and public information materials. The winning designer will receive an 80 GB iPod Classic, iPod microphone, and equipment warranty.

An international indigenous owned and operated initiative coming out of the World Summit on the Information Society, the Indigenous Portal is a way to share indigenous voices, traditions, perspectives on the internet in a way that supports the work of the global Indigenous community.

The competition is open to participation from Indigenous Peoples from around the world and entries can be electronic or made on paper [canvas A4 size] Artists can use ink, pencil, charcoal, crayon, water colour, marker, or any material that are available in their respective environments. The IITF is requesting that each design submitted should be accompanied by a brief description of the meaning on the back of the entry along with personal information name, age, gender, indigenous people to which the individual belongs, full address, country, phone number, fax, e-mail and other alternative contact information.

The Indigenous Portal Board will make the final selection of the entries assisted by the Regional Editors of the Portal, which now include the Pacific, the Caribbean, Russia, Asia, and the Arctic. Selection will be based on artistic expression, usefulness as a logo design, and how well the design captures the goals and objectives of Portal.

Design entries must be received before July 1st 2008. For further information on submissions visit the Indigenous Portal or email indigenousportal@gmail.com.


UCTPTN 05.07.2008

Concurso de logotipo del Portal Indígena – Gane un iPod y un micrófono

www.indigenousportal.com

El Portal Indígena necesita un logotipo. El logotipo formará la base de la identidad visual del Portal Indígena. Será publicado en el sitio web del Portal Indígena y se usará en publicaciones y en materiales de información al público. Los diseños artísticos ganadores recibirán un iPod Classic de 80 GB, un micrófono iPod, y la garantía de los equipos. El portal es un sitio para compartir voces, tradiciones y perspectivas indígenas de una forma que respalde la labor de la comunidad indígena mundial.

Requisitos del concurso
¿Quién puede participar?
Gente indígena de todo el mundo

Requisitos de la entrada:

La entrada puede ser electrónica o hecha en papel [tamaño canvas A4]. Puede usar tinta, lápiz, carbón, lápiz de cera, acuarela, plumón o cualquier material que pudiera tener en su entorno. No enmarque su obra. Cada diseño debe ir acompañado de una descripción breve del significado en la parte posterior de la entrada

Información personal:

Cada entrada debe tener la siguiente información en la parte posterior: nombre, edad, sexo, pueblo indígena al que pertenece la persona, dirección completa, país, número de teléfono, fax, correo electrónico y otra información alternativa de contacto.

Premio:

Los diseños artísticos ganadores recibirán un iPod Classic de 80 GB, un micrófono iPod, y la garantía de los equipos.

Decisión sobre el concurso:

El Directorio del Portal Indígena hará la selección final de las entradas con la ayuda de los Editores Regionales del Portal

Criterios para la evaluación de las entradas:

Expresión artística, utilidad como diseño de logotipo para el Portal Indígena, determinar si se adapta bien al Portal y si captura las metas y los objetivos del Portal.

Plazo:

Envíe el diseño, con el formulario de inscripción, antes del 1 de julio de 2008 a la siguiente dirección:

Logo Competition
c/o Pacific Voices
2847 Waialae Ave 509
Honolulu HI 96826
USA


Aceptaremos también entradas hechas en forma electrónica. Para más información, escríbanos a info- indigenousportal@gmail.com

INDIGENOUS FORUM DISCUSSION FOCUSES ON PACIFIC REGION

23 April 2008
Economic and Social Council
HR/4947

Department of Public Information - News and Media Division - New York
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Seventh Session
5th Meeting (PM)

INDIGENOUS FORUM DISCUSSION FOCUSES ON PACIFIC REGION
Continuing its seventh annual session with a half-day discussion on the Pacific, delegates to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues called for the Forum to take a more robust role in inducing other parts of the United Nations system to carry out mandates for securing the rights of the indigenous peoples in the region.

TEANAU TUIONO, Indigenous ICT Task Force, said improving “connectivity” among indigenous peoples was an urgent issue. At the same time, he warned against a tendency to label the exercise of legitimate political dissent by indigenous peoples as a form of terrorism. Recently, the Government of New Zealand had seized the server hosting the website of the Indigenous ICT Task Force. The homes of writers were raided under the pretext of anti-terrorism. Others were arrested at gunpoint, including one who was incarcerated for as long as a month. Household members were pinned to the ground with guns to their heads, including a 12 year-old girl. He said he himself had been separated from his partner and children and was detained, and his laptop confiscated.

He said the website was currently being hosted on a server run by indigenous people. Information and communication technology (ICT) was a powerful medium to support the work of indigenous peoples, and to facilitate the exchange of information. He recommended that the Forum speak out against Governments that used fear of terrorism as an excuse to prevent dissent over the Internet. In addition, the Forum should support indigenous ICT initiatives by allowing its logo to be used on his website. Indeed, ICT networks were a “necessity” for healthy societies.

Excerpt Source:

http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2008/hr4947.dochtm

SHARE YOUR STORY AT INDIGENOUSPORTAL.COM

The Indigenous ICT Task Force presents:

SHARE YOUR STORY AT INDIGENOUSPORTAL.COM

TUES, APRIL 22, 2008 • 1:15PM - 2:45PM DC2- 13th Floor Conference Room at Two United Nations Plaza (44th Street between 1st and 2nd Ave.)

Speakers: Mr. Roberto Borrero, Mr. Kenneth Deer, Ms. Malia Nobrega, Mr. Teanau Tuiono

*Logo Competition --- Win an iPod 80GB --- Deadline July 1, 2008

Voices of the Earth: Indigenous communities and rural poverty

IPS Latin America has just launched a new radio service in Aymara, Quechua and two Maya languages, working with the community radio network AMARC-Pulsar. The radio broadcasts are part of a special coverage of indigenous peoples in Latin America focused on land and rural issues, which is being supported by IFAD, the International Fund for Agricultural Development. Read more »

More about: Globalization and the South, Latin America, Poverty & MDGs, Sustainable development

Free four-day Online e-learning Course: NETWORKING IN SUPPORT OF DEVELOPMENT for e-agriculture.org Community Members

Free four-day Online e-learning Course: NETWORKING IN SUPPORT OF DEVELOPMENT for e-agriculture.org Community Members

The Food and Agriculture Organization and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation invite applications from the e-agriculture.org Community to participate in a free four-day Online e-learning Course:

NETWORKING IN SUPPORT OF DEVELOPMENT

The First Course for Applicants in Africa will be held 6-9 May 2008.
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS 23 APRIL 2008.

A Second Course for Applicants in Asia will be held in late 2008.

--------------------------------------

The Networking in Support of Development Online Course will cover how different information and communication technologies (ICT) in a country - local, national and international - fit together to provide a workable means of communication, and the issues that affect each level. The course will include e-learning materials, online discussions, and individual assignments. It is one of many modules offered in The Information Management Resource Kit (IMARK), a partnership-based e-learning initiative to train individuals and support institutions and networks world-wide in the effective management of agricultural information.

Who should take this Course?
Anyone who is currently, or would like to be, involved in the development and use of information and communication technology to support existing communication traditions and networks, especially in rural areas.

No prior knowledge of ICT is required.

What are the topics to be covered?

* Day 1 - Information and Communication Technology as media looks at how ICT can be used in support of development as a medium for communication and information exchange.

* Day 2 - ICT's influence on the shape of the future looks at traditional and new media and how ICT might change information delivery over the next 3-5 years.

* Day 3 - Costs and effectiveness of the links in the ICT chain looks at the different links in the network chain: international, national and local, the different technologies used, and the costs involved.

* Day 4 - Impact of regulatory frameworks on ICT choices and costs looks at the areas of ICT policy and regulation where there are strategic choices to be made that will help unlock lower cost communications.

Partcipants will need to show they have:
* Professional involvement in ICT networking in Agriculture and Rural Development in Africa/Asia
* Individual access to the Internet
* Ability to read and write English fluently
* At least 4 hours available each day of the four-day course
* Be a member of the e-agriculture.org Community.


Developed in cooperation with Balancing Act.

To apply, please visit: www.e-agriculture.org

Deadline for applicants in Africa: 23 April 2008. Participation
limited to 30 people.

Net Neutrality: Beware the New New Thing

Beware the New New Thing

By DAMIAN KULASH Jr.
http://www.nytimes. com/2008/ 04/05/opinion/ 05kulash. html

Los Angeles

RECENTLY, the House Judiciary Committee's antitrust task force invited me to be the lead witness for its hearing on "net neutrality." I've collaborated with the Future of Music Coalition, and my band, OK Go, has been among the first to find real success on the Internet --- our songs and videos have been streamed and downloaded hundreds of millions of times (orders of magnitude above our CD sales) --- so the committee thought I'd make a decent spokesman for up-and-coming musicians in this new era of digital pandemonium.

I'm flattered, of course, but it makes you wonder if Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner sit around arguing who was listening to Vampire Weekend first.

If you haven't been following the debate on net neutrality, you're not alone. The details of the issue can lead into realms where only tech geeks and policy wonks dare to tread, but at root there's a pretty simple question: How much control should network operators be allowed to have over the information on their lines?

Most people assume that the Internet is a democratic free-for-all by nature --- that it could be no other way. But the openness of the Internet as we know it is a byproduct of the fact that the network was started on phone lines. The phone system is subject to "common carriage" laws, which require phone companies to treat all calls and customers equally. They can't offer tiered service in which higher-paying customers get their calls through faster or clearer, or calls originating on a competitor's network are blocked or slowed.

These laws have been on the books for about as long as telephones have been ringing, and were meant to keep Bell from using its elephantine market share to squash everyone else. And because of common carriage, digital data running over the phone lines has essentially been off limits to the people who laid the lines. But in the last decade, the network providers have argued that since the Internet is no longer primarily run on phone lines, the laws of data equality no longer apply. They reason that they own the fiber optic and coaxial lines, so they should be able to do whatever they want with the information crossing them.

Under current law, they're right. They can block certain files or Web sites for their subscribers, or slow or obstruct certain applications. And they do, albeit pretty rarely. Network providers have censored anti-Bush comments from an online Pearl Jam concert, refused to allow a text-messaging program from the pro-choice group Naral (saying it was "unsavory"), blocked access to the Internet phone service (and direct competitor) Vonage and selectively throttled online traffic that was using the BitTorrent protocol.

When the network operators pull these stunts, there is generally widespread outrage. But outright censorship and obstruction of access are only one part of the issue, and they represent the lesser threat, in the long run. What we should worry about more is not what's kept from us today, but what will be built (or not built) in the years to come.

We hate when things are taken from us (so we rage at censorship), but we also love to get new things. And the providers are chomping at the bit to offer them to us: new high-bandwidth treats like superfast high-definition video and quick movie downloads. They can make it sound great: newer, bigger, faster, better! But the new fast lanes they propose will be theirs to control and exploit and sell access to, without the level playing field that common carriage built into today's network.

They won't be blocking anything per se --- we'll never know what we're not getting --- they'll just be leapfrogging today's technology with a new, higher-bandwidth network where they get to be the gatekeepers and toll collectors. The superlative new video on offer will be available from (surprise, surprise) them, or companies who've paid them for the privilege of access to their customers. If this model sounds familiar, that's because it is. It's how cable TV operates.

We can't allow a system of gatekeepers to get built into the network. The Internet shouldn't be harnessed for the profit of a few, rather than the good of the many; value should come from the quality of information, not the control of access to it.

For some parallel examples: there are only two guitar companies who make most of the guitars sold in America, but they don't control what we play on those guitars. Whether we use a Mac or a PC doesn't govern what we can make with our computers. The telephone company doesn't get to decide what we discuss over our phone lines. It would be absurd to let the handful of companies who connect us to the Internet determine what we can do online. Congress needs to establish basic ground rules for an open Internet, just as common carriage laws did for the phone system.

The Internet, for now, is the type of place where my band's homemade videos find a wider audience than the industry's million-dollar productions. A good idea is still more important than deep pockets. If network providers are allowed to build the next generation of the Net as a pay-to-play system, we will all pay the price.

Damian Kulash Jr. is the lead singer for OK Go.

*The material in this post is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.For more information go to: http://www4. law.cornell. edu/uscode/ 17/107.html http://oregon. uoregon.edu/ ~csundt/document s.htm If you wish to use copyrighted material from this email for purposes that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner*.*

World Indigenous Television Broadcasting Conference 08 Scholarships

Call for applications: deadline Friday, 14 March

The inaugural World Indigenous Television Broadcasting Conference - WITBC 08 - will be held at The Edge in Auckland, Aotearoa-New Zealand, from March 26-28, 2008. The conference theme is 'reclaiming the future' of our indigenous languages, cultures and identities.

Host broadcaster Maori Television is committed to the development of the industry by supporting New Zealand tertiary students who are studying in broadcasting related fields with a particular emphasis on indigenous culture and language.

Maori Television is pleased to be able to offer five (5) student scholarships to attend WITBC 08. The scholarships cover the conference delegate fee, plus attendance at the two networking functions on Day One and Day Two.

Scholarships will be awarded to five students who can demonstrate a commitment in their studies and in their future aspirations, to the development of indigenous culture and language.

More information and application forms are available at http://witbc.org/STUDENTS/

Applications close Friday March 14, 2008 at 5PM. Applications should be sent to:
Hone Paul, Maori Television, PO Box 113017, Newmarket, Auckland.
Email: hone.paul@maoritelevision.com.
Fax: 09 539 7199.

The Best Free Software

157 software tools. No fees. No expiration dates. No problems. Sometimes even no downloads. No kidding.

by Eric Griffith and PC Magazine Staff

We did the math: If you bought popular apps instead of trying their gratis counter-parts, at the manufacturers' list prices you'd be out $5,183 and change! Why spend money when you can get what you need for nothing? Sometimes, you do get what you don't pay for.

---------------------------------
Hall of Fame
---------------------------------

Adobe Reader
www.adobe.com
Windows MacOS Linux Mobile
This simplest of Adobe's PDF programs lets you do just about anything PDF-related (besides create new ones), including online collaboration. It includes a host of features to aid users with disabilities.

AIM
www.aim.com
Windows MacOS Linux Web
One of the most widely used pieces of free software ever, AOL Instant Messenger offers a ton of capabilities.
Read our full review of AIM 6.5.

Audacity
www.audacity.sourceforge.net
Windows MacOS Linux
Whether you're recording or editing, Audacity is all about audio in practically any format.

Firefox
www.mozilla.com
Windows MacOS Linux
This PC Mag Editors' Choice Web browser has been on top of the heap since version 1.5 came out in late 2005.
Read our full review of Firefox 2.0.

GIMP
www.gimp.org
Windows MacOS Linux
The GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) does most of what Photoshop does; the Gimpshop project (plasticbugs.com) even makes it look like Photoshop.
Read our full review of The GIMP 2.0.

iTunes
www.apple.com/itunes
Windows MacOS
When you're attached to the top media player in the land (iPod), success is a given. iTunes continues to build sales and refine its organization of songs, video, games, podcasts, and more.
Read our full review of Apple iTunes 7.6.

OpenOffice.org
www.openoffice.org

Windows MacOS Linux
You can spend a lot for Microsoft Office or nothing for this suite with full-function word processor, spreadsheet, database, presentations, even an equations editor.
Read our full review of OpenOffice.org 2.3.

Skype
www.skype.com
Windows MacOS Linux
You'll pay to call regular phones, but if you sign up all your friends, Skype provides easy (and even international) calls and video-conferencing for nothing.
Read our full review of Skype 3.0.

Thunderbird
www.mozilla.com/thunderbird
Windows MacOS Linux
Mozilla's no-cost e-mail alternative is extensible, fast, and easy to master. And a wealth of free add-ons means there's not much this program won't do, from calendars to encryption.
Read our full review of Thunderbird 2.

Ubuntu
www.ubuntu.com
Linux
This Linux-based OS comes with many of these Hall of Fame products (Firefox, OpenOffice.org) preinstalled.

WinAmp
www.winamp.com
Windows
After a decade of playing music, the "skinnable" WinAmp has several versions, including one with full CD ripping and burning.

=======================
Operating Systems
=======================

ajaxWindows
www.ajaxwindows.com
Web
A virtual operating system (aka Web OS), it uses Asynchronous Java-Script and XML (AJAX) programming to mimic the look and feel of a Windows desktop in Firefox or IE. It stores files (using Gmail) and runs its own applications, plus Web apps like Meebo and Google Maps. If you can launch a Web browser, you can get work done through ajaxWindows.

eyeOS
www.eyeos.info
Web
This Web OS has ultra-simplified applications, including an RSS reader, satellite maps, a word processor, even a browser—yes, for browsing the Web while on the Web.

Freespire 2.0
www.freespire.com
Linux
This community-driven OS is based on Linspire (formerly Lindows)—a Linux distro that looks like Windows, with an emphasis on compatibility with other platforms.

Glide
www.glidedigital.com
Web Flash
Sleek style sets this Web OS apart, as does the ability (using a separate utility) to sync files, bookmarks, and e-mail from your real OS. Read our full review of Glide Effortless.

gOS
www.thinkgos.com
Linux
Ubuntu-based and powered by Google's apps (just don't call it Google OS), gOS comes with the $200 PCs from Wal-Mart, but you can download it for any PC.

==========================

See more FREE SOFTWARE at Antivirus/Anti-Malware ; Firewalls & Security ; Finance & Office ; Calendar/PIMs ; Backup/Sync & App Launchers ; Utilities ; Downloads & Interface Enhancement ; File View/Conversion & Networking ; Blogging, RSS Readers, & Instant Messaging ; Communication & Audio ; Video ; Graphics ; Browsers & Browser Add-Ons ; Games/Fun ; Free (Okay, Cheap) Hardware

Source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2260079,00.asp

Last Call: Indigenous Portal Regional Editors

Indigenous Portal Regional Editors

The Indigenous ICT Task Force (IITF) is seeking to hire eight regional Indigenous web editors to work on the Indigenous Portal website. This is a part-time paid position with opportunity for a longer period.

Overview:

The IITF was created during the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis in 2005 by Indigenous representatives who want to implement the Plan of Action of that process.

The IITF is a non-profit organization of Indigenous individuals who are involved in the Information Society. They include educators, editors, website managers, community activists and others who have an interest is closing the digital divide between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of the world.

The IITF has created a portal at www.indigenousportal.com with one general site and regional sub-sites in eight regions of the world: North America, South America, Central American and the Caribbean, Artic, Africa, Asia, Pacific and Russia.

These regional sites will run the language most suitable to the Indigenous Peoples in their region.
The initial plan is to have one Indigenous Portal Project Manager to create and oversee the development of the portal and regional managers to maintain the portal for their particular region.

The project is funded through Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), initially facilitated by INCOMINDIOS, a Swiss based NGO and carried by the IITF. The project is at the moment co-managed and the entire management will gradually be passed to the Permanent Portal Board consisting of Indigenous representatives from eight regions of the world and the IITF as the carrying organisation. By the end of the project the Permanent Board and the IITF will be the sole entities managing and carrying the project.

This project is very dynamic and challenging and will require an Indigenous person with the skills and experience to meet this demanding opportunity.

The position as a Indigenous Portal Regional Editor is perfect for a dynamic, insightful, well-organized, detail-oriented individual or ORGANIZATION with a passion for information and communication technologies and international development. The ideal candidate is a strong writer and communicator, technology savvy and able to share the vision of the project. She/he is also an effective planner and able to contribute to the overall strategic development and implementation of this exciting project. This person is someone who is goal-oriented and able to work well both independently and collaboratively.

Job Description

Content
- Regularly gathering and uploading fresh, accurate and reliable content, such as news, in the region of responsibility
- Finding and updating new resources of information for the website
- Ensuring that the designated language(s) content will be provided

Editorial
- Researching, collecting and requesting content added to site
- Working with the Indigenous Portal Project Manager to update featured topic every few weeks

Tech Support on Site Usage
- Working with technical team to co-ordinate site maintenance

Community Outreach
- Acting as a contact for their language community
- Creating excitement about the website and the community
- Facilitating, supporting and growing the online community
- Find ways in which the site may be improved to better support community projects.

Research
- Undertake ongoing research, reporting and recommendation development with the support of other team members
- Write progress reports every three months

Qualifications that are an asset but not obligatory
• Knowledge of issues around telecentres and community-building technology.
• Understanding and use of communications technologies including blogs and content management systems.
• Understanding of internet culture and enjoy spending time online
• Ability to network with people
• Strong written and oral communications skills, with an enthusiasm for sharing ideas and an ability to translate them into actions. Fluency in a relevant language (English/ Spanish/French). Multiple languages are an asset.
• Work experience in the non-profit and/or technology sector (ideally with a focus on Information and Communication Technologies for Development).
• Travel experience in developing countries with an understanding of internet access issues and the objectives and challenges of telecentres an asset.
• Experience with the media.
• Creative thinker and problem-solver.
• Ability to manage multiple shifting priorities and large amounts of information.
• Ability to work in multicultural and "skill-diverse" teams
• Strong knowledge of international issues, human rights and development, with a particular focus in information and communications technologies.


Application Process:

Electronically submit a cover letter expressing your interest in this position, your curriculum vitae (CV), and a listing of two references to:

The Indigenous Portal Board Members
indigenousportal@gmail.com

An email confirming the receipt of your application will be sent to you upon receiving all documents.

Deadline for application- February 28, 2008
Position starts: ~ 2008 (tba)

Aboriginal archive offers new DRM

A new method of digital rights management (DRM) which relies on a user's profile has been pioneered by Aboriginal Australians.

The Mukurtu Wumpurrarni-kari Archive has been developed by a community based in Australia's Northern Territory.

It asks every person who logs in for their name, age, sex and standing within their community.

This information then restricts what they can search for in the archive, offering a new take on DRM

Dr Kimberly Christen, who helped to develop the archive, told BBC World Service's Digital Planet programme that the need to create these profiles came from community traditions over what can and cannot be seen.

"It grew out of the Warumungu community people themselves, who were really interested in repatriating a lot of images and things that had been taken from the community," she said.

"You find this a lot in indigenous communities, not just in Australia but around the world... this really big push in these communities to get this information back and let people start looking at it and narrating it themselves."

Where to look

Dr Christen, who is an assistant professor based at Washington State University, stumbled across the idea of the archive by chance after meeting a group of missionaries who had digitally archived photos of the Warumungu community since the 1930s.

After loading them onto her laptop, she took them back to Tennant Creek and set up a slideshow - where she noticed that people turned away when certain images came up on screen.

For example, men cannot view women's rituals, and people from one community cannot view material from another without first seeking permission. Meanwhile images of the deceased cannot be viewed by their families.

Offline website

"The way people were looking at the photos was embedded in the social system that already existed in the community," she said.

"People would come in and out of the area of the screen to look when they could look."

This threw up issues surrounding how the material could be archived, as it was not only about preserving the information into a database in a traditional sense, but also how people would access it depending on their gender, their relationship to other people and where they were situated.

Dr Christen and her team of software developers came up with what is described as "a website that's not online", containing photos, digital video clips, audio files, digital reproductions of cultural artefacts and documents.

The system has also been designed with a "two-click mantra" in mind, making the content easy to access for those with low computer literacy skills.

Images are arranged in their own categories, with content tagged with restrictions.

The project believes it has established a cultural solution as well as an opportunity for Aboriginals to collate much of what was once lost. The hope of the project's designers is that as culture and traditions change, history can be rewritten and changed by people themselves.

Source: BBC http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7214240.stm

E-Bario and E-Inclusion workshop held in Malaysia

IITF NEWS - The e-Bario Knowledge Fair, a multi-disciplinary conference, took place on 6-8 December 2007 and incorporated the UNDP Workshop on E-inclusion and Media for Asia’s Indigenous Peoples.

The e-Bario Knowledge Fair was held in the remote village of Bario, in the Kelabit Highlands of Sarawak, one of the states of East Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Bario is the traditional home of the Kelabit people, one of Malaysia's smallest indigenous ethnic minority groups. It is also the home of the multi-award winning e-Bario project that introduced computers, telephones and the internet to this isolated community.

Teanau Tuiono, a member of the IITF and manager of its project "www.indigenousportal.com" participated in the conference, which provided a unique opportunity to "share the progress of the Portal to a range of Indigenous ICT and Non-indigenous academics."

Arising from the joint proceedings, the delegates formulated the e-Bario Vision for Indigenous Peoples,which was presented to the 3rd Global Knowledge Conference (GK3).