J Cravens wrote: ref [DDN] Educating the philanthropic community
One of the digital divides that needs to be bridged is helping people -- anywhere -- make informed choices about hardware and software, and being able to articulate and identify their own needs
Absolutely. That is what CAWDnet is about. We enable people to "rub minds". We link people in the "connected community" with people in rural Nigeria, so that "Good Ideas" and "rural reality" can come together for practical problem solving.
It isn't just "an idea" - it is really happening. It was through CAWDnet that the Solo field trials were arranged in Nigeria in 2002, and that the Solo has come to Fantsuam for assembly. It was through CAWDnet that the ideas of pocket solar, and of solar cooking came to Fantsuam. CAWDnet is about local empowerment. The ability to express need is a central part of our vision for the Teachers Talking (about ICTs) course.. One of the expressed objectives for that course is that teachers who have attended will be able to enter into informed debate about their requirements regarding ICTs..
.... but that's a rather huge goal in and of itself...
Yes and no. We are talking here about a goal related to communicating with people about their situations and their needs. That is an achievable goal. Aren't we all on this list because of an interest in ICTs? And isn't it called ICT because it's the Technology that enables us to Communicate Information? By definition, ICTs enable us to "rub brains" with other people irrespective of the physical distances separating us.
I can't speak for digital divides between the "haves" and "have nots" everywhere - but I can speak for the community projects in rural Nigeria, that I represent . If anyone really wants to enter into debate with local people in rural Nigeria about what they genuinely need - well - it can be arranged. The communications technology is available now - and so are the social networks. Just ask....
Pam Pamela McLean CAWDnet convenor [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.cawd.info _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
