Complementary Korean News &Media Partnerships

Read Newspapers from North Korea @ ThePaperboy.com

Invest in the Journalism Center. /Independent Cuban Journalist Sentenced /North Korea to Put Two Arrested U.S. Journalists

Invest in the Journalism Center.
Invest in stories that change lives.


Dear Colleagues,

As journalists, we all know the slightly panicked feeling of being confronted with a challenging story, one that needs to be told with sensitivity and authority, and wondering where to begin. Time and again, the Journalism Center on Children & Families has provided me with the grounding I‘ve needed to plunge in.

Whether it’s been scanning the daily news summary for ideas, interviewing the center’s expert sources or attending a Journalism Center conference packed with information and story ideas that I actually used, the center has informed much of my best work.

All that background came into play last year when I wrote a lengthy narrative piece that put a national discussion about youth gun violence into an intimate context. The result was an award-winning story that helped keep a teenager in school, instead of sending him to state prison.

My official beat has often changed but whatever I’m covering – be it child welfare, juvenile justice or nontraditional families – I regularly turn to the Journalism Center for context or research, and I expect to do so long into the future.

I tell you all this to encourage your support for the Journalism Center’s current fundraising effort. By raising $20,000 from individual donors like you and me, the center will meet a goal set by the Challenge Fund for Journalism. At a time when we’re all being more careful than ever with our charitable dollars, this match doubles the impact of our investment.

These are tough times for journalism -- and for journalists. But I believe that pulling together to aid an organization that does so much to help us affect readers’ lives is one intelligent way to weather the storm. I encourage you as former fellows, medal recipients and summary subscribers, to consider making a donation.

Join me and invest in the center:


Sincerely,

Claudia Rowe
Reporter
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Read other letters of support
The Challenge Fund for Journalism is a joint capacity-building initiative of The Ford Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, McCormick Foundation, and Ethics & Excellence in Journalism Foundation.




J-Community

JOURNALISM IN THE AMERICAS
Independent Cuban Journalist Sentenced to Three Years in Jail for "Disrespect"

Cuban independent journalist, Albert Santiago Du Bouchet Hernández, was sentenced this week to three years in prison for charges of "disrespect," the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports.
Du Bouchet Hernández, director of the Havana-based independent news agency Habana Press, was arrested in April. Police claimed he was shouting anti-government slogans in the street, CPJ reports. Du Bouchet Hernández was previously jailed for one year in 2005 for a similar charge.
His family has been unable to visit him, and he has not had access to a lawyer, CPJ adds.
Twenty-one independent reporters and editors are currently jailed in Cuba, which trails only China in the number of journalists behind bars, CPJ notes.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Columnist Urges U.S. Media to be Less Race-Biased in Covering Homicide Cases

In his column this week for The New York Times, Bob Herbert encourages the media to cover more homicides in the U.S., and not to limit its coverage to victims who are attractive and white.
Herbert begins with a personal story from his time working at The New York Daily News. A story was pitched about a baby who was killed and the editor asked "What color is that baby?"
"Everyone understood what he meant," Herbert said. "If the baby was white, the chances were much better that the story was worth big play."
Herbert then jumps to a current case: the extensive coverage of a university student killed in Connecticut, allegedly by a man who had attended a summer course with her a few years ago. Herbert said this story undoubtedly deserves to be covered, but most of the media is paying less attention to an equally important story about dozens of school children who have been killed by Chicago gang violence this year. The young woman who is being heavily covered by the media is white, while most of the children who have died in Chicago are African-American or Latino.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

North Korea to Put Two Arrested U.S. Journalists on Trial June 4

The two reporters for San Francisco-based Current TV, Euna Lee and Laura Ling, have been held for two months on charges of illegal border crossing and “hostile acts.” The Korean Central News Agency did not elaborate on the condition of the reporters or the charges they face, The Korea Times and The New York Times report.
Observers of North Korea said the government would likely follow a similar process of trial, conviction and release that Iran took when releasing U.S. journalist Roxana Saberi, The Korea Times suggests.
“Under the North Korean law, a person convicted of hostile acts against the state can be sentenced to up to 10 years in labor camps while illegal trespassers can face up to three years in the camps,” Kim Sue-young writes for The Korea Times (of Seoul, South Korea).
When the reporters were first arrested (see background here), analysts said North Korea would probably use them as bargaining chips to try to obtain political and financial concessions from the Obama administration, the Washington Post’s Blaine Harden reports. The U.S. has no diplomatic ties with North Korea, and a Swedish diplomat met with the two reporters on behalf of Washington on March 30, but the North has cut off access to them since then, Harden adds.
Throughout the reporters' ordeal, several observers have noted the silence of their employer, Current TV--led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore--which has not placed even a hint on its web site about what has happened to the reporters. "After nearly two months, Current TV for me has now reached a level of moral bankruptcy. I simply don’t believe them any longer," communications strategist Mark Vanderbeeken posted this week on Putting People First. See this earlier post by Hearst Newspaper executive Phil Bronstein.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Press release - For Immediate Release - 15 May 2009

Climate Change Media Partnership invites applications for the 2009 fellowship programme

The largest group of developing-world journalists returns to boost media coverage of climate change in a critical year of negotiations.

The Climate Change Media Partnership (CCMP) has today opened its 2009 Fellowship Programme. It encourages all journalists in developing countries who report on climate change to apply.

This programme comes during a critical year of negotiations that ends in December with the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen where a new global deal could be struck.

Forty journalists will be awarded fellowships which will give them skills training and access to world class experts to enhance their knowledge. They have until midnight UK time (BST) on World Environment Day, 5 June, to file their applications.

The innovative programme is organised by the CCMP partners Internews, Panos and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), along with numerous regional groups.

"Climate change will disproportionately impact developing nations, yet journalists from these countries rarely have the resources to attend the intergovernmental negotiations aimed at tackling the problem,” says James Fahn, Global Director of Internews' Earth Journalism Network.

Patrick Dambula, a former CCMP fellow from Malawi, highlights the importance of the fellowships: “There are so many journalists in Malawi who don’t know what climate change is all about and they go on to report the issue, which means there are chances they can misinform the people”.

The CCMP aims to address this by involving journalists from across the global South in a programme of activities over several months, including reporting on the Copenhagen summit. Here, in addition to receiving training and mentoring, they will take part in a media clinic and interview sessions with leading climate change experts and negotiators.

The CCMP has already brought a total of 74 developing country journalists from print, broadcast and online media to the last two UN climate summits, in Indonesia and Poland. At these meetings, the journalists produced over one thousand climate-change stories for media worldwide. At both summits the CCMP formed the largest single media group, providing politically independent journalistic scrutiny of the negotiations.

Comments from former fellows indicate the strength of the CCMP programme:

• “I do think this is one of the best training opportunities I've had,” journalist in Mexico
• “Simply an unparalleled experience for a journalist,” journalist in Nepal.
• “The benefits have been incomparable and immense,” journalist in Sierra Leone.

“Former CCMP Fellows include journalists who have gone on to become some of the world’s most knowledgeable reporters on the topic,” says Mike Shanahan of the International Institute for Environment and Development. “Nearly 400 journalists applied for places on last year’s programme and we expect that competition will be even more intense this time. However, even the unlucky candidates will still benefit by receiving CCMP briefings and other materials.”

For the first time, the CCMP will be working with journalists in the run up to the UN summit, and not just at the summit itself. The partnership will commission articles and run a regional workshop at the pre-Copenhagen climate change negotiations in Bangkok beginning in late September.

"The Bangkok workshop will be a crucial stepping stone on the road to Copenhagen," explains Po Garden, project director for Internews' Earth Journalism Network. "It will provide regional journalists and editors with a special opportunity to deepen their understanding of climate change issues and help them prepare their coverage for Copenhagen."

Governments from around the world have set themselves a deadline of December 2009 to agree a new deal for addressing climate change.

“Without media from vulnerable countries there to report on the talks, negotiators will be under little public scrutiny,” says Indi Mclymont-Lafayette of Panos. “The CCMP programme creates the opportunity for journalists to report in depth on the negotiations. They can also share their stories with millions of people especially those in developing countries who might not yet understand how climate change will affect them.”

This year the programme funding consortium is led largely by a grant from EuropeAid. The CCMP is seeking additional financing to expand the number of journalists it can bring to Copenhagen. .

To apply for a CCMP fellowship (DEADLINE midnight UK time (BST) 5 JUNE), visit
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=cX9w8ID8c7MXH8bAgMwBPg_3d_3d

To watch videos of former CCMP fellows talking about their experiences, visit
http://tinyurl.com/qej7ew
http://tinyurl.com/psg58u

For more information on the CCMP, visit:
http://www.climatemediapartnership.org/

Those wishing to support CCMP fellowships should contact:
CCMP@panos.org.uk


Mike Shanahan
Press officer
International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dear Reader,
If you've ever been to Utah, Colorado or Wyoming, you know how spectacularly beautiful those states are. Now imagine ten new, polluting, coal-fired power plants in those states just to develop oil shale, the dirtiest fossil fuel on the planet. For the sake of our future and the environment, our nation needs to move in the direction of clean energy. Tell the Bureau of Land Management to protect our air, water, land and wildlife by going slow on unproven, dirty oil shale development.

Don Hazen
Executive Editor, AlterNet.org
(‘The Monthly Muktidooth’ on behalf on AlterNet Org.)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Press release: Poorest nations largely unready for health impacts of climate change

The world’s poorest nations are unprepared for the strain climate change will put on their public health systems, according to studies by the International Institute for Environment and Development and partners.

The findings come ahead of a major summit of health ministers from Commonwealth nations in Geneva that begins on 17 May. They show that in the most vulnerable countries very little has been done to assess or address the threats climate change poses to health.

Saleemul Huq, senior fellow in IIED’s climate change group says this in part reflects a failure of wealthy nations to meet promises to help the poorer nations adapt to climate change.

The research, by members of IIED’s CLACC network, found that health systems in many of the Least Developed Countries are already stretched to breaking point dealing with immediate concerns such as malaria and other infectious diseases.

There has been minimal research into how climate change will affect health and what can be done to reduce the threat, leaving hundreds of millions of people uninformed about the dangers.

The Zambian study showed that floods and droughts can increase disease levels in some areas by as much as 400 per cent. Dysentery appears to increase with droughts conditions, while pneumonia and malaria increase with rainfall.

“Zambia is vulnerable to droughts, floods, extreme heat and shifts in rainy season length,” says author George Kasali of Energy and Environmental Concerns for Zambia. “Almost all of these climate hazards will have a negative effect on health. Despite the increased frequency of these hazards in the last decade, Zambia has not yet developed any climate-informed policies for the health sector.”

The findings from Benin, Bhutan and Zambia are summarised in the new issue of Tiempo.

“There is very little awareness of the potential impact of climate change on human health within health sectors in the Least Developed Countries,” says Hannah Reid, a senior researcher in IIED’s climate change group. “There have been very few assessments of how climate change will affect food security, access to water, flood risks and diseases such as malaria.”

Saleemul Huq says that rich countries must provide funds to help poorer nations adapt to climate change.

“Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, rich countries promised back in 2001 to support poor countries in their efforts to adapt,” says Huq. “Since then 39 of the 49 Least Developed Countries have assessed their adaptation needs. Many identified health issues that they will need to adapt to as climate change takes hold. What’s missing is the money that was promised to help them do this.”

To download the latest issue of Tiempo
http://www.tiempocyberclimate.org/portal/archive/pdf/tiempo71low.pdf

To contact Hannah Reid email hannah.reid@iied.org or call +44 (0)207 388 2117

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Helping Pakistani Women Have Their Say

Disturbed by the negative portrayal of women in Pakistani media, journalist Tasneem Ahmar launched the Uks Research Center in 1997 to foster fair and sensitive reporting on women’s issues in Pakistan. Under Ahmar’s leadership, the Islamabad-based Uks Rsearch Center has worked tirelessly to promote gender equality through radio productions on women’s issues, research and publications, advocacy and media monitoring.
Ahmar established the Pakistani Women’s Media Network, the first ever network for Pakistani women working in the media to encourage more positive portrayals of women, increase female representation at all levels, and improve conditions for women working in media.
Internews will honor Tasneem Ahmar at the Internews Media Leadership Awards in Washington, DC on June 2 for her leadership in improving coverage of women’s issues and bringing women’s voices and perspectives to Pakistan’s media.
What personally inspired you to start working for more balanced and accurate coverage of women in Pakistan’s media?
The continued negative, sensational and derogatory portrayal of women in the media was the driving force behind my starting Uks, which means “reflection” in Urdu. I wanted to reach out to Pakistan’s media managers—all male—and take up the case of gender sensitivity in the media.
My basic aim was to make the media realize that what they were doing—at times unthinkingly and unintentionally—was actually harming women’s development, as the news content was creating and strengthening the existing bias against women.
What are some examples of how Pakistani media currently portray women?
It is men who decide what news, views and visuals will be heard, read and seen. This male domination of our newsrooms becomes overwhelmingly in news coverage of violence against women.
The women in the cases of rape are the worst victims. A lot of newspapers report with a bias against these women and reinforce the existing unsupportive attitude of the society towards women. No wonder then that the official reaction to rape continues to be that of accusation towards the women.
In addition, women's magazines focus heavily on the domestic side of women, trying to prove that every woman needs to be a perfect cook, a tailor, and housekeeper and also be beautiful. The intellectual qualities of women are mentioned nowhere. Their abilities as equal partners in development are lost.
There is lots of hypocrisy in the media in Pakistan—it has no problem highlighting women’s physical and sexual features but is reluctant to bring forward issues of HIV/AIDS, sexual harassment, the sex trade, and trafficking on the pretext that such coverage would be obscene.
What are the challenges faced by Pakistani women who want to become journalists?
Media has traditionally been a male-dominated field. Whereas a woman’s image may adorn various media outputs only as an ornament, they have no meaningful participation in the creation of media. Newsroom staff, researchers and anchors have traditionally been men. Women, who make up 48% of the population of Pakistan, only make up a tiny fraction of the newsroom staff and news subjects.
Some factors responsible for the invisibility of women in media organizations are low hiring rates, sexual harassment in the workplace, late working hours without transportation, and no provision of maternity leave. In our research, Uks has found that women students are very keen to join the media but are handicapped by parental and societal pressures that still say that media is not a profession for women. On the other hand, there has been a marked increase in the number of women journalists, anchors, and producers in the electronic media, especially television.
What kinds of radio programs does the Uks Research Center produce?
We have produced several radio series, covering topics such as honor crimes, reproductive health rights, and the particular challenges facing women and girls who survived Pakistan’s massive 2005 earthquake.
These are on issues that people usually do not talk about, but once you take up an issue, the response is great. Through listener emails, phone calls and letters, we get the feedback that our thought-provoking programs are urging people to think about real issues that are all around them.
What advice do you have for young Pakistani women looking to improve their society?
You have to keep striving for a better and a more just society by continuing to work positively. Remember that equality is only possible when there is increased awareness, a transformation in attitudes, and a removal of unequal practices that are deeply rooted in society. For this reason you will have to communicate effectively that you are here to stay.

Hugo Chávez Threatens to Take Venezuela's /Iran Releases Journalist Convicted of Spying for U.S./U.S. Senate Hears Debate on the Future of Journalism/

JOURNALISM IN THE AMERICAS
A News Blog

Hugo Chávez Threatens to Take Venezuela's Last Major Opposition-run TV Station Off Air

President Hugo Chávez has threatened again to close Globovisión, the only TV channel in Venezuela that regularly criticizes him, saying it had caused panic for reporting an earthquake last week before the government announced it, the Miami Herald reports.
The all-news station scooped the government May 4 on the mild earthquake, citing the U.S. Geological Survey's web page as its source, Tyler Bridges reports for the Herald. Globovisión's general manager Alberto Ravell responded to Chavez's accusations by saying his station could not find any authorities to give them precise information about the earthquake after it happened.
Some Venezuelan bloggers found that disputes betweens the government and the private media made it difficult for them to find information about the quake, Laura Vidal writes for Global Voices.
Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro accused the 24-hour Globovisión news network of "media terrorism," describing the channel and its director as "violators of the Constitution and of the rights of Venezuelans," as well as being "antidemocratic, failed and fascist," Britain's Telegraph reports.
In response, representatives of opposition political parties declared themselves on alert in defense of freedom of expression, El Universal explains. "President, freedom of expression is not a fad, and it doesn't depend on how you wake up," said Mayor Antonio Ledezma of the Federal District.
The closure of Globovisión could be announced as soon as this week, its director, Alberto Ravell, told El Nuevo Herald. “I think that Chávez is going to dare to close the channel … the only one that informs the national community of what's really happening in the country," he said.

• By Ingrid Bachmann/Maya Srikrishnan/DG at 05/12/2009 - 14:17

U.S. Senate Hears Debate on the Future of Journalism


The U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet called a hearing last week at which several industry executives presented their views on the future of journalism in the digital age, AFP reports.
A Texas newspaper publisher, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, a top executive from Google, and the founder of The Huffington Post website all took the stage at the hearing to discuss whether online journalism will sustain the values of professional journalism the same way newspapers have.
Here is some of what they said:
*Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington told the senators they should look to a "pro-am model," where amateur reporters (citizen journalists) get guidance from professional journalists and editors, the Los Angeles Times reports.
She praised Web sites like the Voice of San Diego that have had success in local investigative reporting. She also mentioned the launch of an investigative team at her own enterprise, the Times reports.
*Former Baltimore Sun reporter and creator of the television show, The Wire, David Simon, was less optimistic about citizen journalism, saying it was well intentioned but ineffective. Simon suggested the government create tax incentives for newspaper chains to transfer ownership of papers to locally managed nonprofits and that the government relax monopoly prohibitions so newspaper owners can collaboratively plan an industry-wide transition to a paid, online subscriber base, the Guardian reports.
*Dallas Morning News publisher James Moroney blamed news aggregators like Google News and Amazon for the current decline in ad revenue. He argued it would be beneficial if the government tried to cut the revenue-sharing agreements between print organizations and these online organizations through an antitrust exemption, the Los Angeles Times reports.
*Google vice president Marissa Mayer pointed out that Google drives a lot of traffic to news sites and suggested that newspapers should be mending their product, improving "reader engagement" by better directing readers from one story to another through similar features and advertising, the Los Angeles Times reports.
*Alberto Ibargüen, president and CEO of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, suggested several ways federal lawmakers could act to maintain the flow of information in communities. His suggestions for the lawmakers included: ensure universal digital and internet access, encourage media experimentation, and examine possible laws that would make it easier to create local nonprofit news organizations. (Read Ibargüen's testimony here.)
Poynter's Bill Mitchell also shares his view on the hearing here.
Hugo Chávez Attacks Media Opponents Again, Threatens to Withdraw Their Licenses

The Venezuelan president warned in his weekly TV program Aló Presidente (Hello President) he would take drastic measures against those communications media that "trample the truth and incite war," BBC Mundo reports.
According to El Nacional, Chávez called on the private media to change their attitude or to face legal penalties, including the withdrawal of their concessions.
Chávez's words were interpreted as a warning to the director of Globovisión, Alberto Federico Ravell, whom the president has accused repeatedly of participating in conspiracies.

• By Ingrid Bachmann/DG at 05/11/2009 - 11:24

Iran Releases Journalist Convicted of Spying for U.S.

ranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi was released from a Tehran prison after judicial authorities suspended the remainder of the eight-year sentence she was given for espionage, the Washington Post and BBC report.
"I'm okay. I don't want to make any comments but I am okay," she told the AFP news agency minutes after leaving the Evin prison in Tehran and then being driven away by her father.
Saberi, 32, is free to leave Iran and has been banned from working as a reporter in Iran for five years, one of her attorneys told the Post.
An Iranian court had convicted the reporter of espionge and sentenced her to eight years in prison last month after a closed trial. She was first arrested in January and told her family she was held for buying a bottle of wine. Iranian officials later said she was detained for reporting without proper accreditation.
More stories about her release are found here, and previous posts are found here.

• By Dean Graber at 05/11/2009 - 08:45


Edited by :MUKTI MAJID

Israeli troops invade Gaza/

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, center, gestures to the media, as Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, left, and Attorney General Ghorban Ali Dorri Najafabadi, sit, at a meeting of top prosecutors from Islamic countries, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, April 22, 2009. Iran hosts a meeting of top prosecutors from Islamic countries, who are trying to find ways to arrange for the arrest and prosecution of Israeli leaders on war crimes charges over the Gaza assault earlier this year.
(AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Israel's former prime minister Ehud Olmert, seen here on April 1, 2009, and other top officials could face legal action in Norway over the Gaza offensive after six Norwegian lawyers said Tuesday they would accuse them of war crimes.
(AFP/POOL/File/Menahem Kahana)
Palestinians walk out of the National Islamic Bank in Gaza City. The first bank affiliated with the Hamas movement running Gaza opened on Tuesday in the Israeli-blockaded coastal strip which lies outside the Palestinian Authority's control.
(AFP/Mohammed Abed)
Palestinian clerks serve customers at the National Islamic Bank in Gaza City. The first bank affiliated with the Hamas movement running Gaza opened on Tuesday in the Israeli-blockaded coastal strip which lies outside the Palestinian Authority's control.
(AFP/Mohammed Abed)
Photo Tools
• Email
• IM
• Print
• Purchase
• Cart
Recommend
Recommended
No users recommend
A Palestinian bank clerk serves a customer at the National Islamic Bank in Gaza City. The first bank affiliated with the Hamas movement running Gaza opened on Tuesday in the Israeli-blockaded coastal strip which lies outside the Palestinian Authority's control.
(AFP/Mohammed Abed)
FILE - In this March 17, 2007 file photo, Palestinian women are seen in their house after a cesspool embankment collapsed in the village of Umm Naser, northern Gaza Strip. Environmental hazards in the Gaza Strip, such as sewage contamination, have intensified since Israel's recent war on Hamas because even basic infrastructure repairs are stalled by an ongoing border blockade of the territory, the U.N's environment chief said Tuesday, April 21, 2009.
(AP Photo/Hatem Moussa, File)
Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program looks on before leaving Gaza Strip through Erez checkpoint, northern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, April 21, 2009. Environmental hazards in the Gaza Strip, such as sewage contamination, have intensified since Israel's recent war on Hamas because even basic infrastructure repairs are stalled by an ongoing border blockade of the territory, Steiner said Tuesday.
(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Empowering Youth to Change the World with ICT and Entrepreneurship/Empowering Youth to Change the World with ICT and Entrepreneurship

Empowering Youth to Change the World with ICT and Entrepreneurship
Sunday 29 Mar 2009
Rinalia Abdul Rahim


Home > Information Services > GKP Announcements > GKP Announcements-Article View

Empowering Youth to Change the World with ICT and Entrepreneurship
Sunday 29 Mar 2009
Rinalia Abdul Rahim

By Rinalia Abdul Rahim
Strategy Council Member of the United Nations Global Alliance for ICT and Development
and former Executive Director of the Global Knowledge Partnership (2001-2008).


Young people are the world's largest resource in development. Forty percent of the world's population is under 20 years of age and over 1 billion people are between the ages of 15 and 25. In some developing countries, youth constitute more than two thirds of the population.

Young people who are given early access to information and communications technologies (ICT) tend to become early adopters and adapters of the technologies, skills valued for spurring innovation and economic growth. Youth are at the forefrontof societal transformation through ICT because technology is what they have grown up with, what they know more about than their parents, and what gives them an edge. 1 With the Internet, young people have acquired a powerful new tool to connect, communicate, innovate and take action on things that matter to them on a scale that transcends their locality, making them global actors.

Young people's high level of social consciousness are often underestimated, but they care about many things including climate change and the environment, the spread of HIV and other diseases, economic inequality and the lack of employment opportunities, social justice and human rights. Because of their ideals, those among them who are proficient with ICT and are motivated to create change have apropensity for linking the use of the technologies to development goals. However, without entrepreneurial skills, they lack the necessary ability to sustain their efforts and overcome challenges that stand in their way.

As enablers of ICT-facilitated development and as social entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in the world, empowered youth can be a potent force for change. Yet there are still few strategies and initiatives that truly empower young people tobecome leaders in creating sustainable social, environmental and economic impact worldwide. There are many initiatives that engage youth through conferences and connect them for virtual networking, but few go on to provide a comprehensive support structure that enables youth to create development impact for themselves and for others.

The World Summit on the Information Society in 2003 acknowledged that young people are the future workforce, leading creators and early adopters of ICT, and that they must be empowered as learners, developers, contributors, entrepreneurs and decision-makers.2 The reality is that some young people are already part of the global workforce due to poverty and circumstances. A large number of them are unable to find employment. The International Labour Organization reported 76 million youth were unemployed in 2008, comprising 40% of total world unemployment. Little progress has been made in improving the position of youth in the labor market and young people still suffer disproportionately from a deficit of decent work opportunities. Moreover, youth who are employed often work long hours under informal, insecure and intermittent work arrangements characterized by meager earnings, low productivity and reduced labor protection.3 The issue of youth employment is and will continue to be an important variable when considering effective youth empowerment strategies and it makes a focus on entrepreneurship critical.

To break the cycle of poverty and unleash youth potential in creating change for themselves and for society, a multiple focus on ICT, learning (formal or informal), and entrepreneurial skills development is required, but this alone is not enough. Mechanisms that facilitate youth action, support their learning and help them mobilize resources are also needed.

Key learning on youth empowerment strategies can be drawn from the experience ofthe Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP), which has worked for more than 10 yearsin the field of ICT and knowledge for Development. Since its inception in 1997, the GKP understood the importance of realizing the potential of young people as stakeholders in development and in building knowledge societies. The GKP youth strategy evolved over time by learning from young leaders around the world, who use ICT to produce and use knowledge to initiate or support sustainable development initiatives. In 2006, the GKP Youth Strategy converged into a core focus on youth, ICT and entrepreneurship via the Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) program. The strategy focuses on five elements in empowering young people: Community-Building, Knowledge Generation and Sharing, Projects Support, Skills Development and Policy Advocacy.

Community Building
Young people need support networks that can help them communicate, draw inspiration and gather resources to take action. These networks include not just their peers who share the same interests, but also mentors and others who support their cause. To facilitate the emergence of a global community and network of and for young people working on ICT policy and practice, the GKP and its members have initiated and supported various youth networking and community-building initiatives involving face to face as well as online interactions.4 More than 3000 young leaders in ICT have been networked through these mechanisms and their engagement was brought to a higher level through knowledge sharing activities.

Knowledge Generation and Sharing
As young people gain experience and move on to other things, they often take their valuable experiences with them, leaving others to relearn the lessons of the past. To ensure continuity of learning, it is important to have mechanisms for capturing the lessons from the past as knowledge resources as well as to share that knowledge as widely as possible. GKP and its members have generated various knowledge resources based on programmatic experiences that can help young people learn from past initiatives. The resources include a series of guidebooks on a wide range of topics such as how to develop national youth campaigns based on youth activism during the World Summit on the Information Society; how young people can build communities and engage in Internet Governance issues at the national level; and how to plan social enterprises and solve problems innovatively. A wikipedia for young social entrepreneurs, which serves as a dedicated and expandable knowledge resource, has been developed under the YSEI program. Moreover, ICT success stories based on the projects of young people worldwide have also been published and disseminated widely. Complementing the knowledge resources are inspiring peer-to-peer, face-to-face knowledge sharing activities targeted at young leaders in ICT where they learn from each other's experience and build their network of peers.5

Project Support
Young people usually lack substantial mainstream support in terms of funding for the sustainable implementation and replication of their initiatives. During the World Summit on the Information Society process (2003-2005), the GKP organized its Youth Awards to bring international recognition to the outstanding work of young people around the world that used knowledge and ICT to promote development.6 In 2004, the GKP introduced an experimental Projects Fund that provided seed funding for small and innovative ICT projects targeted at youth, women, the poor andindigenous or displaced communities.7 The learning from the Awards and Projects Fund enhanced the understanding of what is needed to support the involvement and leadership of young people in ICT projects that align with development goals. In 2006, after two years of deliberation involving its members, GKP launched the Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) as a program that provides comprehensive supportfor young social entrepreneurs in developing countries between the ages of 17 to 30, who use ICT to achieve broad sustainable development objectives. The program, which started with a focus on Asia, provides support in the form of seed financing, essential knowledge, mentorship and access to diverse networks. In addition to the program's seed funding, selected young social entrepreneurs in the program were provided with opportunities to present their social business proposals for start-up andscale-up funding from potential investors including venture capitalists.8

"To date, YSEI has supported over 100 early stage social enterprises in South Asia andSouth East Asia with capacity development and networking, and out of these, 18 young socialentrepreneurs have been selected to be YSEI Fellows and receive financial support based onthe strength of their social business proposal. 94% of them have achieved sustainabilityfor their social enterprises through YSEI support. The support process starts with the callfor proposals, the selection of early stage social enterprises that fit the investment criteria, thedue diligence, the social venture plan development workshop as final due diligence activityand the financing coupled with mentorship and incubation. The support process has aduration of roughly 18 months per round."

Sunit Shrestha, Managing Director, ChangeFusion
& Program Lead, GKP Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI)



Skills Development
The GKP Youth Fellowship Program in 2004 provided internship opportunities for 14 selected youth from developing countries and placed them with 12 GKP member organisations working on ICT for development issues at the grassroots level in Africa and Asia.9 The program yielded valuable insights in understanding the kind and range of skills that young people need to be effective in supporting and driving development initiatives in developing countries. Due to lack of experience, young people are usually not able to initiate and sustain their initiatives effectively. To compensate for lack of experience they need to be trained to develop problem solving and entrepreneurial skills. The Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) began providing a series of training workshops for selected young socialentrepreneurs as well as young people with the potential to become social entrepreneurs in 2006. The training covered aspects of business plan development, problem solving, and fundraising. To expand the training to more young social entrepreneurs worldwide, YSEI has entered into partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 2008 to develop modules on social entrepreneurship for the ILO's "Know About Business" training program targeted at aspiring entrepreneurs. YSEI has also identified over 100 professionals and seasoned entrepreneurs interested in becoming volunteer YSEI mentors. As part of the mentorship process, the volunteers will be matched with young social entrepreneurs in the program for coaching and guidance on management and business issues.

Policy Advocacy
Youth input in ICT policy development is important as the policies can provide the necessary framework, support and legitimacy for young people to initiate and sustain their initiatives. As young people usually lack the opportunity to participate in national, regional and international ICT policy development processes, GKP has implemented various initiatives to channel their input and also enable their participation in a meaningful way. In 2001, the GKP recommendations to the G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force on ‘Bridging the Digital Divide' included input gathered from consultations with youth from over 50 countries across 4 regions.10 In 2003, GKP and its members provided support for the Youth Caucus of the WorldSummit on the Information Society (WSIS), which successfully engaged 200 youth participants at the international level and more than 80,000 young people at the national level in 25 developing countries. 11 Support was also provided for NationalInformation Society Youth Campaigns in 21 countries to foster the active participation of youth in national level policy-making during WSIS. 12 GKP also supported efforts to create a stronger voice for women and girls in the WSIS process, particularly for young women in the Arab world13, while ensuring that the concerns of other marginalized groups were addressed.14 New areas for policy engagement to nurture youth entrepreneurship worldwide emerged in 2007 from GKP's Third Global Knowledge Conference (GK3)15 and in 2008 from the inaugural Science with Africa policy conference.16


After 10 years of working with youth on youth empowerment issues within the context of ICT and knowledge for development, the Global Knowledge Partnership's focus on youth, ICT and entrepreneurship is the correct one in tackling the problem of youth unemployment while addressing sustainable development needs worldwide. The GKP strategy has not only enabled the inclusion of youth, but also helped young social entrepreneurs create development impact for themselves and for others. It is to be noted that the collaboration and leadership of key GKP members, who were passionate about youth, were instrumental in the learning and evolution of the GKP youth strategy.17 For further impact, the learning needs to be leveraged, similar initiatives need to be linked for increased synergies via partnerships, and the collective capacities and effectiveness of the initiatives need to be enhanced while encouraging investments on youth initiatives involving ICT and entrepreneurship at all levels (i.e., national, regional and international).

As enablers of ICT-facilitated development and as social entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in the world, youth should continue to be empowered as a potent force for change in creating sustainable social, environmental and economic impact.The comprehensive approach of the GKP youth strategy represented by the five elements of Community Building, Knowledge Generation and Sharing, Projects Support, Skills Development and Policy Advocacy has proven to be effective as mechanisms for mobilizing youth engagement, leadership and action. The approach has further value in that its application is not limited to the field of ICT or youth and can be deployed across target groups such as women and indigenous communities as well as across issue areas such as agriculture, education, health, climate change adaptation, and more. The degree of success will be dependent on how knowledge is harnessed and how partnerships are managed in the process.

For more information, visit http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org


GKP Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) Program
http://www.ysei.org

The Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) is a high-engagement social venture program ofthe Global Knowledge Partnership for emerging young social entrepreneurs in developingcountries. Led by GKP members ChangeFusion (previously known as ThaiRuralNet), MitraTechnology Foundation and Orphan IT, YSEI provides young social entrepreneurs whoqualify for its Fellowship with support in four key areas:

Knowledge: Essential development knowledge and tools on social entrepreneurship
Financing: Seed funding, start up funding and scale up funding for selected enterprises
Mentorship: Technical consulting through mentorship
Networks: Access to diverse networks


Social Enterprises and Young Social Entrepreneurs in the GKP Community

GKP MEMBERS

ChangeFusion (http://www.changefusion.org) - GKP Member; GKP Youth Social Enterprise Initiative Program Lead
ChangeFusion group, formerly known as Thai RuralNet, is a provider of social innovation design, investment and incubation services with a specific focus on catalyzing high-impact, scalable and sustainable social innovation. ThaiRuralnet began as an initiative of university students in Thailand.

eHomemakers (http://www.ehomemakers.net) - GKP member; Winner of the GKP Gender & ICT Awards 2005
eHomemakers is South East Asia's only community network that promotes self-help, business partnerships and entrepreneurship development for those who want to balance work and home life, especially for women.

Digital Divide Data (http://www.digitaldividedata.com) - GKP member; Winner of the GKP Youth & ICT Awards 2003
Digital Divide Data is an innovative, internationally acclaimed non-profit based inCambodia and Laos that uses a strong business model to generate profits that are invested back in the growth and development of its staff.

MITRA Technology Foundation (http://www.mitra.org.in) - GKP Member; GKP Youth Social Enterprise Initiative Program Partner
MITRA is an entrepreneurial initiative by a group of graduates from the Institute of Rural Management working towards promoting the spirit of volunteering in India through its flagship program 'iVolunteer'.

Orphan IT (http://www.orphanit.com) - GKP Member; GKP Youth & ICT Awards Winner 2003; GKP Youth Social Enterprise Initiative Program Partner
OrphanIT is a capacity building non-profit organization created to provide an effective and results driven consultancy services to telecentres and ICT groups in developingnations and communities.

Taking IT Global (http://www.takingitglobal.org) - GKP Member; YCDO Program Partner
TIG is a social network that connects millions of youth to provide opportunities forlearning, capacity-building, cross-cultural awareness, and self-development throughthe use of Information and Communication Technologies.

Warisan Global (http://www.warisanglobal.com) - GKP Member
Warisan Global is a social enterprise that works to bring about fundamental change through projects with social impact especially for youth and rural communities.


YOUTH SOCIAL ENTERPRISE INITIATIVE: ASIA FELLOWS 2008-2009

More information at http://www.ysei.org

Salah Uddin Ahmad - XayanIT, Bangladesh
XayanIT works with skilled but underprivileged youth interested in careers in the information and communications technologies (ICT) field.

Brinda Ayer - School and Community Horticulture Enterprise, India
The School and Community Horticulture Enterprise aims to supplement the national mid-day meal scheme with an appropriate level of vegetable nutrition to improve overall school enrolment and child health in India.

Audrey Codera - YouthWorks, Philippines
YouthWorks is a micro-finance institution that incubates grassroots youth in setting up and maintaining their business to develop economically independent and socially aware youth entrepreneurs through microfinance leveraging on ICT.Md.

Faisal Islam - Padma, Bangladesh
Padma is social development organization in the south west region of Bangladesh that aims to provide marginalized farming communities with access to an agricultural knowledge management system to improve their livelihoods.

Jaspal Shakya - Community Friendly Movement, India
By leveraging on technology and the power of retail, CFM seeks to create wealth for its primary stakeholders-artisan communities at the bottom of the supply chain, by creating a market for quality handmade products at competitive prices.

Marielle Punzalan Nadal - Idea!s, Philippines
Idea!s is a communications consultancy that empowers non-profits by utilizing information and communication technologies (ICT) as the most effective tool foradvocacy and fundraising activities.

Raj Ridvan Singh - SOLS 24/7, Timor Leste
SOLS 24/7 offers a comprehensive two year training and boarding program on lifeskills education for youth from disadvantaged families and is expanding the program founded in Cambodia to Timor Leste.

2005 GKP YOUTH & ICT AWARDS WINNERS

More information at http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/awards

The 2005 GKP Youth & ICT Awards aimed to highlight the outstanding work of young people who have transformed social development opportunities into a sustainable social enterprise through innovative use of ICT.

Audrey Codera, Philippines - "Community-based youth entrepreneurshi program"(http://www.youthtoendpoverty.org)

Jean-Paul Bauer, South Africa - "Operation Fikelela (Operation Access) for fighting poverty through access to education" (www.ikamvayouth.org)

Mark Okowa, Kenya - "Development of an ICT centre for the youth, to build their capacity in information technology, fight HIV/AIDS and poverty"(http://www.abckenya.org & http://www.elci.org)

Nileshni Sekar, Fiji - "Deaf handmade card project" (http://www.fijifriend.com)

Raj Ridvan Singh, Malaysia - "Providing education and life skills to poor school dropouts especially girls from rural areas" (http://sols247.org)

Rana Gulzar, Pakistan - "Youth empowerment skills capacity building programs for young women"

Salah Uddin Ahmed, Bangladesh - "Xayan IT: Enabling ICT skills development and employment creation for youth in Bangladesh" (http://www.xayanit.com/)

Wu Yang, China - "Household wastewater recycling management" (http://www.wiseuse.org)

2003 GKP YOUTH & ICT AWARDS WINNERS

More information at http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/awards

The 2003 GKP Youth & ICT Awards aimed to bring international recognition to the outstanding work of young people who have used ICT for the promotion of development around the world.

Timothy Keller, USA - "Digital Divide Data Cambodia"(http://www.digitaldividedata.org)

Tetyana Bila, Ukraine - "Creation and development of the Independent Children Media Centre Children's Voice" (http://fyce.org/mediacenter/)

Louis Dorval, Canada - "Engineers Without Borders Scala Project - IT Centres in the Philippines" (http://scala.ewb.ca/)

Nishchal Nath Pandey, Nepal - "Integrated education and capacity-building for girls and children"

Denise Odhiambo, Rwanda - "Rwanda Youth Rehabilitation Initiative" (http://www.solvepoverty.com/apc/cyberhost/youth)

Kennedy Edwine Onyango, Kenya - "Suba Youth Training Program (The Bridge)"

Ebben-esser Hatuikulipi, Namibia - "The Impact of HIV/AIDS in Katutura" (http://www.schoolnet.na/projects/Katutura_AIDS/)

Mika Vanhanen, Finland - "ENO-Environment Online" (http://eno.joensuu.fi)

Lucy Ryan, New Zealand - "Living Heritage" (http://www.livingheritage.org.nz)

Emily, Sarah and Elise Boyd, Australia - "MatMice: Free Homepages For Kids"(http://www.matmice.com/)

Dale Lachlan Pillars, Philippines - "Employment and Entrepreneurship"(http://www.OrphanIT.com)


2004-2005 GKP PROJECTS FUND RECIPIENTS

The GKP seed grant for small and innovative ICT projects targeted at youth, women, the poor and indigenous or displaced communities was awarded to the following initiatives in Africa (East, West, Central and South), Asia (Central, South, South East), Europe (East), Latin America, and Oceania:

"Capacity Building for Women and Youth Operators for Nigeria's First Rural ISP" project by Fantsuam Foundation, Nigeria

"Improving Rural Development in the Upper Nkam Division in Cameroon through Open and Distance Training Programme for Rural Women" project by PROTÉGÉQV, Cameroon

"ICT Resource Centre for Schools and Youth Participation" project by the Rural Development Volunteers Association, Solomon Islands Pilot project to establish two Regional Media Centres for indigenous communities by the Promedios de Communicacion Comunitaria A.C, Mexico

"SheBlogs: Open Source Web Publishing Tool for Women" project by WomensHub, Philippines

"Building Capacity in Women's Health: Harnessing ICT for Healthcare ProviderTraining in Developing Countries" project by the Department of Medical Education,School of Medical Services, University Sains Malaysia / Global Health through Education, Training and Service, Inc.

"Online and e-Advocacy for Pacific Women: ICT Capacity Building" project by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community's Pacific Women's Bureau, New Caledonia

"Digital Youth Radio" project by HELP Resources Inc., Papua New Guinea

"Pallitathya Help Line (Rural Information Help Line)" project by D.Net - Development through Access to Network Resources, Bangladesh

"Using ICT to Preserve Our Skill in Handicraft Making for Future Generations" project by Tagiilima Handicrafts Association, Inc., Samoa

"Youth Stay BiH" project by the Foundation for Creative Development, Bosnia-Herzegovina

"Introduction of New Technologies in Prodrugi Crisis Center's Activity" project by the Public Foundation Prodrugi Crisis Center, Kazakhstan

"Radio Listening Groups on Violence Against Women" project by the Association of Media Women, Kenya

"Training Centre to Promote Free and Open Source Solutions for Girls' and Women's Empowerment in South Africa" project by Women's Net, South Africa



Contents of this document is licenced under Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial - Share Alike 3.0


_______

Footnotes

1 Youth Creating Digital Opportunities Strategic Framework by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Taking IT Global and the Global Knowledge Partnership, 2002

2 World Summit on the Information Society Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action, 2003

3 International Labour Organization Reports on Global Employment Trends 2008 and 2009

4 The initiatives include the Youth Building Knowledge Societies e-community (1999), the GKII Youth Forum (2000), the Youth Creating Digital Opportunities (YCDO) coalition and community that drew young people and their supporters during the early World Summit on the Information Society process(2002-2003), the FutureShifters.net, an online community for young social entrepreneurs (2006), the Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum (2007), and the GKP Forums on Entrepreneurship (2008).

5 GKP and its members have organized many such activities across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and North America. The knowledge sharing activities include: the GKII Youth Forum (2000), the GKP Workshop for Young Women Leaders in ICT (2003); the GKP Workshop for Asia Pacific Youth Leaders in ICT (2003); the GKP Youth Fellowship Meeting (2004); the GKP Africa Workshop on Role of Youth in ICT4D (2005); the GKP WSIS Tunis Youth Workshop (2005); the GK3 Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum (2007) and the GKP YSEI Fellows Workshops (2006, 2007 &2008).

6 19 winners were selected among hundreds of applicants worlwide. The projects of all finalists in 2003 were included in the GKP publication on "ICT for Development Success Stories" to disseminate good practices and inspire others - see (http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/publications).

7 Close to 1500 applications were received and USD300,000 disbursed as project support over the course of two years.

8 GKP created the opportunities for selected YSEI Fellows to "pitch" for funding from venture capitalists and other types of investors at the GK3 Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum in 2007 and at the GKP Forum on Social Entrepreneurship in 2008. As a program, YSEI raised more than USD600,000 between 2006 and 2008.

9 Hosts for the 2004 GKP Youth Fellowship Program: The African Women's Development and Communication Network, the Bangladesh Friendship Education Society, the Digital Divide Data, the Fantsuam Foundation, the Foundation for Media Alternatives, MailStation.Net, the Mitra Technology Foundation, the Open Forum of Cambodia, PROSHIKA, the Regional Information Technology and Software Engineering Center, ThaiRuralNett and the Youth for Technology Foundation.

10 Input initially gathered via the Youth Building Knowledge Societies e-conference in 1999 led by GKP member the International Institute for Sustainable Development and refined by the GKP Youth Advisory Council in 2000 during the Second Global Knowledge Conference and in 2001 - see GKP recommendations to the G8 DOT Force at (http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/publications).

11 The intervention led to the adoption of the strongest language on youth in a non-youth oriented UN declaration. See YCDO Coalition Report, 2004.

12 The campaigns provided the space and support for young people to come together and share experiences on information society issues, and dialogue with key national policy makers on ICT as atool for economic and social development.

13 See GKP workshop for "Young Women Leaders in ICT" held in conjunction with the Pan-Arab Regional Conference on WSIS in June 2003.

14 GKP was part of the informal group that drafted the Tokyo Declaration (i.e., the Asia Pacific perspective and input to WSIS), and ensured that the concerns of youth together with those of women and the Pacific islanders were given due consideration.

15 At the GK3 conference, 7,000 idea contributions on how to create a world of entrepreneurs were distilled into 20 and clustered into seven areas: Entrepreneur Learning, Network, Advocacy, Tools, Energy, Finance, and Market Access. See (http://www.gkpeventsonthefuture.org/gk3/ and http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/20ideas)

16 Boosting African R&D initiative, an outcome of Science with Africa, included a focus on young Africans as learners and innovators. The initiative is the result of a partnership intervention involving GKP members the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Brainstore Ltd and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. See (http://www.uneca.org/sciencewithafrica/).

17 The International Institute for Sustainable Development (Canada), Taking IT Global (Canada), ThaiRuralNet (Thailand), Orphan IT (Australia), Mitra Technology Foundation (India), the National Information Technology Council (Malaysia), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, UNESCO, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Canadian International Development Agency , the Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies (India), CMB Training Center (Moldova), Young Asia Television (Sri Lanka), the Regional Information Technology and Software Engineering Center (Egypt), the African Women's Development and Communication Network (Kenya), the Bangladesh Friendship Education Society, Digital Divide Data (Cambodia), the Fantsuam Foundation (Nigeria), the Foundation for Media Alternatives (Philippines), MailStation.Net (Philippines), the Open Forum of Cambodia, PROSHIKA (Bangladesh), Microsoft Corporation, the Youth for Technology Foundation (Nigeria) and the Omar Dengo Foundation (Costa Rica).
Comments (2) Views (1632)
Comments
Posted by: Mizzeck Banda | 18-Apr-09 06:33 PM | send email
I like the initiative of taking ICT to the rural communites. I would like to find out what what support you would provide me, i have just started a youth development project and one of the projcets is to set up ICT centres in rural Zambia.
Thank You
Posted by: azraf | 28-Apr-09 07:06 PM | send email
Nice, Good and beautiful. azraf ed acord, Bangladesh.
Post Your Comment


YOUTH SOCIAL ENTERPRISE INITIATIVE: ASIA FELLOWS 2008-2009


More information at http://www.ysei.org
Rinalia and Sunit with the Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) 2008 Fellowship finalists
during the launch of the Fellowship at the GKP Pavilion in the WCIT 2008 Exhibition
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (May 2008)


Thepparat Tantikalayaporn - Chivalry Silk, Thailand
Chivalry Silk's mission is to increase the income of 30,000 silk artisans in Northern Thailand by 2013. Silk production in Thailand currently is not providing a stablesource of income to artisans, who suffer from middleman exploitation.

Cyril Devan - Elevyn, Malaysia
To generate income on a fair trade basis for artisans in remote areas of Malaysia who often suffer from middlemen exploitation, Elevyn is using an innovative, web 2.0-based, online platform that links the selling of handmade products to the support of social and environmental causes.

Aysha Saifuddin - Kaarvan, Pakistan
Kaarvan's aim is to provide 4,000 women entrepreneurs a "one stop" shop for business development and fair trade services by 2010 through a marketing and salesstrategy that would culminate on an online platform for e-commerce.

Ragvendra Singh - Krishak Mitra, India
Krishak Mitra is improving the livelihood of small and marginal farmers in India by employing an agriculture decision-making software. By collecting small fees from the usage of the software, they intend to maintain their operations and at the same time improve farmers decision-making capacity.

Stephanie Caragos - LetIThelp, Philippines
LetIThelp takes on solving structural unemployment and underemployment in poor communities by providing capacity building on specific IT skills that are in market demand and match trainees to job opportunities.

Ajay Shakya - Microfinancejobs, India
Microfinancejobs developed an online jobs platform to bridge the gap between 1,500 microfinance institutions in India and 10,000 professionals who are willing to work inthe microfinance field.

Khristine Lopez - Mobile Telecentres, Philippines
In metro Manila most public schools students have limited or no access to computers and Internet. Mobile Telecentre provides onsite ICT skills training and career opportunities to over 6,000 students in metro Manila by using ICT tools.

Patipat Susumpow - Open Dream, Thailand
Open Dream provides low-cost web and application development service to social groups and organizations by leveraging the network of social software developers forproject collaboration.

Alexander Reyes - Rural Light, Philippines
Rural Light aims to electrify a prototype community centre that also acts as an intermediary to a wide range of services such as refrigeration, lighted facility foreducation and ICT-based information for the purposes of marketing the products/services of the community.

Ali Khan - Youth Engagement Services, Pakistan
The absence of youth-focused programs in Pakistan makes youth highly exposed tocrime, unemployment and terrorism recruitment. By providing seed financing andincubation for youth-led micro social enterprise Youth Engagement Service Network is filling this gap.


YOUTH SOCIAL ENTERPRISE INITIATIVE ASIA FELLOWS 2006 - 2007

More information at http://www.ysei.org

Salah Uddin Ahmad - XayanIT, Bangladesh
XayanIT works with skilled but underprivileged youth interested in careers in the information and communications technologies (ICT) field.

Brinda Ayer - School and Community Horticulture Enterprise, India
The School and Community Horticulture Enterprise aims to supplement the national mid-day meal scheme with an appropriate level of vegetable nutrition to improve overall school enrolment and child health in India.

Audrey Codera - YouthWorks, Philippines
YouthWorks is a micro-finance institution that incubates grassroots youth in setting up and maintaining their business to develop economically independent and socially aware youth entrepreneurs through microfinance leveraging on ICT.Md.

Faisal Islam - Padma, Bangladesh
Padma is social development organization in the south west region of Bangladesh that aims to provide marginalized farming communities with access to an agricultural knowledge management system to improve their livelihoods.

Jaspal Shakya - Community Friendly Movement, India
By leveraging on technology and the power of retail, CFM seeks to create wealth for its primary stakeholders-artisan communities at the bottom of the supply chain, by creating a market for quality handmade products at competitive prices.

Marielle Punzalan Nadal - Idea!s, Philippines
Idea!s is a communications consultancy that empowers non-profits by utilizing information and communication technologies (ICT) as the most effective tool foradvocacy and fundraising activities.

Raj Ridvan Singh - SOLS 24/7, Timor Leste
SOLS 24/7 offers a comprehensive two year training and boarding program on lifeskills education for youth from disadvantaged families and is expanding the program founded in Cambodia to Timor Leste.


2005 GKP YOUTH & ICT AWARDS WINNERS

More information at http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/awards

The 2005 GKP Youth & ICT Awards aimed to highlight the outstanding work of young people who have transformed social development opportunities into a sustainable social enterprise through innovative use of ICT.

Audrey Codera, Philippines - "Community-based youth entrepreneurshi program"(http://www.youthtoendpoverty.org)

Jean-Paul Bauer, South Africa - "Operation Fikelela (Operation Access) for fighting poverty through access to education" (www.ikamvayouth.org)

Mark Okowa, Kenya - "Development of an ICT centre for the youth, to build their capacity in information technology, fight HIV/AIDS and poverty"(http://www.abckenya.org & http://www.elci.org)

Nileshni Sekar, Fiji - "Deaf handmade card project" (http://www.fijifriend.com)

Raj Ridvan Singh, Malaysia - "Providing education and life skills to poor school dropouts especially girls from rural areas" (http://sols247.org)

Rana Gulzar, Pakistan - "Youth empowerment skills capacity building programs for young women"

Salah Uddin Ahmed, Bangladesh - "Xayan IT: Enabling ICT skills development and employment creation for youth in Bangladesh" (http://www.xayanit.com/)

Wu Yang, China - "Household wastewater recycling management" (http://www.wiseuse.org)


2003 GKP YOUTH & ICT AWARDS WINNERS

More information at http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/awards

The 2003 GKP Youth & ICT Awards aimed to bring international recognition to the outstanding work of young people who have used ICT for the promotion of development around the world.

Timothy Keller, USA - "Digital Divide Data Cambodia"(http://www.digitaldividedata.org)

Tetyana Bila, Ukraine - "Creation and development of the Independent Children Media Centre Children's Voice" (http://fyce.org/mediacenter/)

Louis Dorval, Canada - "Engineers Without Borders Scala Project - IT Centres in the Philippines" (http://scala.ewb.ca/)

Nishchal Nath Pandey, Nepal - "Integrated education and capacity-building for girls and children"

Denise Odhiambo, Rwanda - "Rwanda Youth Rehabilitation Initiative" (http://www.solvepoverty.com/apc/cyberhost/youth)

Kennedy Edwine Onyango, Kenya - "Suba Youth Training Program (The Bridge)"

Ebben-esser Hatuikulipi, Namibia - "The Impact of HIV/AIDS in Katutura" (http://www.schoolnet.na/projects/Katutura_AIDS/)

Mika Vanhanen, Finland - "ENO-Environment Online" (http://eno.joensuu.fi)

Lucy Ryan, New Zealand - "Living Heritage" (http://www.livingheritage.org.nz)

Emily, Sarah and Elise Boyd, Australia - "MatMice: Free Homepages For Kids"(http://www.matmice.com/)

Dale Lachlan Pillars, Philippines - "Employment and Entrepreneurship"(http://www.OrphanIT.com)


2004-2005 GKP PROJECTS FUND RECIPIENTS

The GKP seed grant for small and innovative ICT projects targeted at youth, women, the poor and indigenous or displaced communities was awarded to the following initiatives in Africa (East, West, Central and South), Asia (Central, South, South East), Europe (East), Latin America, and Oceania:

"Capacity Building for Women and Youth Operators for Nigeria's First Rural ISP" project by Fantsuam Foundation, Nigeria

"Improving Rural Development in the Upper Nkam Division in Cameroon through Open and Distance Training Programme for Rural Women" project by PROTÉGÉQV, Cameroon

"ICT Resource Centre for Schools and Youth Participation" project by the Rural Development Volunteers Association, Solomon Islands Pilot project to establish two Regional Media Centres for indigenous communities by the Promedios de Communicacion Comunitaria A.C, Mexico

"SheBlogs: Open Source Web Publishing Tool for Women" project by WomensHub, Philippines

"Building Capacity in Women's Health: Harnessing ICT for Healthcare ProviderTraining in Developing Countries" project by the Department of Medical Education,School of Medical Services, University Sains Malaysia / Global Health through Education, Training and Service, Inc.

"Online and e-Advocacy for Pacific Women: ICT Capacity Building" project by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community's Pacific Women's Bureau, New Caledonia

"Digital Youth Radio" project by HELP Resources Inc., Papua New Guinea

"Pallitathya Help Line (Rural Information Help Line)" project by D.Net - Development through Access to Network Resources, Bangladesh

"Using ICT to Preserve Our Skill in Handicraft Making for Future Generations" project by Tagiilima Handicrafts Association, Inc., Samoa

"Youth Stay BiH" project by the Foundation for Creative Development, Bosnia-Herzegovina

"Introduction of New Technologies in Prodrugi Crisis Center's Activity" project by the Public Foundation Prodrugi Crisis Center, Kazakhstan

"Radio Listening Groups on Violence Against Women" project by the Association of Media Women, Kenya

"Training Centre to Promote Free and Open Source Solutions for Girls' and Women's Empowerment in South Africa" project by Women's Net, South Africa



Contents of this document is licenced under Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial - Share Alike 3.0


_______

Footnotes

1 Youth Creating Digital Opportunities Strategic Framework by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Taking IT Global and the Global Knowledge Partnership, 2002

2 World Summit on the Information Society Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action, 2003

3 International Labour Organization Reports on Global Employment Trends 2008 and 2009

4 The initiatives include the Youth Building Knowledge Societies e-community (1999), the GKII Youth Forum (2000), the Youth Creating Digital Opportunities (YCDO) coalition and community that drew young people and their supporters during the early World Summit on the Information Society process(2002-2003), the FutureShifters.net, an online community for young social entrepreneurs (2006), the Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum (2007), and the GKP Forums on Entrepreneurship (2008).

5 GKP and its members have organized many such activities across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and North America. The knowledge sharing activities include: the GKII Youth Forum (2000), the GKP Workshop for Young Women Leaders in ICT (2003); the GKP Workshop for Asia Pacific Youth Leaders in ICT (2003); the GKP Youth Fellowship Meeting (2004); the GKP Africa Workshop on Role of Youth in ICT4D (2005); the GKP WSIS Tunis Youth Workshop (2005); the GK3 Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum (2007) and the GKP YSEI Fellows Workshops (2006, 2007 &2008).

6 19 winners were selected among hundreds of applicants worlwide. The projects of all finalists in 2003 were included in the GKP publication on "ICT for Development Success Stories" to disseminate good practices and inspire others - see (http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/publications).

7 Close to 1500 applications were received and USD300,000 disbursed as project support over the course of two years.

8 GKP created the opportunities for selected YSEI Fellows to "pitch" for funding from venture capitalists and other types of investors at the GK3 Young Social Entrepreneurs' Forum in 2007 and at the GKP Forum on Social Entrepreneurship in 2008. As a program, YSEI raised more than USD600,000 between 2006 and 2008.

9 Hosts for the 2004 GKP Youth Fellowship Program: The African Women's Development and Communication Network, the Bangladesh Friendship Education Society, the Digital Divide Data, the Fantsuam Foundation, the Foundation for Media Alternatives, MailStation.Net, the Mitra Technology Foundation, the Open Forum of Cambodia, PROSHIKA, the Regional Information Technology and Software Engineering Center, ThaiRuralNett and the Youth for Technology Foundation.

10 Input initially gathered via the Youth Building Knowledge Societies e-conference in 1999 led by GKP member the International Institute for Sustainable Development and refined by the GKP Youth Advisory Council in 2000 during the Second Global Knowledge Conference and in 2001 - see GKP recommendations to the G8 DOT Force at (http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/publications).

11 The intervention led to the adoption of the strongest language on youth in a non-youth oriented UN declaration. See YCDO Coalition Report, 2004.

12 The campaigns provided the space and support for young people to come together and share experiences on information society issues, and dialogue with key national policy makers on ICT as atool for economic and social development.

13 See GKP workshop for "Young Women Leaders in ICT" held in conjunction with the Pan-Arab Regional Conference on WSIS in June 2003.

14 GKP was part of the informal group that drafted the Tokyo Declaration (i.e., the Asia Pacific perspective and input to WSIS), and ensured that the concerns of youth together with those of women and the Pacific islanders were given due consideration.

15 At the GK3 conference, 7,000 idea contributions on how to create a world of entrepreneurs were distilled into 20 and clustered into seven areas: Entrepreneur Learning, Network, Advocacy, Tools, Energy, Finance, and Market Access. See (http://www.gkpeventsonthefuture.org/gk3/ and http://www.globalknowledgepartnership.org/20ideas)

16 Boosting African R&D initiative, an outcome of Science with Africa, included a focus on young Africans as learners and innovators. The initiative is the result of a partnership intervention involving GKP members the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Brainstore Ltd and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. See (http://www.uneca.org/sciencewithafrica/).

17 The International Institute for Sustainable Development (Canada), Taking IT Global (Canada), ThaiRuralNet (Thailand), Orphan IT (Australia), Mitra Technology Foundation (India), the National Information Technology Council (Malaysia), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, UNESCO, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Canadian International Development Agency , the Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies (India), CMB Training Center (Moldova), Young Asia Television (Sri Lanka), the Regional Information Technology and Software Engineering Center (Egypt), the African Women's Development and Communication Network (Kenya), the Bangladesh Friendship Education Society, Digital Divide Data (Cambodia), the Fantsuam Foundation (Nigeria), the Foundation for Media Alternatives (Philippines), MailStation.Net (Philippines), the Open Forum of Cambodia, PROSHIKA (Bangladesh), Microsoft Corporation, the Youth for Technology Foundation (Nigeria) and the Omar Dengo Foundation (Costa Rica).

Highlight :DG Alert/Guide to operating in areas of conflict for the oil & gas industry /Nonprofit Reporting Center Launches California Investigative P

Highlight :DG Alert

Competition clauses in bilateral trade treaties: analysing the issues in the context of India's future negotiating strategy
'The failure to include competition provisions at the WTO multilateral framework provided the scope for including their inclusion at bilateral/regional level. However, there are large differences across free trade agreements (FTAs) in terms of how the competition provisions are addressed. In this context, this research report tries to analyse the competition provisions in some selected FTAs and draw lessons for India.

The paper indicates that the provision related to harmonisation of competition laws should not be tried, considering that many countries don’t yet have domestic competition laws. In addition, it notes that the harmonisation clauses which require reduction of existing diversity in various domestic competition laws can not be achieved. However, the soft laws on cooperation, including any procedures for consultations, notification, or comity are found to be useful for enhancing cooperation among the competition agencies while dealing with anticompetitive practices.'


Guide to operating in areas of conflict for the oil & gas industry
'This is a guide for companies working in the extractive industries, particularly in the oil and gas sectors and provides basic conflict management advice and guidance. Its objective is to save time, to protect resources and reputations, and to enhance the safety of employees and of the communities in which they do business.'


Improving Competitiveness and Increasing Economic Diversification in the Caribbean: The Role of ICT
This study on 'Improving Competitiveness and Increasing Economic Diversification in the Caribbean: The Role of ICT' offers concrete recommendations of how the small island economies of the Caribbean can harness ICT to create new economic opportunities for their people.This study is the first output of infoDev's Country Competitiveness program, a multi-country research program which takes a sober look at the role of ICT in improving competitiveness and overcoming the fundamental impediments to innovation, new business creation and sustainable private sector development in developing countries. In recent years, developing countries and their partners in the international development community have devoted considerable attention to the role that information and communication technologies (ICT) might play in promoting economic growth, combating poverty, and strengthening their participation and competitiveness in the global economy.


AIR JAMAICA ANNOUNCES NEW BAGGAGE POLICY
FOR NEW YORK-GRENADA and NEW YORK-BARBADOS FLIGHTS
Kingston, Jamaica May 8, 2009 -Air Jamaica will implement a new policy for checked baggage on flights between New York and Grenada and New York and Barbados. Passengers travelling on these routes in Lovebird Economy class may now check one bag free of charge, and pay US$25 to check a second bag. Lovebird Executive Class passengers may check two bags free of charge, with a US$25 fee for a third checked bag. The new policy comes into effect May 11, 2009 for New York/Grenada and July 2, 2009 for New York/Barbados, subject to the approval of the government of Barbados.
Passengers are guaranteed delivery of the free baggage allowance on the same flight on which they travel. All other bags will be transported within seven days, and must be collected from the airport. The status of these bags may be tracked online at www.AirJamaica.com/baggage to determine when they may be collected.
"The new baggage regulations on flights between New York and Grenada and New York and Barbados ensure that each Lovebird Economy passenger receives the guaranteed one bag on arrival, with our Lovebird Executive Class passenger receiving their guaranteed two bags." said Sue Rosen, Air Jamaica's Senior Director, Customer Service.
Passengers ticketed on or before May 10, 2009 for travel on or after May 11, 2009 will be allowed bags under the current policy which is two free checked bags for Lovebird Economy Class passengers, and three free checked bags for Lovebird Executive Class passengers.
All checked baggage must be within Air Jamaica's guidelines of a maximum weight of 50 pounds and total maximum dimensions of 62 inches. Additional charges will apply for overweight and excess baggage.
For further information on Air Jamaica's baggage guidelines, visit www.AirJamaica.com.
About Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica's new summer schedule has 246 weekly flights to 12 destinations, with service between Jamaica and Toronto, New York (JFK), Chicago (O'Hare), Baltimore, Philadelphia, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Havana, Curacao and Nassau, as well as service between New York and Barbados and New York and Grenada.

JOURNALISM IN THE AMERICAS

Nonprofit Reporting Center Launches California Investigative Project
The non-profit Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) is launching a reporting project that will produce in-depth multimedia journalism specific to California, its home state, at a time when newsroom layoffs are challenging media's ability to monitor state institutions.
The California Reporting Project will collaborate with media and journalism schools to cover key issues in the state, including education, the environment, immigration, state governance, and public safety, CIR says. It will launch with two three-year grants of $1.2 million, from the James Irvine Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
Job descriptions for the project are listed here.

Job Opportunities

The California Reporting Project
Reporters

The Center for Investigative Reporting is seeking a small but dynamic team of journalists for a new reporting initiative to produce in-depth multimedia journalism on issues of critical importance to California.
The California project, with support from The James Irvine Foundation and William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, will seek to be a new model for regional journalism. It will serve as a home for talented and innovative journalists; take full advantage of new technologies to produce compelling storytelling; and build powerful collaborations with news outlets, universities, and others throughout the state to enable important stories to be covered in-depth and distributed widely.
We are seeking collaborative, passionate journalists with strong storytelling abilities and track records of producing compelling, creative, original, high impact stories of broad significance. Applicants should be self-starters, with a deep knowledge of California issues, local and state governments, budgets, public policy, government databases and public records.
We plan to hire 5-6 full time journalists with a range of experience, from those with three or more years of to those with at least 10 years experience. While we will prioritize those who have worked in multiple mediums, all applicants should have print experience and proven writing skills. Most of the positions will be located in Sacramento and the Bay Area; others will be in Southern California or the Central Valley.
Each reporter should have significant expertise in at least one of the following:
• California budgets, political reform, and money in politics
• Education reporting, one with a focus on K 12 and one with higher education, specifically community colleges
• Computer assisted reporting
• Multimedia reporting
Established 32 years ago, CIR is the nation’s oldest non-profit journalism organization in the country devoted to producing original investigative reporting.
We offer a competitive salary and benefits and a creative work environment. Target start date is summer. Please submit a cover letter explaining why you want to be part of this team and which position you are applying for, a resume, 3-5 clips or urls of your work to cirjobs@cironline.org. Put the word Reporter in the subject line. Applications can also be mailed to CIR at 2927 Newbury St., Suite A, Berkeley, CA, 94703. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds. If you have questions, email Marcia Parker, mparker@cironline.org. Please apply by May 29, 2009.



About CIR

Founded in 1977, the Center for Investigative Reporting is the nation's oldest nonprofit news organization, producing multimedia reporting that has impact and is relevant to people's lives. Building on our long track record of award-winning print, broadcast and web reporting, CIR is now seeking to help lead the way in transforming journalism for the 21st century.
We are living in an age of upheaval, institutional collapse, and historic unforeseen change. And journalism is not immune. The only “business” protected by the Constitution, the business of informing the public, has been eviscerated in recent years. The role that journalism plays in a functioning democracy—informing the public and holding the powerful accountable—is at serious risk. Major issues affecting the very fabric of this nation and the world go uninvestigated. As we struggle to find solutions to two wars, climate change, immigration, a recession, and myriad other global issues, a thriving media is more important than ever.
CIR is working to ensure that high-quality, credible, unique journalism does not die, but flourishes. Our innovative new model relies on in-depth collaboration with other news organizations, journalists, public policy organizations and universities, and fully exploits new storytelling technologies, to provide citizens—local and global—with critical, actionable information that impacts their lives. Important to this model is our search for new revenue streams that can help sustain high-quality journalism in a digital age.
CIR MEDIA PARTNERS | CIR FUNDERS | JOB OPPORTUNITIES
How to Work with CIR:
In addition to CIR's California-based editorial staff, we work with a nationwide cadre of freelance reporters and producers and those on leave from other media outlets. Many of CIR's investigations are generated by our own staff; others are brought to us by freelancers.
Journalism demands a certain flexibility to follow a story where it leads, but as a small news organization with limited resources, CIR attempts to ferret out the most promising investigations. Generally, stories deserving investment should: reflect CIR's core mission by offering the strong potential to reveal injustice or abuse of power; fall under one of our reporting beats, currently social justice, environment and international reporting; add new information, a fresh angle or depth of reporting not found in other mainstream coverage; have an indication of interest from a prospective news outlet; and originate from reporters or producers with demonstrated skills and experience.
Most new projects require fundraising before they can begin. However, at times we are able to make small investments in promising stories at their early stages (making direct payment to the reporter for time and expenses). If that initial reporting proves fruitful, we may help market it to news outlets and provide editing, fact-checking and legal review.
The Dick Goldensohn Fund for International Investigative Reporting
Currently, we are providing small grants to assist in international reporting projects through The Dick Goldensohn Fund. Typical grants are a few thousand dollars, and are generally used to help defray travel and research costs.
The Henry Demarest Lloyd Investigative Fund
Each year the Lloyd Fund provides direct support (typically ranging from $1,000-$5,000) for 2-4 projects that offer strong potential for impact. Applications are due March 31st.
CIR Awards:
Alfred I. du Pont-Colombia University Silver Baton
American Bar Association Certificate of Merit
Best Censored Story Award
The Clarion Award
Education Writers Association Award
Emmy Award
The George Polk Award
Investigative Reporters and Editors Award
James Madison Freedom of Information Award
National Magazine Award for Reporting Excellence
National Press Club Award
People for the American Way First Amendment Award
Society of Environmental Journalists Award
Society of Professional Journalists’ Sigma Delta Chi Award
CIR in the News:
Rays of Hope
AMERICAN JOURNALISM REVIEW | APRIL/MAY 2008
Investigating the Future of Investigative Journalism: Who's Going to Pay for All This?
SF WEEKLY | JANUARY 16, 2008
Power List: Media Old + New
7X7 MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 21, 2007
Pulitzer-winning journalist Lowell Bergman honored at Cal
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE | JUNE 28, 2006
San Francisco center keeps muckraking alive
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE | OCTOBER 24, 2002
Contact Us:
Center for Investigative Reporting
2927 Newbury St., Suite A
Berkeley, California 94703
T: 510.809.3160
F: 510.849.1813
center@cironline.org