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resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop -

2008-1-29T18:19:12Z

One of the discussions that we had at the end of the iSummit planning workshop in Johannesburg was an evaluation of what we need, in terms of people and resources, to help realise our plans for the Summit. This is the audio recording of that discussion.

resources .: ICT Policy: A Beginner's Handbook

2008-3-01T19:53:31Z

Information and communications are at the heart of human life and social development. People have always worked together by sharing information and knowledge through speech, writing, the printed word and, more recently, telephony and broadcasting. Sharing information empowers individuals and communities, and enables whole societies to benefit from the experience of everyone within them. This book aims to guide non-specialists through some policy issues and enable its readers to engage effectively with the decision-making process. It came about through a partnership developed between the Association for Progressive Communications, the leading international civil society group on ICT policy issues, and the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisations.

resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop - Presentation by Japanese team

2008-1-29T18:19:09Z

At the Summit planning workshop, the team from Sapporo City, Digital Garage and CCJP gave a presentation on the Summit venue, the city of Sapporo, and some of the other practical and logistic considerations for the Summit. This is the audio version of the presentation, you can see the video here

resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop - Summit Design Discussion

2008-1-29T18:19:06Z

On Day 1 of the Summit Planning Workshop, all the participants were asked to design their dream summit venue, using toothpicks, sweets, straws and other materials. This audio clip is of the feedback session afterwards, when each group explained their designs and why they chose to do what they did.

You can read more about this session here, on the iCommons blog, or watch the video of the session here, on the video Fumi shot.

Note: The sound on this clip isn't uniformly good, so the blog and video will help give you a better idea of what happened...

resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop - Taxonomy discussion

2008-1-29T18:19:03Z

During the planning workshop for the iSummit 2008, the taxonomy of the summit was a subject of great debate. How to organise the Summit, how to arrange the themes and subjects, and where and how these subjects will be discussed were all up for discussion. This audio is a recoding of the feedback session after this discussion.

For more information about this discussion, have a look here, on the iCommons wiki, where we are continuing these discussions.

resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop -

2008-1-29T18:19:01Z

During the Summit planning workshop, delegates discussed how to overcome some of the practical issues facing the organisers. Documenting the summit, making it sustainable, how to run the facilitation and how to involve the community were all discussed. The issue of community was debated for longer, with quite heated points made on all sides - although at the end of the discussion we were able to see eye-to-eye, of not agree completely.

resources .: iSummit 2008 Planning Workshop - S.W.O.T analyses

2008-1-29T18:18:57Z

One of the tasks we had to tackle at the Summit planning workshop was an evaluation of the relative strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (S.W.O.T) that we were facing with regards to the various areas of discussion (ie: PR and marketing, travel and diversity, documenting the summit, facilitation at the summit, the community, making the summit sustainable, and venue for the summit)

resources .: Communicating Disasters: Building on the Tsunami Experience...

2008-2-24T22:16:50Z

A new Asian book published this month takes a critical look at the communication lessons of the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004, and explores the role of good communications before, during and after disasters.

Titled 'Communicating Disasters: An Asia Pacific Resource Book', the multi-author book discusses how information, education and communication can help create disaster resilient communities across the Asia Pacific region, home to half of humanity.

Coming out in time for the third anniversary of the tsunami, the book carries an entire section which reflects on the communication lessons of that mega-disaster.

Drawing on the tsunami, Kashmir earthquake and other recent disasters, the book concludes: adequate planning by media and disaster managers can help avoid communications disasters when communicating about disasters.

With focus on the appropriate use of media-based communications, the publication covers rapid on-set disasters such as tsunami, earthquakes, cyclones and landslides as well as those that unfold slowly, such as drought.

The book, co-published by the non-profit media foundation TVE Asia Pacific and the UNDP Regional Centre in Bangkok, brings together 21 authors most of them from Asia who share their experiences and insights on effective communication related to various disasters.

It was released during the Third Global Knowledge Conference (GK3) held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from 11 to 13 December 2007. The role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in disaster prevention and early warning was discussed during the event, attended by 1,700 people.

Communicating Disasters was edited by two leading Asian journalists Sri Lankan Nalaka Gunawardene and Indian Frederick Noronha and carries a foreword by Sir Arthur C Clarke, inventor of the communications satellite.

"Communicating disasters -- before, during and after they happen -- is fraught with many challenges," Sir Arthur Clarke says in his foreword. "Todays ICT tools enable us to be smart and strategic in gathering and disseminating information. But there is no silver bullet that can fix everything. We must never forget how even high tech (and high cost) solutions can fail at critical moments. We can, however, contain these risks by addressing the cultural, sociological and human dimensions."

The book's contributors come from backgrounds in print and broadcast media, photojournalism, the UN system, civil society, academia and the humanitarian sector. They draw on their rich and varied experience in either preparing disaster resilient communities or responding to humanitarian emergencies triggered by specific disasters. Five chapters are written by leading Asian journalists who covered the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami.

"This book comes out at a time when both the media industry and the global humanitarian sector are undergoing rapid change," says co-editor Nalaka Gunawardene, who is also Director of TVE Asia Pacific. "Our contributors are among the 'change agents' leading or consolidating these changes, and thus able to offer insights from the cutting edge in their respective spheres."

Whenever a hazard turns into a disaster of any kind, journalists and humanitarian workers are among the first to arrive on the scene. But their needs and agendas are different: journalists have to access and verify real time information, and get their story out ahead of the competition, while the priority for humanitarian workers and disaster managers is to provide relief to affected people.

resources .: iSummit '08 programme structure

2008-2-27T21:32:31Z

Submissions for programme session proposals at the iSummit '08 opened on 1 March. This PDF document shows the suggested basic structure for every day of the iSummit, by displaying the times for keynote addresses, general sessions/panels, and 'labs', which are a new addition to the Summit programme.

A lab is a space dedicated to a specific theme, project or medium, which are overarching tracks that will run during the iSummit programme.

Please note that the structure is malleable and may be changed as submissions dictate. If you have suggestions and requests for changes to this structure, please send them to james 'at' icommons 'dot' org

Download the document and refer to this programme key:
- Sessions: Time that is dedicated to submissions. The sessions are run in sequences called 'labs' that are discipline specific.
- Programmable Space: A space that you can book for any ad hoc meetings that arise.
- Keynotes: One person talking to many people for no longer than 20 minutes.
- Free Culture House: A space where people can hang out, hold informal meetings and listen to good music by DJs.

resources .: The iSummit 2008 in Sapporo: presentation by CC Japan

2008-1-28T15:58:53Z

At the iSummit 2008 planning workshop held in Johannesburg on 17 and 18 January, Yuko Noguchi presented 'The iSummit 2008 in Sapporo', which outlined the practical conditions and consequences of having the iSummit in Japan, and identified issues which need to be addressed during our planning event.

For feedback on problem-solving and brainstorming that took place at the event, read the workshop page on the iCommons wiki, for full notes and report-backs.

resources .: The iSummit 2008 in Sapporo: presentation by CC Japan (pdf format)

2008-2-08T23:58:36Z

resources .: The African Digital Commons - A Participant's Guide

2008-1-14T16:09:39Z

Download the guide below:

FRENCH, .doc

FRENCH, .PDF

ENGLISH, .doc

ENGLISH, .PDF

One of the goals of the Commons-sense Project is to conduct research that helps equip African activists and decision-makers with the information they need to develop cutting-edge, relevant intellectual property policies and practices.

We decided to begin with a map - a map that hopefully presents a broad picture of how far we've already come in Africa towards the goal of achieving a "digital information commons", as well as providing some sense of how to grow it further. We have tried to chart the international, regional and national policies, players and movements that to some extent dictate the scope of the commons in Africa, and at the same time to outline some of the creative responses from people on the ground working towards the expansion of the commons in some way.

Because we wanted to get as extensive a picture as possible of who is already involved in digital commons activities throughout the continent, we decided to try to get people in Africa to represent themselves in the Guide . The technology we used was an online "wiki" which anyone, anywhere in the world could edit, amend, build on and improve. This Guide , then, is the offline version of a living "wiki" built by the people living and working on these issues in Africa.

We are hoping that the offline publishing of this Guide can become an annual event, where we take stock of how far we've come, how issues, policies and laws have changed, which new projects have begun, and what the impact has been on the ground and on the net - in terms of the growth of the African Digital Commons.

In time, we're hoping that the Guide will be used in classrooms and offices, by policy-makers and activists, educators and students, to raise awareness around the value of the commons to African innovation, education and creativity.

One last word of thanks must go to our colleagues at the LINK Centre for their support and advice, to Wits University Copyright Librarian Denise Nicholson for innumerable leads and contacts, to A2LM in Southern Africa project leader Achal Prabhala for editorial support, to the IDRC - especially Heloise Emdon and Steve Song - for their ongoing encouragement, and finally to the hard-working builders of the African Digital Commons who, in the face of many challenges, continue to inspire with their vision of a continent that is turning the corner in many ways.

resources .: iSummit 07 presentations

2007-7-09T16:58:07Z

For all of you who weren't able to attend the keynote sessions or some of the other interesting presentations that were held in the main hall, you'll be pleased to know that we have managed to get a hold of some of them. So if you would like study or share these presentations, please feel free to download them here, from the cultural database.

Click below to download:

Business Models-ppt/odp

Open Source Culture- ppt/odp

The future of open education-ppt/odp

Global Lives Project-pdf

SJ Klein - The future of open education-ppt/odp

Ekalavyas Secret Library -Tales from the I-Commons (pirated copy)-ppt/odp

Star Wreck - In the Pirkining-ppt/odp

Jon Phillips Building Communities Isummit 2007

Please check back for more presentations.

resources .: From Legal Commons to Social Commons: Brazil and the Cultural Industry

2007-6-08T13:31:39Z

I am publishing at the iCommons website the paper I wrote for the Centre for Brazilian Studies at Oxford University (http://www.brazil.ox.ac.uk). The paper was finished in March, 2007. It is the result of the very nice months I spent as a visiting professor there.

ABSTRACT

This article describes some of the current transformations regarding the processes by which information and culture are generated, from the point of view of developing countries. In this brief analysis, the article discusses the role of projects such as Creative Commons for developing countries. It also discusses the idea of legal commons and social commons.

While the idea of legal commons can be understood as the voluntary use of licenses such as Creative Commons in order to create a commons, the idea of social commons has to do with the tensions between legality and illegality in developing countries. These tensions appear prominently in the so-called global peripheries, and in many instances make the legal structure of intellectual property irrelevant, unfamiliar, or unenforceable, for various reasons.

With the emergence of digital technology and the Internet, in many places and regions in developing countries (especially in the peripheries), technology ended up arriving earlier than the idea of intellectual property. Such a de facto situation propitiated the emergence of cultural industries that were not driven by intellectual property incentives. In these cultural businesses, the idea of sharing and of free dissemination of the content is intrinsic to the social circumstances taking place in these peripheries. Also, the appropriation of technology on the part of the peripheries ends up promoting autonomous forms of bridging the digital divide, such as the LAN house phenomenon discussed below. This paper proposes that many lessons can be learned from the business models emerging from social commons practices in developing countries.

The tension between legality and illegality in peripheral areas in developing countries is not new. The work of Boaventura de Sousa Santos and others in the 1970s was paradigmatic for the discussion of legal pluralism regarding the occupation of land in Brazil. This paper aims to follow in that same pioneer tradition of studies about legal pluralism, and to apply those principles to the discussion of intellectual property rather than the ownership of land.

resources .: Innovations in Copyright for Digitised, Sustainable Film in South Africa

2007-9-12T20:26:52Z

Introduction: March 2006 will be remembered for many years as a first for the South African film industry. On this day, director Gavin Hood held up South Africas indeed Africas first Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. The coveted Oscar was received for Tsotsi, and for days afterwards, national television, newspapers, radio and the Internet showcased interviews and features with anyone involved with the production basking in what South Africans hoped was a sign of a new era for filmmaking in the country.

But the euphoria around this accomplishment was in some respects short-lived. Soon after the win, Tsotsi was in the news again. This time because a pirate copy of the movie was being distributed throughout the country, and it was believed that someone at the post-production facility had leaked a cut of the film. In early April 2006, two former employees of the firm where post-production took place were arrested and charged with fraud and theft (SAPA, 2006).

During this time, national public radio station SAfm aired a debate about the case, discussing the issues of piracy and local film production with key figures in the industry and members of the public. One caller living in the village of Ramosadi, North-West Province the home village of Tsotsi lead actor Presley Chweneyagaes family said that, after hearing about the film and Chweneyagaes role in it, he had wanted to watch it, but because the nearest movie theatre is many kilometres from where he lives, he had to buy a pirated DVD of the film.

The Tsotsi story got people asking some pertinent questions about the dynamics of South African film distribution about how best to reach audiences, about how to facilitate better and faster distribution of legal DVD versions of films, about the balance of distribution control between creators/producers and the broadcasters/cinemas, and about the role of more creator/producer-oriented distribution efforts such as those provided by the Film Resource Unit (FRU).

This paper does not aim to account for all of the complex dynamics in South African film distribution, but rather to focus in on two broad themes: the dynamics of digitisation; and the dynamics around rights (copyright and licensing of distribution rights). This article aims to point to potential opportunities for improved South African film distribution, to the benefit of both creators/producers and distributors, as presented by:

the digital environment and the innovative distribution and promotion techniques this environment makes possible for South African film; and

new approaches to copyright and licensing of distribution rights approaches seemingly made both more necessary and more realisable in the digital environment.

Exploitation of both of these sets of opportunities has the potential to give added dynamism and sustainability to South Africas independent film production sector a sector which has, in recent years, consistently proved its ability to generate world-class cinema with a South African flavour. Tsotsi is but one of many examples of local film productions that seem to have deserved, and could potentially have drawn better revenues from, wider distribution/promotion in South Africa on cinematic, broadcast, DVD and online/cell phone platforms.

The central argument of this paper is that creative approaches to copyright management and to licensing of distribution rights, deployed within the digital, multi-platform environment, hold the potential to better balance the rights of creators/ producers with those of broadcasters/cinemas/DVD distributors, thus potentially building a South African film industry with more winners and fewer losers.

resources .: Open Sourcing Education: learning and wisdom from iSummit 2007

2007-9-12T00:29:28Z

This report summarizes learning and wisdom from the education track at 2007 iSummit, held in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Organized annually by iCommons, the summit serves as a gathering of people from the global Creative Commons movement. This was the first year that there was a full track dedicated to open education.

Describing the conversation about open education in Dubrovnik, the report says:

it is clear that these ideas offer huge potential to transform and improve education. At the simplest level, open sourcing education can provide top quality textbooks, courseware and learning aids to millions of people who have limited access to educational materials today. There is also tremendous potential for innovation in education, as well as improving the quality of materials we use for learning. Similar to open source software, educators who translate MIT Open Courseware into Chinese may improve these materials along the way, in turn sharing these improvements for others to use. And, ultimately, if learning materials of all sorts are open, there is an opportunity to put learners at the centres of this collaborative value creation: with students playfully adapting, remixing and resharing materials for others as a part of the learning process. There is a movement afoot here, and it is a movement with an aim no less than making learning accessible and adaptable for all.

However, the report is far from pure boosterism for open education. It also warns that there are critical roadblocks in areas like community building, licensing, reaching out to policymakers and including a diversity educators, authors and activists from around the world. Unless it can get past these roadblocks, the movement has little chance of making an impact.

resources .: Submission by TACP on the South African Draft Bill on Publicly Funded Research

2007-9-12T20:20:00Z

Introduction

As an organisation with the objectives of bringing together the Free Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS), open culture and open science communities as a means of developing and encouraging Africas creative and innovative potential, The African Commons Project welcomes the Draft Bill on Intellectual Property Rights in Publicly Financed Research. We understand and appreciate the Departments commitment to disseminating innovation in South African research.

The Draft Bill aims to ensure that both the public sector and the South African community at large are able to benefit from the inventions and innovations that are the result of publicly funded research at academic institutions in South Africa. This objective is commendable and long overdue. However, as an organisation researching global best practice in developing innovative economies, we believe that there needs to be a greater balance between the needs for the public to have access to research and development via open access.

Download the PDF for the full submission.

resources .: Jimmy Wales interview on 702

2007-11-26T18:23:22Z

Click here to download and listen to the Jimmy Wales interview with 702, during his visit to South-Africa, where he was promoting the Wikipedia Academies.

resources .: The Development Agenda for WIPO: Another Stillbirth? A2K vs. enclosure

2007-6-19T08:01:16Z

The private sector has played and continues to play a decisive role in the shaping of policy-making concerning knowledge-based goods. The result is an unequal battle between access to knowledge and enclosure favouring the latter over the former. Such an unbalanced scenario chiefly affects the South, but has implications for the public everywhere. The Development Agenda being proposed for adoption by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and which has been advocated for and designed by developing countries governments in collaboration with a coalition of governments, academics, civil society and public interest NGOs from both North and South, is the latest attempt to bring a balance to this scenario. However, the Development Agenda is encountering opposition and despite the unique nature of the coalition backing it, the outcome is uncertain.

resources .: iCommons Annual '07

2007-6-28T17:57:51Z

For this year's Summit, iCommons decided to create an Annual, a
collection of some of the best and most interesting writing around the
Commons. Writers were commissioned from all areas of the Commons and
stories that had originally appeared on the iCommons site were updated.
The annual was designed by Johannesburg design company Infiltrate
Media, and the finished annual was distributed at the Summit in
Dubrovnik, Croatia. For those who were unable to attend the Summit, or
anyone who would like to download, remix, share and distribute these
stories, we have archived them here as PDFs. They're licensed under a
CC BY-SA 3.0 license, so feel free to get creative and spread them
around.

Click here to read the articles.