>CARDICIS 2005 is coming. I will be there. When I am there, one of the
>questions I will be asking is why people aren't checking information
>within our region that is seen as interesting from without the region.
...
>Therefore, at CARDICIS 2005, I shall ask what I am doing wrong - why
>what I am writing, which is getting attention from around the world,
>suffers neglect in our own region. Technology can't help that. I wonder
>how many others are typing at their keyboards in our region and do not
>get heard.
...
>And while everyone is worried about things outside of our region, which
>I respect, I offer that there are problems within our region as well -
>and we would probably do better by learning to help each other within
>our own region first before we go off trying to save the world.

All very good points Taran and a hand to me to start telling more
about CARDICIS2 (although, of course, some is already said in the web site
http://cardicis.org, in http://cardicis.org/index3.htm
in French, but translation are still underway).

CARDICIS2 is not only another meeting.
There is more in the menu and the process has already started.

1 - CSA2005 in Santo Domingo.
CARDICIS has a panel with Deirdre Williams, Reyna Raveles,
Raymond Noël, PR and myself. Pedro Ureñ a met us. And, as
usual, Margarita and Javier supported us.

I invite again the colleagues to check the panel presentations
in the web site. I was personally not very happy with CSA.
I found it too much pure research and not enough research-action.
I found it not enough sensitive to cultural diversity.
I found it too remote from Information Society issues in spite
that was the title of the whole Conference.
As a fisherman looking for ICT4D specialist from Caribbean
diaspora I went back with ... an empty basket :-(

Yet I got the feedback that who came to listen to our panel were
very satisfied but not too many people came and the organization
did not care too much about our panel and follow-on.

2 - Support for CARISNET project in term of multilinguism.
A budget provision of 10Keuros has been assigned which allow
the CARISNET team (http://carisnet.org) to translate documents
and improve automatic translation in CIVIC virtual community.

3 - I just come back from a CARDICIS mission in French Guyane.
The objective was two-fold: a) try to secure some additional funds
to organize the next CARDICIS meeting in Cayenne (the additional
cost compare with doing it in Santo Domingo is about 50% higher
due to air transportation and cost of life); b) try to integrate
French Guyane to our activities and motivate them in a longer
term to host some event.
I will come back in a separate mail and report on the outcomes.

4 - What's coming next and as a preparation step (a warming
like for the athlets we all are ;-) )is a survey on CARDICIS
member. We want to check what was the impact of CARDICIS1
and give you an opportunity to feed back the group on your
views. Obviously, Taran's mail and thread is right on target.
I need now to organize a questionnaire, put it on the web
and become overly insisting so that 99% of you answer this
survey. This is very important top define the next steps
of the project, including the next meeting.

5 - CARDICIS2 meeting

Will be held in Dominican Republic, first week of December.
We will haved precise dates in the coming days.
The idea was to make a meeting a bit shorter, more
concentrated and more focused to action.
It is still a will to turn the focus to Caribbean
diaspora but this will depend on the capacity to do it.
I will also come backon that subject.

>It must be my fault, because in
>a participatory democracy the majority rules.
This I tend to disagree taran. The majority rules the
representative democracy;in participative democracy who
rules is the minority of active persons...

>http://www.knowprose.com/caribbeanbloglist
This is a wonderful clearinghouse. You should circulate the
reference. I will forward to you some references which
were circulated about Dominican Rep. in the socinfodo list
(http://socinfodo.org.do).
Nearby lun 22 ago 2005 08:00:36 AST