MISTICA (Methodology and Social Impact of the Information and Communication Technologies in America), OLISTICA’s building block, was consolidated in 1998 under PAN’s project "Strengthening Networks of Researchers on Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)¹". Considering that OLISTICA will build upon the achievements and lessons learned by MISTICA and pursue its methodological approach, it is worth to take a closer look at the results of such a successful experience in terms of consolidating strong human and information networks of researchers and practitioners interested on social impact of ICTs in the LA&C region.

In dynamic interplay between formal and content objectives (the methodological approach and the strengthening of a social group, respectively), MISTICA focused on experimenting with novel methodologies  (EMEC², PAD³) that support the exchange of relevant information in a virtual community (VC). It did so by providing a multi-lingual environment that accommodated active participation at a distance in connection to face-to-face teamwork while reducing the time investment of participants by controlling the information overload. The use of ICTs to cement local research capacities, an important issue for IDRC, was fully tackled by MISTICA. Furthermore, MISTICA created and evaluated several mechanisms to collectively explore the social impacts of ICTs in order to propose strategic actions that make positive uses of these new technologies in connection to human and social development.

MISTICA was articulated based upon different objectives, ingredients and product results. Three main objectives served as a framework for the dynamic process of building an active community located between theory and action: (1) strengthening field players in the region interested in the social impacts of ICT by supporting collaborative work and the structuring of relevant information to this group, (2) building a human network for researching and appropriating ICTs for social & positive change, and (3) producing regional diagnostic reports about the social impact of ICTs in order to establish an appropriate agenda for action. Meanwhile, a collegiate coordination has been able to facilitate a collective decision-making process that continuously takes into consideration the multiplicity of voices of MISTICA’s broad constituency.

MISTICA has successfully consolidated a human network of researchers and social activists from the LA&C region interested in the social dimension of ICTs. Until the end of August 2000, more than 300 people has subscribed to MISTICA’s virtual community (63% male and 37% female), representing more than 20 different Latin American and Caribbean countries plus participants from Europe, North America and Africa. On the other hand, as a truly collaborative and self-reflective virtual community, MISTICA accounts for more than 1,000 messages that have circulated up to date. On average, there are a considerable number of participants (now approaching 40% from the total number of people subscribed) contributing with an average of 1.8 messages per day. As a consequence, MISTICA’s virtual community dynamism has become not only its main goal but also the principal instrument to achieve its proposed objectives.