--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- *APCNews, the monthly newsletter of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC)* - December 2000 No. 16 - --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- -- NEWS FROM THE MEMBERS -- -- ONLINE EVENTS -- -- SITES OF INTEREST -- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- -- NEWS FROM THE MEMBERS -- APC: Rio+10 has APC casting our minds back to 1992 and how we connected NGOs around the world electronically for the first time The news that United Nations General Assembly on Rio+10 has reached agreement on some vital starting points for the organization of Rio+10, has been greeted with nostalgia by some of APC's oldest members. The original Rio conference, the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, also known as the Earth Summit, was an historic event, because it brought together the largest number of heads of state, as well as the single largest gathering of NGOs and citizen activists to date. It was also the first time that electronic communications were provided to facilitate activists' participation in a UN summit, and APC was the innovator of that service. Read: http://www.apc.org/english/news/fulltext.shtml?sh_itm=35f9b2eb3ff0e6bb8ea6725984ca5a50 C2o, Australia: APC member in Australia consolidates its uniquely artistic approach to social equality and online awareness-raising with a merger and new sites C2o (also known as APC.AU) has acquired Toy Satellite, an Australian based multidisciplinary communication/media production house. Toy Satellite has a long history of achievements in the arts and cultural sector, particularly its Web development, media streaming/netcasting and international collaborative initiatives. Read: http://www.apc.org/english/news/fulltext.shtml?sh_itm=e2c2a3d709f73a1c6ee4299d7cc4c979 COLNODO, Colombia: Colombian craftspeople offer their products online in time for the December holidays Following the success of Ecomerz - which was Colombia's official stall at the recent Expo 2000 in Hanover - Ecolombia is the second fair trade e-commerce venture unveiled by Colnodo, APC's member in Bogota, and the Sustainable Development Network (RDS) in Colombia. Ecolombia is a private initiative contracted by a group of savvy artisans from the Colombian district of Santander. Read: http://www.apc.org/english/news/fulltext.shtml?sh_itm=25d7304f60d8198f7373620bf5742b67 GREENNET, UK: Privacy and freedom of information online are recognized as important human rights issues in the United Kingdom The "Big Brother" Awards, celebrated annually to recognize the heroes and villains of privacy were held in London on December 4th. "Winstons" were presented to individuals and organizations which have made an outstanding contribution to the protection of privacy. "Orwell" statuettes were pressed on the government agencies, companies and initiatives which have done most to invade personal privacy. Read: http://www.apc.org/english/news/fulltext.shtml?sh_itm=459cf2454ef9f9faebc4762b012f90a5 INTERCOM, Ecuador: Monthly Spanish language newsletter for development workers who want to get the most out of Internet technology INTERCOM, APC member in Quito, has been producing Conexión, a newsletter on the use of ICTs for development, since 1999. It is an initiative which aims to help Spanish- speaking development workers get their hands on the information and ICT tools they need to do their work more efficiently.The newsletter comes out monthly and covers a variety of topics, including gender, education, human rights, communication and health. There's a useful section on how to use and get the most from tools available on the Internet. Conexión: http://www.ecuanex.net.ec/boletin.htm LANETA, Mexico: New Portal for Human Rights in Mexico brings together over eighty pro- human rights groups under one virtual roof For the first time, a human rights portal focusing on human rights in Mexico has been launched, by APC member, LaNeta. The portal - LaNeta Derechos Humanos (LaNeta Human Rights) - has a double function: to directly provide services to human rights organizations; and to serve as a vital communications bridge between these specialist groups and wider networks of concerned Mexican citizens. LaNeta Derechos Humanos offers a wide variety of online services to human rights organizations to assist the groups in their day-to-day activities (e.g. broadening the circulation of calls for urgent action and ensuring alerts get out almost immediately) as well as collecting together otherwise hard-to-find or unorganized information. The portal also provides an arena to groups who up till now have not published online. Online tools, such as the online alerts, are already being eagerly seized by human rights groups, even though the portal was not made public until just last month. In the month of November alone, twelve calls for urgent action to protect serious violations of human rights and threats to lives were posted, some from established human rights groups and others from the victims of human rights violations themselves. Read: http://www.apc.org/english/news/fulltext.shtml?sh_itm=5625abe93535fc914d97d839e726067b PANGEA, Spain: Barcelona member of APC wins prize for its Web support for NGOs The municipality of Barcelona (Ayuntamiento de Barcelona) awards prizes each year to local non-profits and persons for contributions to "Communication and Social Welfare", but for the first time this year a prize was offered for social justice work linked to the Internet. The selection jury nominated APC's member organization in Barcelona, Pangea, for its "consistent contribution to the non-profit organizations and solidarity groups of the City of Barcelona". The prize of a million pesetas (apx $5,300 USD) was presented to Pangea representative, Chris Nicol, by the Mayor of Barcelona, Joan Clos, on November 23, 2000. --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- -- ONLINE EVENTS -- For information on all these online events, visit: APC Online Events: http://www.apc.org/english/ngos/calendar "Integrating New And Traditional Information And Communication Technologies For Community Development", Kothmale, Sri Lanka, 22-27 January 2001 UNESCO and Sri Lankan authorities are holding a four-day workshop, followed by a two-day round-table with partners, from 22-27 January 2001, entitled "Integrating New And Traditional Information And Communication Technologies For Community Development". "The Appropriation of Traditional and New Media for Development- Whose Reality Counts?", organized by UN FAO, online, 4 December - ongoing Share knowledge, experiences, information about best practices, projects, methodologies, theories, and research on the appropriation of local (traditional, folk and popular) and new media (information and communication technologies, ICTs) for development. --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- -- SITES OF INTEREST -- REPAMAR http://www.repamar.org The Pan American Network for Environmental Waste Management (Red Panamericana de Manejo Ambiental de Residuos) is a co-ordination, co-operation, experience exchange and consensus-building space from environment-friendly waste management. It is a new site which already has rich information specifically aimed a Latin American audience, and has been set up using special software which allows visitors not only to read the information, but also to contribute articles, make comments on reports and discuss much of the information presented right there on the site. African Development Forum 2000 - AIDS, The Greatest Leadership Challenge http://www.uneca.org/adf2000/ The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa is not only devastating in terms of human suffering; it is also jeopardizing economic growth, development prospects and political stability. Take a look at this statistic. Sub-Saharan Africa has only one-tenth of the global population, but it accounts for more than 80% of AIDS-related deaths worldwide. AIDS/HIV is no longer just a health problem, but a major continent-wide development crisis. Read documents and discussion online from the 2000 United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) meeting which took place in Addis Ababa earlier this month and which focused on the impact of AIDS on development policy and approaches: http://www.uneca.org/adf2000/ --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- APCNews, in English, and APCNoticias, in Spanish, are distributed the first week of every month by APC, the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), the international Internet community for peace, human rights, development and the environment. APCNews Archive: http://www.apc.org/english/news/apcnews/ Copyright. 2000 Association for Progressive Communications (APC). Permission is granted to use this document for personal use, for training and educational publications, and activities by peace, environmental, human rights or development organizations. Please provide an acknowledgment to APC.