December 26-27, 2011 in Bhopal, India

For more information please click HERE.

Aim: Strengthening ICTD Research Capacity in Asia program (SIRCA) establishes and brings together the endeavours of IDRC PAN and SiRC. It is designed to ensure that that capacities to conduct research in the area of Information and Communications Technology and/for Development (ICT4D or ICTD) are built in Asia. This applies particularly to emerging researchers based in Asia who are relatively new to ICTD research and interested in undertaking theoretically based and methodologically rigorous research.

These applicants would benefit from concerted capacity building exercises including a mentorship arrangement. In particular, the program promotes broad-based high-quality multidisciplinary research in Internet development, e-services, new media use and social impact, and policy for the benefit and advancement of individuals, organizations, nation and society. The program supports research projects that will strengthen the body of methodologically sound and theoretically-based social science research in ICTD.

The SIRCA program is in its final phase and SiRC is currently working with IDRC for a new global grant.

Job description

The Research Associate/Project Officer will be responsible for:

-          Supporting the closure process of the SIRCA programme including:

• Tracking of research projects reports;
• Preparing final technical reports to the funder.

-          Supporting the new SIRCA II Global grant, including:

• Managing the SIRCA II research grants program funded by the IDRC.
• Coordinating and tracking the progress of research projects under the program.
• Coordinating and organising events (conference, workshop and meetings) for the program.
• Managing and contributing to in-house publications.
• Compiling technical reports and other supporting documents to the funders and other related stakeholders.
• Developing strong interpersonal relationships with researchers, collaborators and other stakeholders in Singapore and outside with whom you would have regular contact.
• Other duties as directed.

Qualifications and experience

The RA/PO will:

• Have a good academic record that can be supported by output not limited to GPA and exam results (Undergraduate/postgraduate work in an internationally recognized university is a distinct advantage). Gaps in academic performance may be compensated by evidence of experience and attitude.
• Ideally have experience and interest in communications and/or ICT related issues.
• Have well developed and proven writing and quantitative skills.
• Be fluent in English. (Ability to work in other languages will be an advantage but is not essential.)

Please submit a detailed CV, to Yvonne Lim at yvonnelyc@ntu.edu.sg.

For information about the organization, please see http://www.sirc.ntu.edu.sg/Pages/default.aspx.

The Prosper.Net-Scopus Young Scientist Award in Sustainable Development is given annually to young scientists or researchers, based in the Asia-Pacific region, who have made significant contributions in the area of Sustainable Development. The award is open to those researchers who completed their Ph.D. recently (within a span of 5 years) and are engaged in graduate education and research activities that emphasize sustainable development. Winners were chosen on the basis of 3 criteria: number of citations, number and quality of publications and patents, and documented social impact. All qualified applications were evaluated by an international panel of three recognized experts in Sustainable Development.

Winners receive a cash award from ProSPER.Net-Scopus and are offered a fellowship from the International Bureau of the German Ministry of Education and Research. These prestigious fellowships provide travel, supplies and living expenses to spend between six and twelve months collaborating with any researcher group of the recipient’s choosing in Germany.

Click HERE for more information on Prosper.NET. For more information about the award, click HERE.

We invite you to propose an Open Session at ICTD2012! Accompanying the full papers program on the 13th and 14th March are two further days of events with a less formal flavor to take place before and after (on the 12th and 16th). These lively and diverse sessions made a major contribution to the spirit of the conference in London in 2010 and, with your input, they can be an exciting and integral part of the experience in Atlanta. Open Sessions vary widely in theme and style, including panels, discussions, SIGs and workshops. They may be a whole day, or run for just 90 minutes. They may be run in a language other than the official conference language of English (we are particularly interested in a French and/or Spanish program). And the application process is simple and quick.

Openness is an important part of what makes these sessions special.

Organisers choose the structure, theme and approach of their program while anyone registered for the conference can attend as many open sessions as they wish, without the need to pre-register for them.

We ask you to present your proposal on the Open Sessions form (at the URL below), giving us details of who is involved and what you want to do. We are happy to approve a wide range of sessions providing they meet the minimum criteria, listed below (although we may have to adjust the time we offer each team, based on number of accepted submissions). If accepted, we ask you to be creative, entertaining and thought-provoking and to work with us to fit a tight agenda.

Types of session might include:

- Workshops

- Panels/Debates

- Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

- Roundtable Discussions/Fishbowls

- Open Spaces/Unconferences/Wildcard sessions

- Performances/Storytelling

- Anything you design that engages a range of people over a short, focussed session

Previous themes have included creativity, ethics, accountability, practitioner roles, reflections on the conference, development theory, climate change, gender, area studies, burning topics, new directions, notions of knowledge, language specific mini-conferences, report consultations, technology practicums, and more (see http://www.ictd2010.org). ICTD2012 can include an even wider range of content, all related to ICT and Development.

Open sessions proposal submission deadline: Oct 7th 2011 (11:59pm UTC)

For more on the main conference, see our website at: http://www.ictd2012.org or follow us on Twitter: @ICTD2012 and Facebook: ICTD 2012 Atlanta

Contact us with any questions at: opensessions@ictd2012.org

Criteria for acceptance and review process

Proposals for sessions will be reviewed by the open sessions committee and judged on the following criteria. Each session should be:

- Open to any interested conference attendees, up to a specified maximum number

- Accessible to a highly interdisciplinary ICT and development audience

- Lively, participatory and inclusive in style and content as appropriate

- Relevant to the themes of the conference

- Demonstrating careful planning and a clear structure

- Neatly summed up in a 50 word description, as well as a longer explanation of how your intentions will be achieved (as suggested on the form provided)

- Designed so that you leave the session space tidy afterwards (Note: working outside in a range of spaces may be possible, but will need backing up in case the weather is unseasonal)

- Presented on the Open Sessions form available at: http://www.ictd2012.org/opensessions

Key dates

- Proposals submitted: October 7th 2011 to opensessions@ictd2012.org

- Results announced: December 9th 2011

- Revisions and detailed planning: January-February 2012

- Conference: March 12-16th 2012

Open Sessions Committee Chair

Ann Light, Sheffield Hallam University

opensessions@ictd2012.org

Open Sessions Committee

Benjamin Akinmoyeje, Management Sciences for Health Arul Chib, Nanyang Technological University Jill Dimond – local liaison, Georgia Institute of Technology Helani Galpaya, LIRNEasia Ricardo Gomez, University of Washington Dorothea Kleine, Royal Holloway University of London Robin Mansell, London School of Economics Gillian Marcelle, Wits Business School Judith Mariscal, Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas Thomas Smyth – local liaison, Georgia Institute of Technology Eduardo Villanueva Mansilla, La Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú

General Conference Chairs

Michael Best, Georgia Institute of Technology Ellen Zegura, Georgia Institute of Technology

Conference dates: March 12-16, 2012
Paper submission deadline: July 22, 2011 (11:59pm UTC)
Conference website: http://www.ictd2012.org
Contact us at: program@ictd2012.org
Twitter: @ICTD2012   Facebook: ICTD 2012 Atlanta

ICTD provides an international forum for scholarly researchers exploring the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in social, political, and economic development. The conference program and accepted papers will reflect and deepen the multidisciplinary nature of ICTD research, with anticipated representation from anthropology, computer science, communication, design, economics, electrical engineering, geography, information science, political science, public health, sociology, and so on.

Submitted papers are subject to a rigorous and selective double-blind peer review; accepted papers will appear in electronic conference proceedings and will be archived in the ACM and/or IEEE systems. A subset of the papers will also appear in a special issue of Information Technologies & International Development.

ICTD2012 is the fifth of an ongoing series of conferences occurring every one-and-a-half years; previous conferences have taken place in: Berkeley, CA (USA) ICTD 2006; Bangalore (India) ICTD 2007; Doha (Qatar) ICTD 2009; and London (United Kingdom) 2010.

For the purposes of this conference the term “ICT” comprises electronic technologies for information processing and communication, as well as platforms that are built on such technologies. “Development” means international development, including, but not restricted to, poverty alleviation, education, agriculture, healthcare, general communication, gender equality, governance, infrastructure, environment and sustainable livelihoods. Papers considering novel designs, new technologies, project assessments, policy analyses, impact studies, theoretical contributions, social issues around ICT and development, and so forth will be considered. Well-analyzed negative results from which generalizable conclusions can be drawn are also sought.

Relevant papers reporting high-quality original research are solicited. Full papers will be reviewed by a multidisciplinary panel, and evaluated according to their novel research contribution, methodological soundness, theoretical framing and reference to related work, quality of analysis, and quality of writing and presentation. Authors are encouraged (but not required) to address the diversity of approaches in ICTD research by providing context, implications, and actionable guidance to researchers and practitioners beyond the authors’ primary domains.

Only original, unpublished, full research papers in English will be considered. Submissions not meeting a minimum bar of academic research writing will be rejected without full review. Papers should contain a maximum of 8000 words. Reviews are double blind, so papers should not include author names or other information that would identify the authors (references to previous work by the authors should be in the third person).  Authors should follow IEEE formats and styles http://www.ieee.org/documents/stylemanual.pdf. Samples of this are also available in PDF at http://www.ictd2012.org/ICTD2012_sample.pdf and MS Word http://www.ictd2012.org/ICTD2012_sample.doc formats. Authors will be required to sign a copyright release for publication in the conference proceedings.  Additional submission details will be posted on the conference website at http://www.ictd2012.org, as the information becomes available.

As a new opportunity for 2012, we are offering a peer mentorship program for paper submissions. Submit your paper early (by May 1st, 2011) to this program and get feedback from peer mentors ahead of the normal submission process and June deadline. See http://www.ictd2012.org/mentorship for details.

Atlanta is a world-class city with a rich and passionate history. Spring comes early to Atlanta; March is likely to be sunny, crisp, and pleasant. The conference venue is the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center (http://www.gatechhotel.com/). Georgia Tech is one of the top research universities in the United States, distinguished by its commitment to improving the human condition through advanced science and technology.

The conference website is http://www.ictd2012.org. Follow us on Twitter @ICTD2012, or visit our Facebook page at “ICTD 2012 Atlanta”. Contact us at program@ictd2012.org.

IMPORTANT DATES
Peer review mentor program submission deadline: May 1, 2011
Paper submission deadline: July 22, 2011
Acceptance notifications: September 16, 2011
Camera-ready papers due: January 16, 2012
Conference dates: March 12-16, 2012

Program Committee Chairs
Jonathan Donner, Microsoft Research India
Beki Grinter, Georgia Institute of Technology
Gary Marsden, University of Cape Town

General Conference Chairs
Michael Best, Georgia Institute of Technology
Ellen Zegura, Georgia Institute of Technology

I am excited to join SIRCA as the new Evaluator to assess its program to develop a strong and robust research capacity in Asia in the discipline of ICT4D. The role of communications technology for development in this era of rapid globalization, particularly for lower and middle-income countries, is indispensable for their social and economic development. Information and communications technology is amorphous, borderless, invisible – mobile phone signals reaching monks in Bhutan, wireless internet access connecting villagers in rural India, radio waves blasting out public health campaigns in the Amazon. But there is also a true physicality to the phenomenon of communications technology – migrant workers, for example, toil in construction sites and households in Dubai, Hong Kong, or Singapore to clothe children back home, provide meals on the table, buy plots of farm land, and build cement homes.

Prior to joining SIRCA, I worked for a not-for-profit organization here in Singapore that provided financial and computer skills to migrant domestic workers. The domestic workers surf the internet to search for property prices for a future business, reduce their phone bills by using Skype to call home, and unquestionably drive economic development with their billions of dollars of remittances home. It is exciting to witness development through ICT and my role in SIRCA will hopefully go beyond documenting the program’s impact, and contribute to improving the lives of people through information and communications technology.

Ann possesses a Master of Public Health and Master of International Affairs from Columbia University and has worked for UNICEF (India and New York), UNAIDS (New York), and Asia-Pacific Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (Bangkok). In her work, Ann was involved in the data collection, analysis and publishing of relevant reports related to various development projects. She has also worked in the interface of technology and healthcare as an analyst in the decision support departments of two hospitals in New York City.

In November 2009, scholars, industry professionals, and civil society organisations convened in Havana, Cuba, to examine issues related to health research. Dr. Arul Chib, Assistant Director of the Singapore Internet Research Centre, contributed to a robust Global Cafe discussion on Innovation for Remote Populations. The lively debate centred on the topics of mHealth and mobile health delivery innovations to reach remote populations and empower remote populations to engage with the broader world. The aim of the session was to develop recommendations to improve information sharing among practitioners and policy makers to scale up the best ideas.

Give Hope this Christmas

As the season of Christmas and the New Year fast approaches, it’s an opportune time for us to take a moment to reflect on the events of the year 2009.

Just a few months ago, South East Asia (particularly the Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos) was hit by an unprecedented series of typhoons which destroyed lives, and ravaged homes. Amidst this calamity, the survivors have demonstrated resilience and faith in picking up the pieces and moving on.

We pray that the relief efforts continue to reach those who are still in need, and that they will have the strength to rise above life’s adversities.

For those in Singapore who wish to help:

• Drop-off point for donations is Afreight Cargo, #03-09 Lucky Plaza, Orchard Rd. Contact Maureen Schepers 6235-1011. Get more information here: http://www.pinoysg.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=664644#664644

Donate Online:

• ABS-CBN Foundation
• Ateneo Alumni Northeast, Inc
• Australian Red Cross
• Ayala Foundation (select AFI-Typhoon Relief Fund in drop down menu)
• eBay
• Gawad Kalinga
• Global Giving
• HOPE Worldwide
• Operation Blessing International
• PhilippineAid.com
• Philippine National Red Cross
• PayPal: PayPal is also accepting donations now. Please send to give@redcross.org.ph.
• Thomson Reuters Foundation (total sum donated by October 16 will be matched by the company)
• TXTPower (Paypal)
• UNICEF USA (anonymous donor will match your donation up to $100,000 before Oct. 6!)
• Xoom
• World Food Programme

It was a bright sunny day but the office of Brainstorm Bangladesh seemed brighter due to the presence of seven young local researchers. A seminar titled ‘Qualitative Research: Introduction & Approaches’ was arranged for the research assistants, who were going to collect data for the SIRCA research project. These local researchers came from the villages of Manikganj where Grameen Phone Community Information Center (GPCIC) is in operation. They came from remote villages with educational background not over graduate level.

After the commencement of the project in February 2009, one of the main research dimensions was to involve the local researchers, employ their contextual understanding, and develop their research capacity. The research focuses on assessment of development impact of ICT intervention in rural areas at micro (community) level in Bangladesh; a developing setting. One of the major difficulties regarding these research projects is trying to determine the contextual factors and little focus is given to societal factors that result in less emphasis on the root level users’ actual demand. Moreover, the project employs an interpretive approach. Interpretive researchers interact constantly with the study subject and surrounding context; so they may encounter the following challenges while gaining understanding of the subject (the human process):

• Social-cultural problems
• Accommodation problems
• Difficulty in understanding the local dialects
• Communication gaps
• Participants’ feeling of not being aligned
• Feeling of being alienated

Therefore, the involvement of local researchers is the best way to overcome these challenges and understand the real development perceptions from the intervention’s end user perspective. In the ICT4D impact research, development issues have to be contextual in order to find out the actual impact from the end users’ perspective. In addition, academicians and researchers think results should not be isolated from the social context. Participants’ view of development can be better understood by using local researchers.

In September 28, 2009, the SIRCA Research Mentor, Dr. Roger Harris visited GPCIC in Manikganj and suggested creating and building the capacity of local researchers. To explore the maximum outcome, we invited the researchers to a qualitative research orientation conducted by Project Investigator, Dr. Md. Mahfuz Ashraf and also to share research experiences. The topics discussed in the seminar were:

• Introduction to SIRCA research
• Presentation on research methodology
• Qualitative research tools (interview, observation and focus group discussion)
• How to write village profile

After the seminar, the local researchers went to their village and conducted a pilot study on GPCIC study site. They conducted some interviews, wrote transcripts and village profiles. The access to resources like computer and internet connectivity is very limited in their villages but still these researchers utilize the minimal resources in the most efficient way. For instance, one of the researchers Md. Rokon sketched the village map, scanned the image and e-mailed it to us. He also interviewed his uncle and sent the participant’s photographs.

Local researchers interviewed participants. Researchers are also from the same place as the participants.

It is argued that access to field-level data is always difficult in ICT for Development (ICT4D) research especially for those who are researching in western countries. So, these local researchers can be a source of obtaining end users’ data and transcripts (local language to English) to offshore researchers, which will ultimately lower the research cost and time.

In April 2009, Dr Arul Chib presented his paper, “Extending the Technology-Community-Management Model to Disaster Recovery: Assessing Vulnerability in Rural Asia”, at the 3rd International IEEE/ACM Conference on Information and Communications Technologies and Development (ICTD2009) held in Doha, Qatar. This multi-disciplinary conference on ICTs and human development brought together a diverse group of individuals striving towards social progress and betterment. In addition to a series of scholarly presentations, the conference also lined up interactive workshops which opened discussions on the budding sphere of ICT research and implementation. Beyond serving as a platform to network, and learn, such conferences encourage emerging scholars to critically assess their contributions to the field, and overall human development.