Hi chris -- thanks for your frank exposition. For a little background on the idea of the "fortune at the bottom of the pyramid," you might be interested to read CK Prahalad's book by the same title, http://www.changemakers.net/library/temp/fortunepyramid.cfm
The idea of "eradicating poverty through profits" is not a western, top-down concept, but actually one begun by visionaries like Muhammed Yunus of Grameen Bank (http://www.grameen-info.org/). I think that what the fortune magazine reflects is a powerful convergence in thinking, not a vertically integrated scam. The idea is that the power of networks, made global through ICTs, has tremendous power to increase the individual's capacity to create, ultimately to create wealth. Efforts like Grameen's Village Phone (http://www.gfusa.org/technology_center/village_phone/) demonstrate how income can be a motivator to bring the poor into a relationship with a technology reseller. Everyone, in theory, benefits. I'm not sure what the success rates are with technology donation projects, but it seems to me that if you make appropriate technologies available to people in ways that increase their level of ownership the better that technology will be used. I know that is an oversimplification, but I don't have a moral problem with the equation -- affordable access is the critical factor. Have a look at the links if you aren't already familiar with the initiatives and let me know what you think. lars -- lars hasselblad torres art + technology + democracy http://tagstudio.net On 2/16/05 6:49 PM, "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Now, with respect to this article, my heart skipped a few beats. I can say > in the least that it is a bad article and i wonder if i could actually > write something up for Forune some day soon in the future :-) J/K, and at > the most, i hope the author misunderstood some things (or i did) and i > really hope that simply "bringing technology to the developing world" > isn't really the approach they are taking. Unfortunately though, I already > do know that it is and it's a strong movement all across the world; > however i would imagine it is more often to be found as an initiative in > the top of the chain of economic and political power, not at the bottom > except where the people have been convinced that it is "better for them" > this way. This is one problem, or might i say, doubt, hesitation or > sceptisism that i have towards the idea of "bridging the Digital Divide." _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
