I recently assembled a short guide on Internet connectivity, aimed at non-technical school directors in developing countries. Schools Online, <www.schoolsonline.org> the foundation that hired me, has now asked me to now do a guide on that elusive word "sustainability." Let me share my plan with you, and perhaps you will be willing to send me your thoughts and perhaps be willing to talk or correspond with me in more depth. First, I will take a look at the origins of the concept (which seems to date back to the 1970's in the environmental movement) and the assumptions behind the goal. Second, I will be talking with people in aid agencies, foundations, and other donor programs about the subject, how it relates to their own operations as well as the organizations they fund. Third, I will try to give guidelines for organizations to begin thinking and planning about sustainability as part of the relationship between donor and grant recipient (some people prefer to call them "partners"). This is a great cultural challenge for institutions and organizations who are not trained to be entrepreneurial. Fourth, I will give some examples of public ICT projects (schools and public access centers outside of schools) where the principal parties feel they are and will be sustainable. The final document will be online at no charge, and Schools Online is embarking on an ambitious program to translate a number of their more popular resources into multimple languages. However, they work in 21 countries, and limiting the languages to a reasonable number is difficult. Please write me directly to indicate your interest. Steve Cisler 4415 Tilbury Drive, San Jose, CA 95130 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.inreach.com/cisler (408) 379 9076 ------------ ***GKD is an initiative of the Global Knowledge Partnership*** To post a message, send it to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: <http://www.globalknowledge.org>
