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Africa Source II - Free and Open Source Software for Local Communities
Kalangala, Uganda - Jan 08-Jan 15, 2006
Africa Source II will be an eight day hands-on workshop aimed at
building the technical skills of those working with NGOs on the
continent. It will take place in one of the most beautiful parts of the
Kalangala Island on Victoria Lake during the beginning of January 2006.
Africa Source II will bring together more than 100 NGOs and NGO
technology support professionals working at the local level across the
region, together with a handful of field leaders from Africa, Europe,
North America and Asia. Africa Source II will be a free and open source
software (FOSS) event. It's primary goal will be to increase the
practical use of FOSS desktop applications and tools amongst the non
profit sector in Africa.
Specifically, Africa Source II will focus on how Free and Open Source
Software (FOSS) can be integrated into the mission-critical work of
NGO's. We will be bringing together nearly 100 NGO Support
Professionals
and NGO Staff from across Africa to learn new skills, exchange tips,
and
share experiences. All participants will have a history of work with
service and advocacy NGOs, educational organisations, NGO resource
centres, community centres and health information organisations.
Participants with a range of experience will learn from one another
about how FOSS can help make their NGO's more efficient, build capacity
and assure that they are complying with software licensing laws. They
will be given an opportunity to develop their understanding of FOSS,
including exploring the challenges and the future potential of FOSS
adoption. There will be a range of sessions for participants to take
part in and will include:
* How to help NGO's plan for, migrate to and adopt FOSS
applications
* How to use FOSS applications to handle information, publish
content using citizen's media tools and engage constituency
* How FOSS can increase accessibility through localization,
translation into local language and dialects
During these sessions participants will get an opportunity to learn
from
peers about how FOSS has impacted their work through case studies and
skill shares. The workshops will be lead by a range of facilitators
from
the respective region with strong experience in deploying free and open
source solutions and of working in the non-profit sector. They will be
joined by a handful of others with relevant experiences from developing
and transition countries, as well as a select number of leaders in from
specific fields
The camp will focus on learning by doing, rather than by listening. We
aim for a "workshop vibe" as opposed to a "conference vibe"; we hope
that elements like the location, shared housing, and the nature of the
sessions keep the energy level high and the interest in active
participation over passive learning strong. Like other source events,
Africa Source II will be intentionally designed to foster community
building, this creates an atmosphere conducive to learning, but more
importantly is essential if longer term relationships are to be built.
Building on the previous Africa Source event (Namibia, March 2004),
which brought together African FOSS developers working in the social
sector, Africa Source II will work at the next level to bring together
those working at the complimentary intermediary level. Besides new
ideas, skills and contacts that participants will gain they will also
leave the workshop equipped with an event specific version of
NGO-in-a-box, a collection of Free and Open Source Software that will
be
relevant to their work.
The Association for Progressive Communication APC (regional network),
Fantsuam Foundation (Nigeria), Schoolnet Africa (regional network),
Translate.org.za, WOUGNET (Uganda) and The Tactical Technology
Collective (the Netherlands) will collaborate to organise the content
of
the workshop and to build strong relationships between the
participants.
The project partners are committed to examining the challenges of
implementing FOSS in the African context, stretching its potential to
fit the needs on the ground, and building local capacities to realise
this. Our local partners there are East African Center for Open Source
(EACOSS), Linux Solutions and WOUGNET.
We are able to organise Africa Source II thanks to generous support
from
IDRC - The International Development Research Centre
(http://www.idrc.ca/), OSI - Open Society Institute Information Program
(http://www.soros.org/initiatives/information) and OSISA Open Society
Initiative for South Africa (http://www.osisa.org/).
Previous source events have taken place in Croatia - September 2003,
Namibia - March 2004 and India - February 2005. As well as in Middle
East & Northern Africa future source events will take place in Central
Asia (http://www.tacticaltech.org/fossroad) and Middle East.
Interaction
and learning between these regional events is facilitated through the
exchange of project models and individual expertise.
For more information please visit
http://www.tacticaltech.org/africasource2
We are now accepting applications! The deadline for sending in
applications is October 15th, 2005. Please find the form here
http://www.tacticaltech.org/africasource2/applications
Participants will be selected by the Advisory Group based on their
interest and experiences. There will be a small registration fee for
the
event. A limited number of travel and registration fee scholarships
will
be available and may be applied for on application. If you would like
to
receive an application form or have any questions please write to
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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