CONFERENCE: Innovation for Access, Web for Development
11-13 FEBRUARY 2009 NEW YORK NY
Organizer: United Nations
Dates: 11-13 February 2009
Venue: UNICEF, New York
Overview
Because this event aims to be environmentally friendly, organizers plan to facilitate access by webcast and extend participation (via video-conferencing) to multiple locations.
The event will bring together thought leaders and innovators specializing in online and mobile technologies, representing the United Nations, academia, the development and private sectors. This event will focus on innovation and improving strategic partnerships in order to achieve the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals.
Innovation for Access aims to promote innovation in three cross-cutting areas by sharing resources and expertise, and laying the foundation for future collaboration across academia, the development, and private sectors.
Improving Access to Information & Establishing Communities of Practice – How can new developments in technology support access to information in the most extreme circumstances, emergencies and locations?
Monitoring and Evaluation – What are the best practices for using mobile technologies for M+E? Which case studies and initiatives can be reproduced on a global scale? What amount and kind of data can we get from mobile phones? What is the incentive to report and the importance of social reporting?
Supporting the Supply Chain – From procurement to delivery and use - How do we support the delivery of supply-chain items using technologies like mobile phones, SMS, and PDAs for communication, stocktaking and results-driven process change?
Knowledge Sharing Workshops – A podium for showcasing solutions, the exchange of best practices and the emergence of functional networks within areas of key concern to UN system and partner organizations, including: Open Content, Online Communication Strategy, Web Governance, and Common Publishing Framework
A Road-map for the Future – A plan for raising awareness, sharing solutions and improving efficiencies for the immediate and long-term
A “Geek-Meet” – A group of open-source developers will be actively working throughout the conference to write software based around one of the key thematic areas.
An Environmentally-Friendly Conference – Web4Dev contributes to minimizing the carbon footprint. Participants will be encouraged to use electronic media rather than paper or traditional conference collateral. Recycling and other “green” initiatives in areas such as event catering and audio-visual will be employed.
Announcement of Partnerships – The presentation of ground-breaking partnerships that bring together the individual strengths of development organizations, academia and the private sector