[Foss4g2008loc] please write an article

[Carrin Martin]

Thanks Gavin, good idea

It would be great to have an editorial by someone who knows the history of OS, why and how it came about, what the strengths and challenges are and how the conference will address these.  

 

Another request to the OS geeks please.  I’m trying to rustle up local interest so am sending out notice every second week or so with a blurb on the different themes.  I’m trying to get people to engage with the topic so that by the time it arrives, there is a lot of local hype and they all want to go. I’m an optimist.  So a short paragraph on each one of the following between now and the conference would be great.  Below is one of my attempts at getting the debate going and it would be really great if we could have similar mail shots on the following.  I can do all the theme ones, but not the technical ones.  

                                                

● LBS, logistics, routing                           

● FOSS Business models

● Training, support, skills development                                   

● Open data, open content

● GEO, GEOSS, and its 9 societal benefit areas                     

● OGC, interoperability

● New FOSS GIS developments and applications  

● Semantic GIS

 

Thanks in anticipation

Carrin Martin

 

“Today’s Topic: Millennium Development Goals (MDG) 

With the South African government having committed itself to Open Source Software, and the Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) Act having been enacted in 2006, the country is poised to face a bright spatially-enable future.  Are government departments at all levels making the most of these mechanisms to ensure that the millennium goals are met? What is happening to ensure that eGovernment becomes a reality in SA to fast tract achieving these and other goals?

 

MDGs for SA: 

Goal 1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Goal 2. Achieve universal primary education

Goal 3. Promote gender equality and empower women

Goal 4. Reduce child mortality

Goal 5. Improve maternal health

Goal 6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases

Goal 7. Ensure environmental sustainability

Goal 8. Develop a global partnership for development

 

What spatial infrastructure needs to be in place in order to achieve these, and what is Governments’ role in providing that infrastructure?  What role are governments in other developing nations playing and are there lessons that we can learn from them?  What are the issues that need to be debated about the role that Open Source can play in achieving the goals?  Has proprietary software reached it sell-by date, what role will vendors play in future, who will develop our systems and provide training and support?   

 

Be part of the debate, send in your abstract and come to Cape Town.” 

 

 

________________________________

From: foss4g2008loc-bounces at lists.osgeo.org [mailto:foss4g2008loc-bounces at lists.osgeo.org] On Behalf Of Gavin Fleming
Sent: 20 June 2008 12:55 PM
To: FOSS4G2008 local organising committee
Subject: [Foss4g2008loc] please write an article

 

Hi all

 

If you’re not already blogging about FOSS4G 2008 then I invite you to write an editorial article for PositionIT, our South African GIS magazine and local media sponsor. Deadline date for your editorial contributions is 18 July 2008 and should you require our author's guidelines, please log onto http://www.eepublishers.co.za/view.php?sid=1095

 

Anything to communicate to readers about the conference, be it expanding on some of the topics, introducing the guest speakers, your thoughts on the impact and relevance of the conference, whatever. 

 

Please help build the excitement and interest in our southern African region. 

 

Gavin 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.osgeo.org/pipermail/foss4g2008loc/attachments/20080620/160554f6/attachment.html