The Centre for Internet and Society
http://editors.cis-india.org
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Habits of Living: Global Networks, Local Affects
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/habits-of-living/habits-of-living
<b>“Networks” have become a defining concept of our epoch. From high-speed financial networks that erode national sovereignty to networking sites like Facebook that transform the meaning of the word “friend,” from blogs that foster new political alliances to unprecedented globe-spanning viral vectors that threaten world-wide catastrophe, networks allegedly encapsulate what’s new and different. </b>
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<p>To understand the impact of networks, most analyses—scholarly, popular, and strategic—have focused on mapping networks. Using network tools to describe networks, this move conflates description and explanation (it assumes that simply discovering the existence of networks is enough) and transforms specific persons/things and relations into interchangeable nodes and lines in a diagram. Not surprisingly, most analyses also privilege technology as the unifying power behind networks: the term “twitter revolution,” for instance, widely used to describe events from Moldavia to Egypt, erases local political concerns in favour of an internet application. Although understanding universal characteristics of networks is important, this emphasis also risks making the concept of a “networked society” a banal cliché, incapable of addressing the differences between various “networks,” or the odd transformation of networks from a planning tool—a theoretical diagram, a metaphorical description—into actually existing phenomena, into lived experiences.</p>
<p>To renew the conceptual power of networks, <em>Habits of Living: Networked Affects, Glocal Effects</em>—a global collaborative project of which the Department of Modern Culture and Media at Brown University will be an important locus—concentrates on changing habits of living. Habits are crucial to understanding networks not simply as broad organizational structures, but also as structures created through constant actions that are both voluntary and involuntary. As Pierre Bourdieu has famously argued, “habitus” is a “system of durable, transposable dispositions, structured structures predisposed to function … as principles which generate and organize practices and representations that can be objectively adapted to their outcomes without presupposing a conscious aiming at ends.”<a name="fr1" href="#fn1">[1]</a>; Habits are things that individuals hold that in turn define and hold individuals: they link the individual to society through repeated actions that also tie a person’s inner state (their mind) to their outward appearance (a habit is traditionally a type of clothing). Habits are ‘man-made nature’: they are automatic seemingly instinctual and at times uncontrollable actions (for instance, drug habits) that are learned. Habits in this sense are closely aligned with “affects”: unconscious emotional responses to environmental stimulants that are central to the formation of individual perception. Thus although habits let us address similarities across human, animal, physical and non-physical realms (the characteristic growth of a crystal is a habit), habits are also uniquely personal and societal, and thus allow us to address important differences usually elided in network analyses. Habits are “glocal”: local actions that spread globally, but not necessarily universally; they spread the effects of local actions elsewhere through specific trajectories.</p>
<p>The point, to be clear, is not to oppose habits to networks, but to understand the subtleties and power of connectivity by bringing these two concepts into dialogue with one another. Habits scale from the individual to the network in a number of ways, from the twitchy 'Lifestream' checking of Twitter enthusiasts, to co-ordination arranged by mobile phone and GPS, to the very conceptual foundation of computer science for which classic problems, such as the Travelling Saleman or Dining Philosophers combine strong technical requirements of resource allocation and network design with fables about everyday life. As the work of Dr. Matthew Fuller (a foundational new media theorist / artist and co-organizer from Goldsmiths) reveals, the cross-over between the technical and the experiential is what produces value and novelty in contemporary computing. The point is also to think through habits of living as possible points of transformation and intervention: as the term habitat makes clear, they also imply a certain sheltering and practice of care, something which the SARAI collective in New Delhi has addressed in their work in new media. This notion of habitat and change has also been further addressed, specifically in terms of “the archive in motion,” by Eivind Rossaak—an international expert in film and media—and his research group at the National Library of Norway, Oslo. Their creative rethinking of the archive and the role of media technologies is crucial to understanding the radical mobilization, perpetuation and preservation of habitual media and memory practices. The work of Nishant Shah—the director of the Bangalore Center for Internet and Society and co-editor of the groundbreaking Digital AlterNatives with a Cause —highlights that, to understand how new media affects habits of living, we need to rethink assumptions about “digital natives” and imaginings of “netizens.” He has also started a far-reaching research program investigating the relationship between affect and participation. Dr. Kelly Dobson’s—chair of Digital + Media at RISD and an innovative and much lauded new media artist—work focuses on the intimate “caring” relationship between machines and humans, which emerges from mainly non-intentional interactions, such as noise and vibrations. Lastly, <em>Habits of Living: Networked Affects, Glocal Effects</em> seeks to change the focus of network analyses away from catastrophic events or their possibility towards generative habitual actions that negotiate and transform the constant stream of information to which we are exposed. (This is the focus of my current book project).</p>
<p>As the above paragraph outlines, this inter-disciplinary project will be a global interdisciplinary collaboration. This project initially emerged from discussions between members of SARAI and myself and quickly expanded to include the Center for Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths College, University of London, the Digital + Media Department at RISD, the Bangalore Center for Internet and Society and the National Library of Norway. In addition, we plan to invite participants from: Amsterdam, Buenos Aries, Sao Paolo, Shanghai, amongst other places. At Brown, in addition to faculty in the Department of Modern Culture and Media, we would like to involve people from the Cogut Center for the Humanities, the Pembroke Center for the Study of Women, and the Watson Institute for International Studies.</p>
<p>The project, will comprise a series of workshops, artist residencies, a large public conference to be held at Brown University, and eventually leading to an edited online and a print publication. Each workshop will be attended by a core group of five scholars/artists who will participate in all the workshops and the conference, as well as group of participants that will vary according to the location. Ideally, this will continue as a three-year project, with each group playing a major role in convening the events for one year.</p>
<p>Collaborators: Wendy Chun (Professor, Brown University), Kelly Dobson, Chair, Digital + Media, RISD, Providence, Matthew Fuller, David Gee Reader in Digital Media, Center for Cultural Studies, Goldsmiths College, University of London, London and Eivind Rossaak, Associate Professor, Department of Research, National Library of Norway, Oslo.</p>
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<p>[<a name="fn1" href="#fr1">1</a>].Pierre Bourdieu. Outline of a Theory of Practice. Trans Richard Nice (Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1977), 72.</p>
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For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/habits-of-living/habits-of-living'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/habits-of-living/habits-of-living</a>
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No publisher
Wendy Chun, Kelly Dobson, Matthew Fuller and Eivind Rossaak
Net Cultures
Researchers at Work
Research
2015-10-24T13:38:42Z
Blog Entry
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March 2012 Bulletin
http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/march-2012-bulletin
<b>In this month we announced the new clusters from Researchers at Work: Locating the Mobile, Interface Intimacies and Habits of Living. </b>
<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Research</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">New series from RAW, new Clusters now Online!</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">From 2012 to 2015, the RAW series will build research clusters in the field of Digital Humanities. The Digital will be used as a way of unpacking the debates in humanities and social sciences and look at the new frameworks, concepts and ideas that emerge in our engagement with the digital. We hope to build knowledge networks and production of new knowledge around questions of body, governance and cultural production in the digital times that we live in. Spearheaded by experts in the field of science, technology, society and culture the clusters aim to produce and document new conversations and debates that shape the contours of Digital Humanities in Asia. <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/digital-humanities-main/blogs/locating-mobile/locating-the-mobile" target="_blank"></a></p>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/digital-humanities-main/blogs/locating-mobile/locating-the-mobile" target="_blank">Locating the Mobile: An Ethnographic Investigation into Locative Media in Melbourne, Bangalore and Shanghai</a><br />Larissa Hjorth (RMIT University, Melbourne), Genevieve Bell (Intel, Shanghai)<br />As yet we know little about the impact locative media is having, and will have upon people’s livelihoods and identity, or on public policy around privacy, identity, security and cultural production. Discourse in the field has opened up questions of art, innovation and experimentation. But there is a dearth of nuanced research on locative media that provides in-depth, contextual accounts of its socio-cultural and political dimensions. Not much work has been conducted into locative media as it migrates from art to the ‘messy’ area of everyday. The project seeks to address this knowledge gap by studying locative media in Bangalore, Melbourne and Shanghai.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/digital-humanities-main/blogs/interface-intimacies/interface-intimacies" target="_blank">Interface Intimacies</a><br />Audrey Yue (Melbourne University) and Namita Malhotra (ALF)<br />Users of technologies often express their engagement with technologies in affective terms. The interfaces that we see all around us constantly deflect our attention, emotions and desires on to different surfaces, creating flattened universes with the promises of deep immersion. Digging deep into interfaces, to examine peoples’ relationships with the digital interfaces around them the research cluster examines: What are the affective relationships that people have with their interfaces? What goes into anthropomorphising an interface? What are the larger politics of labour, performance and ownership that surround interface design? What are the ways in which people simulate presence and connections through their interfaces? How is the human presumed in computer-human interface design? What aesthetic and political moves are we witnessing with the rise of interface mediated publics? What and who is made opaque when interfaces become transparent? When interfaces get distributed, what are the possibilities and potential for art, theory and practice to move into new forms of politics?</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/habits-of-living/habits-of-living" target="_blank">Habits of Living: Global Networks, Local Affects</a><br />Wendy Chun (Professor, Brown University), Kelly Dobson, (Chair, Digital + Media, RISD, Providence), Matthew Fuller, David Gee (Reader in Digital Media, Center for Cultural Studies, Goldsmiths College, University of London) and Eivind Rossaak, (Associate Professor, Department of Research, National Library of Norway, Oslo).<br />This is a global collaborative project to renew the conceptual power of networks. It concentrates on changing the habits of living. The Department of Modern Culture and Media at Brown University will be an important locus. Habits are crucial to understanding networks not simply as broad organizational structures but also as structures created through constant actions that are both voluntary and involuntary.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Digital Natives</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Video Contest</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/vote-for-digital-natives" target="_blank">Who’s the Everyday Digital Native? A global video contest finds the answer!</a><br /> CIS and Hivos are excited to announce the top five videos. The finalists will each win EUR 500. According to Nishant Shah, the 12 video proposals show that the everyday digital native does not wake up in the morning and think, ‘today I will change the world’. Yet, in their everyday lives, when they see the possibility of producing a change in their immediate environments, they turn to the digital to find networks that can start a change.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Public Lectures</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/d-coding-digital-natives" target="_blank">D:Coding Digital Natives</a> (Nishant Shah, University of California, Los Angeles, March 9, 2012)<br />"In the last three years of revolutions we have also now witnessed this extraordinary thing where lot of promises were made of different kinds of revolution but which never materialised in terms of what they intended to. Citizen action happens but it doesn’t lead into anything concrete." The lecture is featured in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvY__z3jN7M" target="_blank">YouTube</a>.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/digital-natives-and-the-myth-of-revolution" target="_blank">Digital Natives and the Myth of the Revolution: Questioning the Radical Potential of Citizen Action</a> (Nishant Shah, Annenberg School of Communication, University of South California, March 8, 2012): Nishant Shah made a presentation on 'Questioning the Radical Potential for Citizen Action'.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/ignite-talks" target="_blank">5 Challenges for the Future of Learning: Digital Natives and How We Shall Teach Them</a> (Digital Media and Learning Conference on Beyond Education Technologies, Wyndham Parc 55 Hotel, San Francisco, March 1, 2012). Nishant Shah gave a ignite talk.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/questioning-the-radical-potential-of-citizen-action" target="_blank">Digital Natives and the Myth of the Revolution: Questioning the Radical Potential of Citizen Action</a> (UC Santa Cruz, Monday, March 5, 2012). Nishant Shah gave a lecture. The lecture focused more on the India against Corruption case-study rather than the theoretical framework to understanding revolutions.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Column in Indian Express</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/pathways/pinning-the-badge" target="_blank">Pinning the Badge</a><br />Nishant Shah, March 18, 2012<br />In a world of competition, badging provides a holistic way of grading and learning, where individual talents are realized and the knowledge of the group is used. A peer-2-peer system of badging, which enables learners to be critically aware not only of their own interaction with knowledge but also recognises the ways in which larger communities of knowledge — including the peers and teachers — opens up an extraordinary way of thinking about education.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Book Review...A Few Excerpts<a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/media-coverage/an-experiment-in-social-engineering" target="_blank"></a></h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/media-coverage/an-experiment-in-social-engineering" target="_blank">An Experiment in Social Engineering: The Cultural Context of an Avatar</a><i><br />‘Engineering a cyber twin’ is an attempt to inventory the ontological features of an avatar... Ansher’s essay… eschews a simplistic binary of offline/online, preferring to focus on the domain of interaction between the two ‘personae’ of the same self</i>.<br />Pramod K. Nayar reviews Nilofar Shamim Ansher’s essay ‘Engineering a Cyber Twin’ from Digital Alternatives with a Cause? Book One: To Be.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Accessibility</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Analysis</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/analysis-of-comments" target="_blank">Analysis of Comments by WBU & IPA</a><br />Rahul Cherian provides an analysis of the comments by the World Blind Union and the International Publishers Association after the 23rd session of the Standing Committee of Copyright and Related Rights.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Event Organised</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/itu-tutorial-delhi" target="_blank">ITU Tutorial on Audiovisual Media Accessibility</a> (India International Centre, New Delhi, March 14 to 15, 2012): At the invitation of the Centre for Internet and Society, in cooperation with the ITU-APT Foundation of India, International Telecommunication Union organized a two-day Tutorial on Audio Visual Media Accessibility. The Tutorial was preceded by the fourth meeting of the Focus Group on Audio Visual Media Accessibility on March 13, 2012. Sunil Abraham participated in the event and was the Master of Ceremony on Day 1, March 14, 2012.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Access to Knowledge</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Op-ed in Economic Times</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/patented-games" target="_blank">Patented Games</a>, Sunil Abraham, March 8, 2012<br />Some prefer Steve Jobs, patron saint of perfection, others prefer Nicholas Negroponte, messiah of the masses. While Mr. Jobs may be guilty of contributing to the digital divide, Mr. Negroponte may have contributed to bridging it with his innovation: the One Laptop per Child, also known as the $100 laptop or XO.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Events Participated</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/consumers-international-meeting-2012" target="_blank">Consumers International Global Meeting 2012</a> (Kuala Lumpur, March 8 and 9, 2012): Pranesh Prakash participated in the global meeting organised by Consumers International and spoke on UN Consumer Guidelines. Robin Brown, Tobias Schönwetter and Guilherme Varella were the other speakers in the session.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/freedom-of-expression-and-ipr-meeting" target="_blank">Expert Meeting on Freedom of Expression and Intellectual Property Rights</a> (London, November 18, 2011): The meeting was organized by ARTICLE 19. Nineteen international scholars, experts and human rights activists met to explore the antagonistic relationship between Intellectual Property (IP) and the rights to freedom of expression and information. Pranesh Prakash was one of the participants.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Openness</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Events Organised</h3>
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<li><span><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/open-data-camp" target="_blank">Open DataCamp — 2012</a></span> (Google, Old Madras Road, Bangalore, March 24, 2012): This was a one-day unconference for people working with data from various sectors to come together and share their projects and ideas. It was organised by the DataMeet group. Pranesh Prakash participated in the event. Google, India Water Portal, Gramener, Microsoft Research, Akshara Foundation, DataMeet, HasGeek and CIS were the sponsors.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/free-arduino-workshop" target="_blank">Free Arduino Workshop (For Beginners)</a>: (CIS, Bangalore, March 3, 2012). The workshop drew participants such as interaction designers, artists and those enthusiastic to get started with creative projects but didn’t have prior experience with electronics. About 20 people participated in the workshop.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Events Participated</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/water-data-consultation" target="_blank">Water Data Consultation</a> (Evoma Hotel, Bangalore, March 23, 2012). Pranesh Prakash spoke on Policy Issues and Developments around Open Data. The event was organized by Arghyam.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Internet Governance</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Column in FirstPost</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/facebook-stalker-is-not-real-problem" target="_blank">Why your Facebook Stalker is Not the Real Problem</a>, Nishant Shah, March 20, 2012:We live in networked conditions. This is a statement that can now be taken at face-value, and immediately explains our highly connected, inter-meshed environments…We need to start looking at larger invasive policies exercises by the different invisible actors like the ISP, ICT ministries, corporate policies, design choices and architecture of interception that sustain the networks we so gladly embrace.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Blog Entries</h3>
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<li><span><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/statutory-motion-against-intermediary-guidelines-rules" target="_blank">Statutory Motion against Intermediary Guidelines Rules</a></span>, Pranesh Prakash:A <a href="http://164.100.47.5/newsite/bulletin2/Bull_No.aspx?number=49472" target="_blank">motion to annul</a> the <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/resources/intermediary-guidelines-rules" target="_blank">Intermediary Guidelines Rules</a> was moved on March 23, 2012, by <a href="http://india.gov.in/govt/rajyasabhampbiodata.php?mpcode=2106" target="_blank">Shri P. Rajeeve</a>, CPI (M) MP in the Rajya Sabha from Thrissur, Kerala. We are very glad that Shri Rajeeve has moved this motion, and we hope that it gets adopted in the Lok Sabha as well, and that the Rules get defeated, notes Pranesh Prakash.</li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Events Organised</h3>
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<li>India Explores the Balance Points between Freedom of Expression, Privacy, National Security and Law Enforcement (New Delhi, March 5, 2012). Sunil Abraham participated in this closed-door meeting jointly organised with the Global Network Initiative. Issues relating to freedom of expression and privacy were discussed in the meeting. </li>
<li><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1627&qid=160620" target="_blank">Climate Change and Controversy Mapping</a> (Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, March 19 to 21, 2012). The Devechia Centre for Climate Change, the Indian Institute of Science and CIS organized a three-day workshop with Professor Bruno Latour. Doctorate students doing empirical work in various types of ecological crisis participated in the event and experimented with some of the digital tools and methods developed within the "mapping controversies" consortium.</li>
<li>GeekUp with Erica Hagen (CIS, Bangalore, March 1, 2012). HasGeek organized a GeekUp with Erica Hagen of the GroundTruth Initiative. Erica gave a lecture on the theme: "<a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1628&qid=160620" target="_blank">From Information to Empowerment: Unpacking the Equation</a>.</li>
<li><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1629&qid=160620" target="_blank">Cartonama Workshop</a> (CIS, Bangalore, March 2 and 3, 2012). HasGeek organized a hands-on training for managing and building location based services. Twenty-two participants attended the workshop.</li>
<li><span><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1630&qid=160620" target="_blank">Global Censorship Conference</a></span></li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Events Participated</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Abrams Institute for Freedom of Expression at Yale Law School is holding a conference on global censorship from March 30 to April 1, 2012, at Yale Law School. The programme is sponsored by the Information Society Project at Yale Law School and Thomson Reuters. Rishabh Dara, Google Policy Fellow who worked at CIS office in Bangalore on freedom of expression and internet-related policy issues is participating in the event as a speaker in the panel on Case Studies of Censorship.</p>
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<li><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1631&qid=160620" target="_blank">What is Stewardship in Cyberspace?</a> (Innis Townhall, University of Toronto, Canada, March 18 and 19, 2012): Sunil Abraham was a panelist in the session “Plenary Panel and Discussions” at the second annual Cyber Dialogue.</li>
<li><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1632&qid=160620" target="_blank">Secure IT 2012 — Securing Citizens through Technology</a> (Claridges, New Delhi, March 1, 2012): The event was co-organised by DST and NSDI, Govt. of India in partnership with Elets Technomedia Pvt. Ltd. Sunil Abraham was a panelist. The <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1632&qid=160620" target="_blank">video is now online</a>.</li>
<li><a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1633&qid=160620" target="_blank">International Conference on Mobile Law</a> (ASSOCHAM House, New Delhi, March 1, 2012): Pranesh Prakash spoke in the panel on Mobiles - Privacy and Social Media on March 1, 2012.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/data-protection-experts-slam-state-for-sending-mass-smses" target="_blank">Data protection experts slam state for sending mass SMSes</a></li>
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<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Media Coverage</h3>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/data-protection-experts-slam-state-for-sending-mass-smses" target="_blank">Data protection experts slam state for sending mass SMSes</a><br />"<i>The state government's use of unsolicited SMS a “clear abuse of the powers afforded by elected office... elected representatives would be justified in such measures, and in utilising public funds, in the event of a disaster, or when public order, public health or national security are compromised</i>."<br />Sunil Abraham, The Statesman, March 25, 2012.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/open-access-to-govt-data" target="_blank">Open access to government data on the cards</a><br />"<i>Welcoming the approval for the NDSAP, Pranesh Prakash, said, “None of the criticisms ... CIS had sent in as part of the feedback requested on the draft have been addressed</i>."<br />Pranesh Prakash, The Hindu, March 25, 2012.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/facebook-page-mini-resume" target="_blank">Is your facebook page your mini resume?</a><br />"<i>Background checks are common as some companies deal with sensitive information. So it’s not illegal, but intrusive. I think some power relationships can be abused if they cross the social networking barrier — like a boss-employee and teacher-student relationship</i>."<br />Sunil Abraham, IBN Live, March 26, 2012.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/click-play-watch" target="_blank">Click, Play, Watch</a><br />"<i>Earlier, creative artistes depended on intermediaries like studios, TV channels and theatres to screen their work and connect with viewers. Now, they are looking at the online medium to connect with the audience directly.</i>"<br />Sunil Abraham, MidDay, March 18, 2012.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/save-your-voice-2014-a-movement-against-web-censorship" target="_blank">Save Your Voice — A movement against Web censorship</a><br />"<i>Private sector does not protect the freedom of expression</i>."<br />Daily News & Analysis, March 13, 2012.</li>
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<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/big-bet-on-identity" target="_blank">India’s Big Bet on Identity</a><br />"<i>There are obviously both privacy and security concerns when you’re collecting personal data from more than a billion people. “You can’t change your biometrics,”… so if they become compromised, it’s a difficult problem to fix</i>."<br />Ieeespectrum. March 2012 edition.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">Telecom</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Columns in Business Standard</h3>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/2-g-supreme-court-judgement-1" target="_blank">The 2G Supreme Court Judgment</a><br />Shyam Ponappa, March 1 and March 4, 2012<br />The Business Standard published Shyam Ponappa's two-part article deconstructing the assumptions in the Supreme Court's 2G judgment, and suggesting possible ways forward. The first one was published on March 1, 2012, and the second on March 4, 2012.</li>
</ul>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Blog Entry</h3>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/convergence-india-2012" target="_blank">Convergence India 2012</a><br /> Yelena Gyulkhandanyan<br /> Yelena attended an event organised by the Exhibitions India Group from March 21 to 23, 2012. She shares her experiences.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2 style="text-align: justify; ">About CIS</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS was registered as a society in Bangalore in 2008. As an independent, non-profit research organisation, it runs different policy research programmes such as Accessibility, Access to Knowledge, Openness, Internet Governance, and Telecom. Over the last four years our policy research programmes have resulted in outputs such as the e-Accessibility Policy Handbook for Persons with Disabilities with International Telecommunications Union, and <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/front-page/blog/dnbook" target="_blank">Digital Alternatives with a Cause?</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/front-page/blog/position-papers" target="_blank">Thinkathon Position Papers</a> and the <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/front-page/blog/digital-natives-with-a-cause-a-report" target="_blank">Digital Natives with a Cause? Report</a> with Hivos. With foreign governments we worked on National Enterprise Architecture and Government Interoperability Framework for Govt. of Iraq; Open Standards Policy for Govt. of Moldova; Free and Open Software Centre of Excellence project plan for Saudi Arabia; eGovernance Strategy Document for Govt. of Tajikistan. With the Government of India we have done policy research for Ministry of Communications & Information Technology, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, etc., on <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/front-page/blog/wipo-broadcast-treaty-comments-march-2011" target="_blank">WIPO Treaties</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/front-page/blog/copyright-bill-analysis" target="_blank">Copyright Bill</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/front-page/blog/comments-ifeg-phase-1" target="_blank">Interoperability Framework in eGovernance</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/privacy/privacy-bill-2010" target="_blank">Privacy Bill</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/front-page/blog/cis-feedback-to-nia-bill" target="_blank">NIA Bill</a>, <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/front-page/front-page/comments-draft-national-policy-on-electronics" target="_blank">National Policy on Electronics</a> and <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/front-page/blog/comments-draft-rules" target="_blank">IT Act</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS is an accredited NGO at WIPO and has given <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/blog/cis-analysis-july2011-treaty-print-disabilities" target="_blank">policy briefs</a> to delegations from various countries, our Programme Manager, Nirmita Narasimhan won the <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/national-award" target="_blank">National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities</a> from the Government of India and also received the <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/nirmita-nivh-award" target="_blank">NIVH Excellence Award</a>.</p>
<hr />
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Follow us Elsewhere</h3>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li>Get short, timely messages from us on <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=456&qid=46981" target="_blank">Twitter</a></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li>Join the CIS group on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/groups/28535315687/" target="_blank">Facebook</a></li>
<li>Visit us at <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=459&qid=46981" target="_blank">www.cis-india.org</a></li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><i>CIS is grateful to Kusuma Trust which was founded by Anurag Dikshit and Soma Pujari, philanthropists of Indian origin, for its core funding and support for most of its projects.</i></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/march-2012-bulletin'>http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/march-2012-bulletin</a>
</p>
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praskrishna
Access to Knowledge
Digital Natives
Telecom
Accessibility
Internet Governance
Research
Openness
2012-07-09T07:33:44Z
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April 2012 Bulletin
http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/april-2012-bulletin
<b>In this issue of our newsletter, we bring you updates of our latest research, event reports, videos, news and media coverage during the month of April 2012:</b>
<h2>Internet Governance</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Internet Governance programme conducts research around the various social, technical, and political underpinnings of global and national Internet governance, and includes online privacy, freedom of speech, and Internet governance mechanisms and processes:</p>
<h3>Google Policy Fellowship</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/chilling-effects-on-free-expression-on-internet">Intermediary Liability in India: Chilling Effects on Free Expression on the Internet</a><br />Rishabh Dara, Google Policy Fellow<br />CIS in partnership with Google India conducted the Google Policy Fellowship 2011. This was offered for the first time in Asia Pacific as well as in India. Rishabh Dara was selected as a fellow. He researched upon issues relating to freedom of expression. The results of the paper demonstrate that the ‘Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines) Rules 2011’ notified by the Government of India on April 11, 2011 have a chilling effect on free expression.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Announcement</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/cis-joins-gni">The Centre for Internet & Society Joins the Global Network Initiative</a><br />CIS officially joined the Global Network Initiative. CIS would bring to GNI in-depth expertise on global internet governance as well as online freedom of expression and privacy in India. GNI Executive Director Susan Morgan said “<i>We are delighted to add our first member based in India and welcome CIS’s engagement in support of transparency and accountability in technology</i>.”</li>
</ul>
<h3>Op-ed in the Hindu</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/chilling-effects-frozen-words">Chilling Effects and Frozen Words</a> (Lawrence Liang, Hindu, April 30, 2012): “What if the real danger is not that we lose our freedom of speech and expression but our sense of humour as a nation?...One hopes that our lawmakers, even if they are averse to reading the Indian Constitution, will be slightly more open to the poetic licence granted by Kautilya.” </li>
</ul>
<h3>Columns in the Indian Express</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/idea-of-the-book">The Idea of the Book</a> (Nishant Shah, Indian Express, April 8, 2012): “Its future lies in a trans-media format that is ever evolving... The form of the book is going to change as it has over the last 500 years. However, the idea of the book — a receptacle that contains and records collective wisdom, information, ideas, knowledge, experiences and imagination of humankind – is here to stay.”</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/india-broken-internet-law-multistakeholderism">India's Broken Internet Laws Need a Shot of Multi-stakeholderism</a> by Pranesh Prakash. (An edited version of this article was published in the Indian Express as <a href="http://www.indianexpress.com/story-print/941491/">"Practise what you preach"</a> on Thursday, April 26, 2012.)</li>
</ul>
<h3>Event Reports</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/all-india-privacy-delhi-report">The All India Privacy Symposium</a> (India International Centre, New Delhi, February 4, 2012): The symposium was organised around five thematic panel discussions: privacy and transparency, privacy and e-governance initiatives, privacy and national security, privacy and banking and health privacy. Privacy India in partnership with CIS, International Development Research Centre, Privacy International, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and Society in Action Group organised this event.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/high-level-privacy-report">The High Level Privacy Conclave</a> (Paharpur Business Centre, Nehru Place Greens, New Delhi, February 3, 2012): The conclave was organised around two panels: national Security and privacy and internet and privacy. Malavika Jayaram moderated the first panel discussion on national Security and privacy. Sunil Abraham moderated the second panel discussion on internet and privacy. Privacy India in partnership with CIS, International Development Research Centre, Privacy International, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and Society in Action Group organised this event.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Events Organised</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/resisting-internet-censorship">Resisting Internet Censorship: Strategies for Furthering Freedom of Expression in India</a> (Bangalore International Centre, TERI Complex, Domlur, April 21, 2012): CIS co-organised this event with the Foundation for Media Professionals. Members of Parliament, P. Rajeeve and Rajeev Chandrashekar and Member of Legislative Council, Karnataka, V.R. Sudarshan participated in the event.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/talk-by-vasant-gangavane">Konkan Corridor Project — A Lecture by Vasant Gangavane</a> (Ashoka Innovators for the Public, Bangalore, April 16, 2012): Well known social worker Vasant Gangavane gave a lecture.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/cybernetic-vehicles">Braitenberg Cybernetic Vehicles: Workshop, Film Screening & Discussion</a> (Metaculture Media Lab, CIS, Bangalore, April 14, 2012): There was a short presentation about Braitenberg vehicles.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Events Participated</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/giga-conference">GIGA International Conference Series - 1</a> (NALSAR University of Law, Justice City Campus, Shameerpet, Hyderabad, April 5 and 6, 2012): The Institute of Global Internet Governance and Advocacy and Department of Electronics and Information Technology organised the conference. Sunil Abraham gave a lecture on <i>Digital Natives vs. Digital Naivety</i> in the session on Internet Governance & Society.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Expert-Group on Privacy Issues (New Delhi, April 13 and 14, 2012): The Planning Commission constituted this expert group under the chairmanship of Justice AP Shah. Sunil Abraham participated in the first meeting of the sub-group on privacy issues.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Video</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/privacy-internationals-trip-to-asia">Privacy International's Trip to Asia</a> (by Emma Draper in Privacy International blog): In February 2012, the Privacy International team travelled to India, Bangladesh and Hong Kong to meet with local partners in the region and speak at four conferences they had organized. The team got a chance to interview its partners in India and Bangladesh on the privacy issues facing them at the moment. This is captured in a video about contemporary privacy issues in India and Bangladesh. </li>
</ul>
<h3>Media Coverage</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/mainstream-vs-social">It’s mainstream vs social</a> (Guest column by Mahima Kaul, Sunday Guardian, April 30, 2012): “<i>If the video is judged to be 'obscene', then under s.67 of the Information Technology Act, 'causing [obscenity] to be transmitted', is also a crime</i>,”...Sunil Abraham quoted in the Sunday Guardian.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/from-cyber-india-to-censor-india">From Cyber India to Censor India: Groups challenge didactic govt</a> (by Satarupa Paul, Sunday Guardian, April 29, 2012): “<i>Instead of a court deciding what makes content illegal, private intermediaries get to decide. And there is no penalty for anyone abusing the take-down notice system,</i>”...Sunil Abraham quoted in the Sunday Guardian.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/social-media-indian-govt">Social Media 1, Indian Government 0</a> (by Heather Timmons, New York Times, April 26, 2012): “<i>Because India does not have a bilateral cyber-crime agreement with the United States (as the European Union does), getting American companies like Facebook and Google to take down or investigate the source of content that offends Indian government officials can be a slow and cumbersome process</i>,”...Sunil Abraham quoted in the New York Times. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/private-sector-censors">Private sector censors</a> (by Salil Tripathi, LiveMint, April 25, 2012): “<i>Companies which have no interest in free speech are now taking these decisions. They have the power to do so and they are using it without any sense of responsibility</i>,”...Sunil Abraham quoted in LiveMint. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/left-may-for-once-be-right">Views | Why the Left may for once be right</a> (by Pramit Bhattacharya, LiveMint, April 23, 2012): “<i>It has become much easier in India to ban an e-book than a book</i>,”...Pranesh Prakash quoted in LiveMint. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/campaign-against-curbs-on-websites">Campaign against curbs on websites gathers steam</a> (by Arpan Daniel Varghese, IBN Live, April 23, 2012): “<i>If a company wants to target your organization’s social media network, they can keep sending fraudulent emails to you and you will have to keep deleting it unless you are ready to face litigation or government action.</i>..Sunil Abraham quoted in IBN Live.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/anti-net-censorship-echo-in-house">Expect anti-net censorship echo in house</a> (by Arpan Daniel Varghese, IBN Live, April 25, 2012): “<i>why should freedom of speech and expression be any different on the Internet?</i>”...Sunil Abraham quoted in IBN Live.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/mobilising-support-for-freedom-on-web">Mobilising support for freedom on the Web</a> (by Deepa Kurup Hindu, April 22, 2012): Rishabh Dara’s research published as part of the Google Policy Fellowship is quoted. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/draconian-it-rules">MPs to be taught ‘draconian’ IT Act Rules as India.net support galvanises for annul motion</a> (by Prachi Shrivastava, Legally India, April 23, 2012): Prachi has blogged about the Resisting Internet Censorship co-organised by CIS and the Foundation for Media Professionals in Bangalore.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/india-arrests-professor-over-cartoon">India arrests professor over political cartoon</a> (by Rama Lakshmi, Washington Post, April 13, 2012): “<i>The state’s new-found aversion to non-believers has gone a bit too far</i>,”...Pranesh Prakash quoted in Washington Post.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/beauty-blog-creates-furore">A beauty’s blog creates furore</a> (by Lakshmi Krupa, Deccan Chronicle, April 10, 2012).</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Digital Natives</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Digital Natives with a Cause? is a research inquiry that looks at the changing landscape of social change and political participation and the role that young people play through digital and Internet technologies, in emerging information societies. Consolidating knowledge from Asia, Africa and Latin America, it builds a global network of knowledge partners who critically engage with discourse on youth, technology and social change, and look at alternative practices and ideas in the Global South:</p>
<h3>Public Lecture</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/ignite-talks">5 Challenges for the Future of Learning: Digital Natives and How We Shall Teach Them</a> (Wyndham Parc 55 Hotel, San Francisco, California, March 1, 2012): Nishant Shah gave a ignite talk. The video is now online.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Book Review...a few excerpts</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/media-coverage/immigrants-not-natives">Immigrants not Natives</a>: “<i>‘To Be’, ‘To Think’, ‘To Act’ and ‘To Connect’ provides many fascinating and thought-provoking insights into the possibilities for reflection, action and interaction</i>,”... Sally Wyatt, eHumanities Group, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts & Sciences/Maastricht University.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Accessibility</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">India has an estimated 70 million disabled persons who are unable to read printed materials due to some form of physical, sensory, cognitive or other disability. The disabled need accessible content, devices and interfaces facilitated via copyright law and electronic accessibility policies:</p>
<h3>Event Report</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/itu-tutorial-event-report">ITU Tutorial on Audiovisual Media Accessibility</a> (India International Centre, New Delhi, March 14 – 15, 2012): CIS in cooperation with the ITU-APT Foundation of India organised a two-day tutorial on Audio-Visual Media Accessibility. Sunil Abraham was the Master of Ceremony on Day 1. Ravi Shanker, Administrator, Universal Service Obligation Fund, Dr. Govind, CEO, National Internet Exchange of India, Swaran Lata, Director and Head of Department, TDIL Programme, DIT, R.N. Jha, Deputy Director General (International Relations), Department of Telecommunications and Archana Gulati, Financial Advisor, National Disaster Management Authority participated in this event.</li>
</ul>
<h3>New Fellow at CIS</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/about/people/people/fellow">Rahul Cherian joins CIS</a>: Disability policy activist, lawyer and co-founder of Inclusive Planet, Rahul Cherian has joined CIS as a Fellow. Rahul will be working on disability policy reform and advocacy. </li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Access to Knowledge</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Access to Knowledge programme addresses the harms caused to consumers, developing countries, human rights, and creativity/innovation from excessive regimes of copyright, patents, and other such monopolistic rights over knowledge:</p>
<h3>New Event</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/global-congress-on-ip">2012 Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest</a> (FGV Law School, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, December 15 – 17, 2012): We are pleased to announce the Second Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest. The theme for this year’s Congress will be “Setting the positive agenda in motion,” and will have a special focus on developments and opportunities in the so-called “BRICS” group of emerging economies. <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/global-congress-on-ip-call-for-participation">CIS is one of the six members of the Global Congress Planning Committee</a>..</li>
</ul>
<h3>News & Media Coverage</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/hacking-modding-making">Hacking, Modding & Making</a> (by Brendan Shanahan): “<i>If something has been made technologically possible, we cannot make it illegal and hope that everyone will now pretend that this is no longer technologically possible...We can't have the government checking everyone's iPod and laptop. The better move is to change the model</i>,”...Sunil Abraham quoted in GQ.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Openness</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The 'Openness' programme critically examines alternatives to existing regimes of intellectual property rights, and transparency and accountability. Under this programme, we study Open Government Data, Open Access to Scholarly Literature, Open Access to Law, Open Content, Open Standards, and Free/Libre/Open Source Software:</p>
<h3>Event Reports and Video</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/arduino-workshop-report">Arduino Workshop at CIS</a> (CIS, Bangalore, March 3, 2012). Video is now online.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/hejje-2014-together-with-kannada-technology-2">Hejje — Together with Kannada & Technology</a> (Bangalore, January 22, 2012): The event marked the first step to bring everyone working in Kannada in the IT field to brainstorm the ideas for future steps, and create a space for technological collaboration in Kannada. CIS co-organised the event with Sanchaya.net, Vishwakannada.com and Chanda Pustaka. </li>
</ul>
<h3>Events Organised</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/open-government-partnership-brasilia-bangalore-meetup">Bangalore Meet-up for the Open Government Partnership Brasilia</a> (CIS, Bangalore, April 17, 2012): Ananya Panda and Pranesh Prakash participated in the first annual meeting of Open Government Partnership remotely.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/design-public-delhi">Design!PubliC – Event in Delhi</a> (New Delhi, April 19 and 20, 2012): The event was co-organised by Centre for Knowledge Societies in partnership with IBM, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, HeadStart, India@75, LiveMint and CIS.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/international-space-apps-challenge">International Space Apps Challenge</a> (CIS, Bangalore, April 21 and 22, 2012): An international codeathon-style event took place in seven continents, CIS organised the event in Bangalore.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Telecom</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">While the potential for growth and returns exist for telecommunications in India, a range of issues need to be addressed. One aspect is more extensive rural coverage and the other is a countrywide access to broadband which is low. Both require effective and efficient use of networks and resources, including spectrum:</p>
<h3>Column in Business Standard</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/build-comprehensive-ecosystems">China 3: Build Comprehensive Ecosystems</a> (Shyam Ponappa, Business Standard, April 5, 2012): “Failures in electricity, transport and broadband have common strands. China's approach offers a possible alternative.”</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>About CIS</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS was registered as a society in Bangalore in 2008. As an independent, non-profit research organisation, it runs different policy research programmes such as Accessibility, Access to Knowledge, Openness, Internet Governance, and Telecom. Over the last four years our policy research programmes have resulted in outputs such as the e-Accessibility Policy Handbook for Persons with Disabilities with International Telecommunications Union, and <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1644&qid=165304" target="_blank">Digital Alternatives with a Cause?</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1645&qid=165304" target="_blank">Thinkathon Position Papers</a> and the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1646&qid=165304" target="_blank">Digital Natives with a Cause? Report</a> with Hivos. With foreign governments we worked on National Enterprise Architecture and Government Interoperability Framework for Govt. of Iraq; Open Standards Policy for Govt. of Moldova; Free and Open Software Centre of Excellence project plan for Saudi Arabia; eGovernance Strategy Document for Govt. of Tajikistan. With the Government of India we have done policy research for Ministry of Communications & Information Technology, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, etc., on <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1647&qid=165304" target="_blank">WIPO Treaties</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1648&qid=165304" target="_blank">Copyright Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1649&qid=165304" target="_blank">Interoperability Framework in eGovernance</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1650&qid=165304" target="_blank">Privacy Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1651&qid=165304" target="_blank">NIA Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1652&qid=165304" target="_blank">National Policy on Electronics</a> and <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1653&qid=165304" target="_blank">IT Act</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS is an accredited NGO at WIPO and has given <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1654&qid=165304" target="_blank">policy briefs</a> to delegations from various countries, our Programme Manager, Nirmita Narasimhan won the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1655&qid=165304" target="_blank">National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities</a> from the Government of India and also received the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1656&qid=165304" target="_blank">NIVH Excellence Award</a>.</p>
<hr />
<h3>Follow us elsewhere</h3>
<ul>
<li>Get short, timely messages from us on Twitter</li>
<li>Join the CIS group on <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1657&qid=165304" target="_blank">Facebook</a></li>
<li>Visit us at www.cis-india.org</li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><i>CIS is grateful to Kusuma Trust which was founded by Anurag Dikshit and Soma Pujari, philanthropists of Indian origin, for its core funding and support for most of its projects.</i></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/april-2012-bulletin'>http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/april-2012-bulletin</a>
</p>
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praskrishna
Access to Knowledge
Digital Natives
Telecom
Accessibility
Internet Governance
Research
Openness
2012-07-07T06:26:40Z
Page
-
May 2012 Bulletin
http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/may-2012-bulletin
<b>Welcome to the newsletter issue of May 2012! In the current issue, we bring to you updates of our latest research, event reports, videos, and media coverage:
</b>
<h2>Access to Knowledge</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Access to Knowledge programme addresses the harms caused to consumers, developing countries, human rights, and creativity/innovation from excessive regimes of copyright, patents, and other such monopolistic rights over knowledge:</p>
<h3>Copyright Amendment Bill</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/blog/analysis-copyright-amendment-bill-2012">Analysis of the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2012</a><br />Pranesh Prakash<br />There are some welcome provisions in the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2012, and some worrisome provisions. Pranesh Prakash examines five positive changes, four negative ones, and notes the several missed opportunities. The larger concern, though, is that many important issues have not been addressed by these amendments, and how copyright policy is made without evidence and often out of touch with contemporary realities of the digital era. <a href="http://infojustice.org/archives/26243">The analysis was reposted in infojustice.org on May 25, 2012</a>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Op-ed in Indian Express</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/copyright-madness">Copyright Madness</a> (Lawrence Liang and Achal Prabhala, Indian Express, May 22, 2012): India’s Copyright Act allows owners of content the right to prevent infringement through the use of injunctions, but these injunctions have to be narrowly construed and applied only to specific instances of infringement. This is to say, take down the infringing video, not the whole website, and don’t intimidate the host. When injunctions threaten freedom of speech and expression, then free speech should necessarily trump copyright claims — and the courts cannot be used as convenient shopping forums for maladies that don’t exist.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Call for Participation</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/a2k/global-congress-on-ip-call-for-participation">2012 Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest: Call for Participation and Save the Date</a> (FGV Law School, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, December 15 – 17, 2012): We invite applications to attend the Congress, including proposals to chair workshops or deliver a paper or presentation related to the Congress’s theme.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Event Participated</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/workshop-on-education-and-copyright">The International Copyright System and Access to Education: Challenges, New Access Models and Prospects for New Principles</a> (Max Planck Institute, Munich, Germany, May 14 and 15, 2012). The event was organised by the University of Minnesota and Max Planck Institute. Pranesh Prakash participated in the event.</li>
</ul>
<h3>News & Media</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/will-copyright-help-starving-artist">Will the Copyright Law Help the Starving Artist?</a>:(by Margherita Stancati, Wall Street Journal, May 28, 2012): "The singers and producers of...unlicensed versions could be jailed under the current India Copyright Act, which allows even non-commercial copyright infringers to be put behind bars."<b><br />Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in the Wall Street Journal.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/did-sibal-just-get-arm-twisted-by-book-publishers">Did Sibal just get arm-twisted by book publishers?</a> (FirstPost, May 25, 2012): Pranesh Prakash’s article on parallel importation of books is referred in this article.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Accessibility</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">India has an estimated 70 million disabled persons who are unable to read printed materials due to some form of physical, sensory, cognitive or other disability. The disabled need accessible content, devices and interfaces facilitated via copyright law and electronic accessibility policies:</p>
<h3>Blog Entries</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/copyright-amendments">Copyright Amendments – Empowering the Print Disabled</a> by Rahul Cherian.</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/faq-on-copyright-amendment-bill-2012">An FAQ on the Copyright Amendment Bill, 2012, for the Benefit of Persons with Disabilities</a> by Dr. Sam Taraporevala and Rahul Cherian.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Openness</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The 'Openness' programme critically examines alternatives to existing regimes of intellectual property rights, and transparency and accountability. Under this programme, we study Open Government Data, Open Access to Scholarly Literature, Open Access to Law, Open Content, Open Standards, and Free/Libre/Open Source Software:</p>
<h3>Article in the Indian Express</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/cancel-the-subscription">Cancel the Subscription</a> (Prof. Subbiah Arunachalam, Indian Express, May 8, 2012): It has been a slow but steady move to make scholarship freely available... In India, though, there appears to be very little enthusiasm among the leaders of the science establishment. Neither the office of the principal scientific adviser nor the department of science and technology seems to have shown any interest in mandating open access to taxpayer-funded research. The National Knowledge Commission has recommended mandating open access to all publicly funded research, but it is not clear who will implement the recommendation. Right now, it is left to individuals to promote open access in India.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Event Organised</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/openness/design-public-delhi-event-report">Design!PubliC — Third Conclave in New Delhi</a> (National Museum, New Delhi, April 20, 2012): The event was organized by the Center for Knowledge Societies in collaboration with IBM, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Google and the Centre for Internet and Society. Sunil Abraham was a panelist and spoke in the session on Participation, Collaboration and Innovation. </li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Internet Governance</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Internet Governance programme conducts research around the various social, technical, and political underpinnings of global and national Internet governance, and includes online privacy, freedom of speech, and Internet governance mechanisms and processes:</p>
<h3>Google Policy Fellowship</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/google-policy-fellowship">Google Policy Fellowship Programme: Call for Applications</a>: CIS is inviting applications for the Google Policy Fellowship programme. Google is providing a USD 7,500 stipend to the India Fellow, who will be selected by August 15, 2012. The focus areas for the present fellowship programme include Access to Knowledge, Openness in India, Freedom of Expression, Privacy, and Telecom. The duration of the fellowship will be for about ten weeks starting from August 2012 upto October 2012. CIS will select the India Fellow. Send in your applications for the position by June 27, 2012.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Events Participated</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/internet-at-liberty-2012">Internet at Liberty 2012: Promoting Progress and Freedom</a> (Newseum, Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest Washington, D.C., May 23 – 24, 2012): Sunil Abraham was a speaker in Plenary IV, Debate 3: In a world where nearly nine out of ten Internet users are not American, what is the responsibility of United States institutions in promoting internet freedom?</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Meeting on Internet Governance (Conference Hall No. 4009, Dept. of Electronics & Information Technology, CGO Complex, New Delhi, May 9, 2012): Pranesh Prakash participated in this meeting.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Op-ed in Down to Earth</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/beyond-sharing">Beyond Sharing: Towards our Digital Futures</a> (Nishant Shah, Down to Earth, May 31, 2012): The battle is not about file sharing and a petty film producer wanting to rake in the box office earnings. It is about the law’s incapacity to deal with post-analogue practices and processes.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Columns by Nishant Shah</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/open-letter-to-kolaveri-di">Open letter to Kolaveri Di makers: How Dare You!</a> (Nishant Shah, FirstPost, May 22, 2012): When it comes to piracy, you are sure to have an opinion. You might either make a virtue out of it, talking about cultural commons and collaborative conditions of production. Or you might vilify it as the social fault-line that is destroying the very pillars of commerce and cultural negotiations.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/private-eye">The Private Eye</a> (Nishant Shah, Indian Express, May 14, 2012): As we move towards a data-driven future, we need to be more aware of the different kinds of data sets that we are making public and educate ourselves about the risks of this disclosure, without being carried away by the sway of meme-like behaviour and viral trends online.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Video</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/do-it-rules-indirectly-lead-to-censorship-of-internet">Do IT Rules 2011 indirectly leads to Censorship of Internet</a>: Pranesh Prakash along with Dr. Arvind Gupta, National Convener, BJP IT Cell and Ms. Mishi Choudhary, Executive Director, SFLC participated in a panel discussion on censorship of the Internet on May 8, 2012. The discussion was broadcast on Yuva iTV and featured on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRIJRhpW-Bc">YouTube</a>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Letter</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/letter-for-civil-society-involvement">Letter for Civil Society Involvement in ITU’s WCIT</a> (by Center for Democracy and Technology): Academics and civil society groups wrote to the ITU Secretary-General Dr. Hamadoun Touré regarding the lack of opportunity for civil society participation in the World Conference on International Telecommunications process.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Blog Entry</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/open-letter-to-hillary-clinton">Open letter to Hillary Clinton on Internet freedom</a> (by Sunil Abraham): This blog entry is based on a presentation made in the Internet at Liberty conference in Washington DC on May 24, 2012.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Media Coverage</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/why-this-blocking">Why this blocking di?</a> (by R Krishna, Daily News & Analysis, May 27, 2012): “<i>Unlike the Calcutta High Court order in March this year, which specified the 104 websites that should be blocked, a John Doe order doesn’t mention any specific website. In some cases, the websites are being blocked without any evidence (of copyright infringement). Courts need to be informed of what people with John Doe orders are doing. We need to be specific about what can be blocked and what can’t be.</i>”<b><br />Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in Daily News & Analysis</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/withdraw-india-proposal-for-un-committee-on-internet-policy">Rajeev Chandrasekhar Urges PM To Withdraw India’s Proposal For UN Committee On Internet-Policy</a> (by Anupam Saxena, Medianama, May 16, 2012): An interview that Medianama had with Pranesh Prakash is cited in this blog post.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/mps-oppose-curbs-on-internet">MPs oppose curbs on internet; Sibal promises discussions</a> (Times of India, May 18, 2012): “<i>The IT minister has promised to hold consultations but the ideal way to do so would have been to scrap the rules and start from scratch...</i><i> </i><i>It's not only about language in these rules. There is a problem with provisions like the one that empowers intermediaries to remove content without notifying the user who had uploaded the content or giving users a chance to explain themselves.</i>”<b><br />Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in the Times of India.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/sibal-shoot-down-motion-to-kill-it-rules">Kapil Sibal & Co shoot down motion to kill IT Rules: cite terrorism, drugs</a> (by Prachi Shrivastava, Legally India, May 18, 2012): “<i>Government is not censoring. It has created a system by which anyone can censor with impunity</i>.”<b><br />Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in Legally India.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/vimeo-ban">Vimeo Ban: More Web Censorship</a> (by Preetika Rana, Wall Street Journal, May 18, 2012): “<i>Shutting websites merely on the basis of suspicion amounts to private crackdown on free speech of the web...Why didn’t the telecom ministry repeal or object to the move, knowing that the court didn’t spell out the websites to be blocked?</i>”<br /> <b>Pranesh Prakash </b>quoted in Wall Street Journal.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/taming-the-web">Taming the Web, are we?</a> (by Javed Anwer, Economic Times, May 13, 2012): "<i>During the revolutions in Arab countries last year, protesters mobilized themselves through Twitter and Facebook. Then there are Wikileaks and Anonymous. This has made governments and politicians jittery.</i>"<b><br />Sunil Abraham</b> quoted in the Economic Times.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/rajya-sabha-nod-to-harsh-it-rules">Cordon tightens: Rajya Sabha nod to harsh IT rules</a> (Anil Sharma and Aishhwariya Subramanian, Daily News & Analysis, May 18, 2012): "<i>The trouble with Indian government's proposal to address issues such as network neutrality, privacy and freedom of expression, is top-down. Unlike other countries where internet policies have always been developed with consultation with other stakeholders, here the government imposes its will.</i>"<b><br />Sunil Abraham</b> quoted in Daily News & Analysis.<br />"<i>It is an ironical situation where India is not following domestically what it is proposing internationally</i>."<b> Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in the same article in Daily News & Analysis.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/individuals-in-search-of-society">Empires: Individuals in Search of Society</a> (Marc Lafia, Huffington Post, May 18, 2012).</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/news/cyber-appellate-tribunal-bengaluru">Cyber Appellate Tribunal in Bengaluru</a> (Deccan Herald, May 9, 2012): “<i>The state IT secretary has passed more than 80 orders. They include both cases of phishing and orders against cyber cafes for not adhering to rules under the IT Act. The Adjudicator has held that ‘section 43 of IT Act is not applicable to a body or Corporate’, after the amended IT Act came into force in 2008</i>.”<b> Pranesh Prakash</b> quoted in the Deccan Herald.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Digital Natives</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Digital Natives with a Cause? is a research inquiry that looks at the changing landscape of social change and political participation and the role that young people play through digital and Internet technologies, in emerging information societies. Consolidating knowledge from Asia, Africa and Latin America, it builds a global network of knowledge partners who critically engage with discourse on youth, technology and social change, and look at alternative practices and ideas in the Global South:</p>
<h3>Columns by Nishant Shah</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/digitally-analogue">Digitally Analogue</a> (Nishant Shah, Indian Express, May 27, 2012): While those of us who were not born digital natives — we still remember what an audio cassette looks like and the smell of screen printing — will negotiate with the form of our access to cultural objects, it is also time to realise that being non-digital is no longer an option.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/we-are-cyborgs">We Are All Cyborgs</a> (Nishant Shah, Indian Express, April 29, 2012): The cyborg reminds us that who we are as human beings is very closely linked with the technologies we use.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Citizen Action</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/digital-natives/resisting-revolutions">Resisting Revolutions: Questioning the Radical Potential of Citizen Action</a> (Nishant Shah, Development, Volume 55, Issue 2, May 2012): In this peer reviewed journal article, Nishant Shah looks into the radical claims and potentials of citizen action that have emerged in the last few years. He seeks to show how citizen action is not necessarily a radical form of politics and that we need to make a distinction between Resistances and Revolutions. It locates resistance as an endemic condition of governmentality within a State–Citizen–Market relationship and shows how it often strengthens the status quo rather than radically undermining it. He examines a campaign against corruption in India to see how the dissonance between the claims of the future and the practices of the present is produced in citizen action.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>Telecom</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">While the potential for growth and returns exist for telecommunications in India, a range of issues need to be addressed. One aspect is more extensive rural coverage and the other is a countrywide access to broadband which is low. Both require effective and efficient use of networks and resources, including spectrum:</p>
<h3>Course</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/course/knowledge-and-capacity-around-telecom-policy">Building Knowledge and Capacity around Telecommunication Policy in India</a>: Ford Foundation has given a grant of $200,000 to CIS to build expertise in the area of telecommunications in India over a period of two years. The project involves creating a repository comprising information about telecommunications related issues and policies and online course materials designed for a multi-stakeholder audience, organising interactive public lectures and workshops around the country to disseminate information on telecom issues and using traditional and new forms of media to disseminate information to academia, civil society, policy makers and the general public.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Column in Business Standard</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/coming-telecom-monopoly">The Coming Telecom Monopoly</a> (Shyam Ponappa, Business Standard, May 3, 2012): “The 2G judgment and Trai spectrum pricing recommendations have led to a policy that makes sense for only one survivor.”</li>
</ul>
<h3>Event Organised</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/telecom/ijlt-cis-lecture-series-nlsiu">3rd IJLT-CIS Lecture Series at NLSIU, Bangalore</a> (National Law School of India University, Bangalore, May 27, 2012): Organised by CIS in association with the Indian Journal of Law and Technology. Professor Rohan Samarajiva delivered a lecture on Tariff Regulation in South Asia.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/awesom-contracts-project">The Awesome Contracts Project</a> (Geekup @ CIS, May 18, 2012): CIS co-organised the event with Has Geek. Vivek Durai, co-founder at Awesome Contracts gave a public lecture. Amith Narayan participated through Skype.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2>About CIS</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS was registered as a society in Bangalore in 2008. As an independent, non-profit research organisation, it runs different policy research programmes such as Accessibility, Access to Knowledge, Openness, Internet Governance, and Telecom. Over the last four years our policy research programmes have resulted in outputs such as the <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/advocacy/accessibility/blog/e-accessibility-handbook">e-Accessibility Policy Handbook for Persons with Disabilities</a> with ITU and G3ict, and <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1644&qid=165304" target="_blank">Digital Alternatives with a Cause?</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1645&qid=165304" target="_blank">Thinkathon Position Papers</a> and the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1646&qid=165304" target="_blank">Digital Natives with a Cause? Report</a> with Hivos. With foreign governments we worked on National Enterprise Architecture and Government Interoperability Framework for Govt. of Iraq; Open Standards Policy for Govt. of Moldova; Free and Open Software Centre of Excellence project plan for Saudi Arabia; eGovernance Strategy Document for Govt. of Tajikistan. With the Government of India we have done policy research for Ministry of Communications & Information Technology, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, etc., on <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1647&qid=165304" target="_blank">WIPO Treaties</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1648&qid=165304" target="_blank">Copyright Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1649&qid=165304" target="_blank">Interoperability Framework in eGovernance</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1650&qid=165304" target="_blank">Privacy Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1651&qid=165304" target="_blank">NIA Bill</a>, <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1652&qid=165304" target="_blank">National Policy on Electronics</a> and <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1653&qid=165304" target="_blank">IT Act</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">CIS is an accredited NGO at WIPO and has given <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1654&qid=165304" target="_blank">policy briefs</a> to delegations from various countries, our Programme Manager, Nirmita Narasimhan won the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1655&qid=165304" target="_blank">National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities</a> from the Government of India and also received the <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1656&qid=165304" target="_blank">NIVH Excellence Award</a>.</p>
<hr />
<h3>Follow us elsewhere</h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">Get short, timely messages from us on Twitter</li>
<li>Join the CIS group on <a href="http://crm.cis-india.org/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1657&qid=165304" target="_blank">Facebook</a></li>
<li>Visit us at <a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/">http://cis-india.org</a></li>
</ul>
<p><i>CIS is grateful to Kusuma Trust which was founded by Anurag Dikshit and Soma Pujari, philanthropists of Indian origin, for its core funding and support for most of its projects.</i></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/may-2012-bulletin'>http://editors.cis-india.org/about/newsletters/may-2012-bulletin</a>
</p>
No publisher
praskrishna
Access to Knowledge
Digital Natives
Telecom
Accessibility
Internet Governance
Research
Openness
2012-07-07T06:59:29Z
Page
-
Big Data and Reproductive Health in India: A Case Study of the Mother and Child Tracking System
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/big-data-reproductive-health-india-mcts
<b>In this case study undertaken as part of the Big Data for Development (BD4D) network, Ambika Tandon evaluates the Mother and Child Tracking System (MCTS) as data-driven initiative in reproductive health at the national level in India. The study also assesses the potential of MCTS to contribute towards the big data landscape on reproductive health in the country, as the Indian state’s imagination of health informatics moves towards big data.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Case study: <a href="https://github.com/cis-india/website/raw/master/bd4d/CIS_CaseStudy_AT_BigDataReproductiveHealthMCTS.pdf" target="_blank">Download</a> (PDF)</h4>
<hr />
<h3>Introduction</h3>
<p>The reproductive health information ecosystem in India comprises of a range of different databases across state and national levels. These collect data through a combination of manual and digital tools. Two national-level databases have been launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare - the Health Management Information System (HMIS) in 2008, and the MCTS in 2009. 4 The MCTS focuses on collecting data on maternal and child health. It was instituted due to reported gaps in the HMIS, which records monthly data across health programmes including reproductive health. There are several other state-level initiatives on reproductive health data that have either been subsumed into, or run in
parallel with, the MCTS.</p>
<p>With this case study, we aim to evaluate the MCTS as data-driven initiative in reproductive health at the national level. It will also assess its potential to contribute towards the big data landscape on reproductive health in the country, as the Indian state’s imagination of health informatics moves towards big data. The methodology for the case study involved a desk-based review of existing literature on the use of health information systems globally, as well as analysis of government reports, journal articles, media coverage, policy documents, and other material on the MCTS.</p>
<p>The first section of this report details the theoretical framing of the case study, drawing on the feminist critique of reproductive data systems. The second section maps the current landscape of reproductive health data produced by the state in India, with a focus on data flows, and barriers to data collection and analysis at the local and national level. The case of abortion data is used to further the argument of flawed data collection systems at the
national level. Section three briefly discusses the state’s imagination of reproductive health policy and the role of data systems through a discussion on the National Health Policy, 2017 and the National Health Stack, 2018. Finally, we make some policy recommendations and identify directions for future research, taking into account the ongoing shift towards big data globally to democratise reproductive healthcare.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/big-data-reproductive-health-india-mcts'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/big-data-reproductive-health-india-mcts</a>
</p>
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ambika
Big Data
Data Systems
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Reproductive and Child Health
Research
Featured
Publications
BD4D
Healthcare
Big Data for Development
2019-12-06T04:57:55Z
Blog Entry
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The Mother and Child Tracking System - understanding data trail in the Indian healthcare systems
http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/privacy-international-ambika-tandon-october-17-2019-mother-and-child-tracking-system-understanding-data-trail-indian-healthcare
<b>Reproductive health programmes in India have been digitising extensive data about pregnant women for over a decade, as part of multiple health information systems. These can be seen as precursors to current conceptions of big data systems within health informatics. In this article, published by Privacy International, Ambika Tandon presents some findings from a recently concluded case study of the MCTS as an example of public data-driven initiatives in reproductive health in India. </b>
<p> </p>
<h4>This article was first published by <a href="https://privacyinternational.org/news-analysis/3262/mother-and-child-tracking-system-understanding-data-trail-indian-healthcare" target="_blank">Privacy International</a>, on October 17, 2019</h4>
<h4>Case study of MCTS: <a href="https://cis-india.org/raw/big-data-reproductive-health-india-mcts" target="_blank">Read</a></h4>
<hr />
<p>On October 17th 2019, the UN Special Rapporteur (UNSR) on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, Philip Alston, released his thematic report on digital technology, social protection and human rights. Understanding the impact of technology on the provision of social protection – and, by extent, its impact on people in vulnerable situations – has been part of the work the Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) and Privacy International (PI) have been doing.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, <a href="https://privacyinternational.org/advocacy/2996/privacy-internationals-submission-digital-technology-social-protection-and-human" target="_blank">PI responded</a> to the UNSR's consultation on this topic. We highlighted what we perceived as some of the most pressing issues we had observed around the world when it comes to the use of technology for the delivery of social protection and its impact on the right to privacy and dignity of benefit claimants.</p>
<p>Among them, automation and the increasing reliance on AI is a topic of particular concern - countries including Australia, India, the UK and the US have already started to adopt these technologies in digital welfare programmes. This adoption raises significant concerns about a quickly approaching future, in which computers decide whether or not we get access to the services that allow us to survive. There's an even more pressing problem. More than a few stories have emerged revealing the extent of the bias in many AI systems, biases that create serious issues for people in vulnerable situations, who are already exposed to discrimination, and made worse by increasing reliance on automation.</p>
<p>Beyond the issue of AI, we think it is important to look at welfare and automation with a wider lens. In order for an AI to function it needs to be trained on a dataset, so that it can understand what it is looking for. That requires the collection large quantities of data. That data would then be used to train and AI to recognise what fraudulent use of public benefits would look like. That means we need to think about every data point being collected as one that, in the long run, will likely be used for automation purposes.</p>
<p>These systems incentivise the mass collection of people's data, across a huge range of government services, from welfare to health - where women and gender-diverse people are uniquely impacted. CIS have been looking specifically at reproductive health programmes in India, work which offers a unique insight into the ways in which mass data collection in systems like these can enable abuse.</p>
<p>Reproductive health programmes in India have been digitising extensive data about pregnant women for over a decade, as part of multiple health information systems. These can be seen as precursors to current conceptions of big data systems within health informatics. India’s health programme instituted such an information system in 2009, the Mother and Child Tracking System (MCTS), which is aimed at collecting data on maternal and child health. The Centre for Internet and Society, India, <a href="https://cis-india.org/raw/big-data-reproductive-health-india-mcts" target="_blank">undertook a case study of the MCTS</a> as an example of public data-driven initiatives in reproductive health. The case study was supported by the <a href="http://bd4d.net/" target="_blank">Big Data for Development network</a> supported by the International Development Research Centre, Canada. The objective of the case study was to focus on the data flows and architecture of the system, and identify areas of concern as newer systems of health informatics are introduced on top of existing ones. The case study is also relevant from the perspective of Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to rectify the tendency of global development initiatives to ignore national HIS and create purpose-specific monitoring systems.</p>
<p>After being launched in 2011, 120 million (12 crore) pregnant women and 111 million (11 crore) children have been registered on the MCTS as of 2018. The central database collects data on each visit of the woman from conception to 42 days postpartum, including details of direct benefit transfer of maternity benefit schemes. While data-driven monitoring is a critical exercise to improve health care provision, publicly available documents on the MCTS reflect the complete absence of robust data protection measures. The risk associated with data leaks are amplified due to the stigma associated with abortion, especially for unmarried women or survivors of rape.</p>
<p>The historical landscape of reproductive healthcare provision and family planning in India has been dominated by a target-based approach. Geared at population control, this approach sought to maximise family planning targets without protecting decisional autonomy and bodily privacy for women. At the policy level, this approach was shifted in favour of a rights-based approach to family planning in 1994. However, targets continue to be set for women’s sterilisation on the ground. Surveillance practices in reproductive healthcare are then used to monitor under-performing regions and meet sterilisation targets for women, this continues to be the primary mode of contraception offered by public family planning initiatives.</p>
<p>More recently, this database - among others collecting data about reproductive health - is adding biometric information through linkage with the Aadhaar infrastructure. This data adds to the sensitive information being collected and stored without adhering to any publicly available data protection practices. Biometric linkage is aimed to fulfill multiple functions - primarily authentication of welfare beneficiaries of the national maternal benefits scheme. Making Aadhaar details mandatory could directly contribute to the denial of service to legitimate patients and beneficiaries - as has already been seen in some cases.</p>
<p>The added layer of biometric surveillance also has the potential to enable other forms of abuse of privacy for pregnant women. In 2016, the union minister for Women and Child Development under the previous government suggested the use of strict biometric-based monitoring to discourage gender-biased sex selection. Activists critiqued the policy for its paternalistic approach to reduce the rampant practice of gender-biased sex selection, rather than addressing the root causes of gender inequality in the country.</p>
<p>There is an urgent need to rethink the objectives and practices of data collection in public reproductive health provision in India. Rather than continued focus on meeting high-level targets, monitoring systems should enable local usage and protect the decisional autonomy of patients. In addition, the data protection legislation in India - expected to be tabled in the next session in parliament - should place free and informed consent, and informational privacy at the centre of data-driven practices in reproductive health provision.</p>
<p>This is why the systematic mass collection of data in health services is all the more worrying. When the collection of our data becomes a condition for accessing health services, it is not only a threat to our right to health that should not be conditional on data sharing but also it raises questions as to how this data will be used in the age of automation.</p>
<p>This is why understanding what data is collected and how it is collected in the context of health and social protection programmes is so important.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/privacy-international-ambika-tandon-october-17-2019-mother-and-child-tracking-system-understanding-data-trail-indian-healthcare'>http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/privacy-international-ambika-tandon-october-17-2019-mother-and-child-tracking-system-understanding-data-trail-indian-healthcare</a>
</p>
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ambika
Big Data
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Big Data for Development
2019-12-30T17:18:05Z
Blog Entry
-
Decolonizing the Internet’s Languages 2019 - From Conversations to Actions
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/dtil-2019-from-conversations-to-actions
<b>Whose Knowledge? is organising the Decolonizing the Internet's Languages 2019 gathering in London on October 23-24 — with a specific focus on building an agenda for action to decolonize the internet’s languages. Puthiya Purayil Sneha is participating in this meeting with scholars, linguists, archivists, technologists and community activists, to share the initial findings towards the State of the Internet’s Language Report (to be published in 2020) being developed by Whose Knowledge?, Oxford Internet Institute, and the CIS.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Event page: <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/decolonizing-the-internet/" target="_blank">URL</a></h4>
<h4>Agenda: <a href="https://github.com/cis-india/website/raw/master/docs/WK_DTIL2019_Agenda.pdf">Download</a> (PDF)</h4>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/dtil-2019-from-conversations-to-actions'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/dtil-2019-from-conversations-to-actions</a>
</p>
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sneha-pp
Language
Decolonizing the Internet's Languages
Research
Digital Knowledge
Researchers at Work
2019-11-01T17:53:40Z
Blog Entry
-
Call for Contributions and Reflections: Your experiences in Decolonizing the Internet’s Languages!
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-call
<b>Whose Knowledge?, the Oxford Internet Institute, and the Centre for Internet and Society are creating a State of the Internet’s Languages report, as baseline research with both numbers and stories, to demonstrate how far we are from making the internet multilingual. We also hope to offer some possibilities for doing more to create the multilingual internet we want. This research needs the experiences and expertise of people who think about these issues of language online from different perspectives. Read the Call here and share your submission by September 2, 2019.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Cross-posted from the Whose Knowledge? website: <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/callforcontributions/" target="_blank">Call for Contributions and Reflections</a></h4>
<p>The call is available in <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/callforcontributions/#CIS-AR" target="_blank">Arabic</a>, <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/callforcontributions/#CIS-PT" target="_blank">Brazilian Portuguese</a>, <a href="#en">English</a>, <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/callforcontributions/#CIS-IZ" target="_blank">IsiZulu</a>, <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/initiatives/callforcontributions/#CIS-ES" target="_blank">Spanish</a>, and <a href="#ta">Tamil</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Note:</strong> This call for contributions is in a few languages right now, but we invite our friends and communities to translate into many more! Please reach out to info (at) whoseknowledge (dot) org with your translations… thank you!</p>
<hr />
<img src="https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cis-india/website/master/img/CISraw_WK-OII_DTIL-banner2.png" alt="Call for Contributions and Reflections: Your experiences in Decolonizing the Internet’s Languages!" />
<p> </p>
<blockquote>
<h4 id="en">“It’s not just the words that will be lost. The language is the heart of our culture; it holds our thoughts, our way of seeing the world. It’s too beautiful for English to explain.”</h4>
– Potawatomi elder, cited in Robin Wall Kimmerer’s “Braiding Sweetgrass.”</blockquote>
<p><strong>The problem:</strong> The internet we have today is not multilingual enough to reflect the full depth and breadth of humanity. Language is a good proxy for, or way to understand, knowledge – different languages can represent different ways of knowing and learning about our worlds. Yet most online knowledge today is created and accessible only through colonial languages, and mostly English. The UNESCO Report on ‘<a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/in/documentViewer.xhtml?v=2.1.196&id=p::usmarcdef_0000232743&file=/in/rest/annotationSVC/DownloadWatermarkedAttachment/attach_import_8df09604-0040-4b44-b53c-110207ac407d%3F_%3D232743eng.pdf&locale=en&multi=true&ark=/ark:/48223/pf0000232743/PDF/232743eng.pdf#685_15_CI_EN_int.indd%3A.7579%3A23" target="_blank">A Decade of Promoting Multilingualism in Cyberspace</a>’ (2015) estimated that “out of the world’s approximately 6,000 languages, just 10 of them make up 84.3 percent of people using the Internet, with English and Chinese the dominant languages, accounting for 52 per cent of Internet users worldwide.” More languages become endangered and disappear every year; <a href="http://www.unesco.org/new/en/culture/themes/endangered-languages/atlas-of-languages-in-danger/" target="_blank">230 languages have become extinct between 1950 and 2010</a>.</p>
<p>At best, then, 7% of the world’s <a href="https://www.ethnologue.com/statistics" target="_blank">languages</a> are captured in published material, and an even smaller fraction of these languages are available online. This is particularly critical for communities who have been historically or currently marginalized by power and privilege – women, people of colour, LGBT*QIA folks, indigenous communities, and others marginalized from the global South (Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and Pacific Islands). We often cannot add or access knowledge in our own languages on the internet. This reinforces and deepens inequalities and invisibilities that already exist offline, and denies all of us the richness of the multiple knowledges of the world.</p>
<p>Some of the issues that shape our abilities to create and share content online in our languages include:</p>
<ul>
<li>The internet’s infrastructure (hardware, software, platforms, protocols…);</li>
<li>Content management tools and technologies for translation, digitization, and archiving (voice, machine-learning systems and AI, semantic web…);</li>
<li>The experience of those who consume and produce information online in different languages (devices like cell phones and laptops, messaging tools, micro-blogging, audio-video…);</li>
<li>The experience of looking for content in different languages online, through search engines and other tools.</li></ul>
<p>Understanding the range of these issues will help us map the possibilities and concerns around linguistic biases and disparities on the internet.</p>
<p><strong>Who we are:</strong> We are a group of three research partners who believe that the internet we co-create should support, share, and amplify knowledge in all of the world’s languages. For this to happen, we need to better understand the challenges and opportunities that support or prevent our languages and knowledges from being online. The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) is a non-profit organisation that undertakes interdisciplinary research on internet and digital technologies from policy and academic perspectives. The areas of focus include digital accessibility for persons with disabilities, access to knowledge, intellectual property rights, openness (including open data, free and open source software, open standards, open access, open educational resources, and open video), internet governance, telecommunication reform, digital privacy, and cyber-security. The <a href="https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank">Oxford Internet Institute</a> is a multidisciplinary research and teaching department of the University of Oxford, dedicated to the social science of the Internet. <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/" target="_blank">Whose Knowledge?</a> is a global campaign to centre the knowledges of marginalized communities – the majority of the world – online.</p>
<p>Together we are creating a State of the Internet’s Languages report, as baseline research with both numbers and stories, to demonstrate how far we are from making the internet multilingual. We also hope to offer some possibilities for doing more to create the multilingual internet we want.</p>
<p><strong>Why we need YOU:</strong> This research needs the experiences and expertise of people who think about these issues of language online from different perspectives.</p>
<p>You may be a person who:</p>
<ul>
<li>Self-identifies as being from a marginalized community, and you find it difficult to bring your community’s knowledge online because the technology to display your language’s script is hard to access or read</li>
<li>Works on creating content in languages that are from parts of the world, and from people, who are mostly invisible and unheard online</li>
<li>Is a techie who works on making keyboards for non-colonial languages</li>
<li>Is a linguist who tries to bring together communities and technologies in a way that is easy and accessible</li>
<li>... you may be any of these, all of these, or more!</li></ul>
<p>We are looking for your experience online to help us tell the story of how limited the language capacities of the internet are, currently, and how much opportunity there is for making the internet share our knowledges in our many different languages. Most importantly: you don’t have to be an academic or researcher to apply, we particularly encourage people experiencing these issues in their everyday lives and work to contribute!</p>
<p> </p>
<h3>Some of the key questions we’d like you to explore:</h3>
<ul>
<li>How are you or your community using your language online?</li>
<li>What do you wish you could create or share in your language online that you can’t today?</li>
<li>What does content in your language look like online? What exists, what’s missing? (<em>you might think about, for example, news, social media, education or government websites, e-commerce, entertainment, online libraries and archives, self-published content, etc</em>)</li>
<li>How and where and using what technologies do you share or create content in your language? (<em>you might think about, for example, video, audio, writing, social media, digitization…whatever formats, tools, processes or websites you use for creating oral, visual, textual, or other forms of content</em>.)</li>
<li>What is challenging to create or share on your language online? (<em>you might think about, for example, access, device usability, platforms, websites, apps and other tools, software, fonts, digital literacy, etc when developing digital archives, online language resources, or just making any presence on the web in general for your language</em>.)</li></ul>
<p> </p>
<h3>Submissions:</h3>
<p>We would love to hear about your and your community’s experiences in response to any or some of the above questions!</p>
<p>Your contribution could be in the form of a written essay, a visualization or work of art, a video or recorded conversation – we’d be happy to interview you if that’s your preference. We would be happy to accept in any language, and will review the submissions with the support of our multilingual communities and friends.</p>
<p>Are you interested in participating? Please email <strong>raw [at] cis-india [dot] org</strong> a short note (of about 300 words) by <strong>2 September at 23:59 IST (Indian Standard Time)</strong>, briefly outlining your idea along with the following information:</p>
<ul>
<li>Your name</li>
<li>Your location – both country of origin and your current location is useful!</li>
<li>Your language(s)</li>
<li>Your community or any other background you’d care to share with us</li>
<li>Which questions you’re interested in addressing, and why</li>
<li>Your prefered contribution format</li>
<li>Any requests for how we can best support your participation</li></ul>
<p> </p>
<h3>Timeline:</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>By 2nd September 2019:</strong> Send us your submission note</li>
<li><strong>By 1st November 2019:</strong> Contributors will be notified of selection</li>
<li><strong>By 1st December 2019:</strong> First round of contributions are due. We’ll work with you to finalise contributions by mid January.</li></ul>
<p>Selected contributors will be offered an honorarium of USD 500, and their final works will be published as part of the Decolonising the Internet – Languages Report, in early 2020.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="ta">பங்களிப்பதற்காக அழைப்பு இணைய மொழி ஆதிக்கச் சூழலை மாற்றியதில் உங்கள்அனுபவம்!</h2>
<p> </p>
<blockquote>
<h4>“மொழி அழிவால் சொற்கள் மட்டும் அழிவதில்லை. நம் பண்பாட்டின் சாரமே மொழி தான். மொழியே நம் எண்ணங்களை வெளிப்படுத்துகிறது. இவ்வுலகத்தை நாம் காண்பதும் மொழிவழியே தான். ஆங்கிலத்தால் அதை ஒருக்காலும் வெளிப்படுத்த முடியாது.”</h4>
– போட்டோவாடோமி எல்டர் (ராபின் வால் கிம்மெரார் எழுதிய ‘பிரெயிடிங் சுவீட்கிராஸ்’ என்ற நூலில் இருந்து)</blockquote>
<p><strong>சிக்கல்:</strong> மனித குலத்தின் பரந்துவிரிந்த பண்பாட்டுச் சூழலை வெளிப்படுத்தும் அளவுக்கு இன்றைய இணையம் பன்மொழிச் சூழல் கொண்டதாய் இல்லை. தகவல்களை அறிந்துகொள்வதற்கு மொழி ஒரு கருவியாய் இருக்கிறது. ஒவ்வொரு மொழியும் உலகத்தை வெவ்வேறுவிதத்தில் காட்டத்தக்கன. இருந்தபோதும், பெரும்பாலான அறிவுசார் தளங்கள் ஆதிக்க மொழிகளில், குறிப்பாக ஆங்கிலத்தில் அதிகளவில் இருக்கின்றன. ‘இணையவெளியில் பன்மொழிச் சூழலைக் ஊக்குவிக்க பத்தாண்டுகளில் எடுத்த முயற்சி’ (2015) என்ற யுனெசுகோ அறிக்கையில் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளதாவது: “உலகில் பேசப்படும் சுமார் 6,000 மொழிகளில், வெறும் 10 மொழியை பேசுவோர் மட்டுமே இணையத்தின் 84.3 சதவீதம் பேராக உள்ளனர். இவற்றில், ஆங்கிலமும் மாண்டரின் சீனமும் பேசுவோர் மட்டும் 52 சதவீதத்தினர் என்பது குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.” ஒவ்வொரு ஆண்டும் அதிகளவிலான மொழிகள் அருகி, அழிந்து வருகின்றன. 1950 – 2010 ஆகிய ஆண்டுகளுக்குள் 230 மொழிகள் அழிந்திருக்கின்றன</p>
<p>எல்லா உள்ளடக்கத்தையும் கணக்கில் எடுத்தால் கூட, உலகின் 7% மொழிகளில் தான் ஆக்கங்கள் இருக்கின்றன. இவற்றில் சிலவே இணையத்தில் கிடைக்கின்றன. முற்காலத்தில் ஒடுக்கப்பட்டிருந்த பழங்குடியின சமூகத்தினர், அடக்குமுறைக்கு உட்பட்டிருந்த பெண்கள், நிறவெறிக்கு உட்பட்டிருந்தோர், மாற்று பாலின கருத்தியல் கொன்டோர் ஆகியோருக்கான ஆக்கங்கள் வெகு சில. பெரும்பாலானோர் இணையத்தில் தம் தாய்மொழியில் தகவல்களை தேடிப் பெற முடிவதில்லை. தம் மொழியில் கிடைக்கப்பெறாத பெரும்பாலானோருக்கு இவ்வுலகைப் பற்றிய அறிவுசார் ஆக்கங்கள் மறுக்கப்பட்டு, சமமின்மை வெளிப்படுகிறது.</p>
<p>நம் மொழியிலேயே இணையத்தில் ஆக்கங்களை உருவாக்குவதிலும் பகிர்வதிலும் சில சிக்கல்களை எதிர்நோக்குகிறோம். அவை:</p>
<ul>
<li>கட்டமைப்பு வசதிக் குறைபாடு : வன்பொருள், மென்பொருள், இயங்குதளம், மரபுத்தகவு</li>
<li>உள்ளடக்க மேம்பாட்டுக் கருவிகளும் தொழில்நுட்பங்களும் போதிய அளவில் இல்லாமை: மொழிபெயர்ப்புக் கருவி, மின்மயமாக்கக் கருவி, சேமிப்பகம், செயற்கை நுண்ணறிவு, குரல்வழி உள்ளடக்கம்</li>
<li>இணையத்தில் பொருட்களை வாங்கிப் பயன்படுத்துவோரின் கருத்துக்களோ, பொருட்களைப் பற்றிய தகவலோ, இணையச் செயலிகளான செய்தியனுப்பல், வலைப்பூ போன்றவையோ தம் மொழியில் இல்லாமை</li>
<li>தேடுபொறிகளையும் பிற கருவிகளையும் கொன்டு வெவ்வேறு மொழிகளில் ஆக்கங்களைத் தேடிப் பழக்கம் இல்லாமை</li></ul>
<p>இச்சிக்கல்களைப் புரிந்துகொள்வதன் மூலம், இணையத்தின் பன்மொழிச் சூழலுக்கான தேவைகளையும் அவற்றிற்கான குறைநிறைகளையும் சரிப்படுத்திக்கொள்ள முடியும்.</p>
<p><strong>நாங்கள் யார்?:</strong> உலக மொழிகளிலான ஆக்கங்கள் இணையவெளியில் இடம்பெற உதவவும், ஊக்குவிக்கவும் மூன்று ஆய்வு நிறுவனங்கள் கைகோர்த்துள்ளோம். இதை நடைமுறைப்படுத்துவதற்கு முன், நாம் எதிர்கொள்ளும் சிக்கல்களையும் பெறக்கூடிய வாய்ப்புகளையும் நன்கு அறிந்துகொள்வது அவசியம் என உணர்ந்தோம்.</p>
<p>1. சென்டர் ஃபார் இன்டர்நெட் அன்ட் சொசைட்டி (the Centre for Internet and Society or CIS) என்ற தன்னார்வல நிறுவனம், இணையத்தையும், மின்மயமாக்கத் தொழில்நுட்பங்களையும் பற்றிய ஆய்வுகளை கொள்கை நோக்கிலும், கல்விசார் நோக்கிலும் செய்கிறது. உடற்குறைபாடு உடையோருக்கு மின்மயமாக்கிய உள்ளடக்கம், அறிவைப் பெறும் சூழல், அறிவுசார் சொத்துரிமை, திறந்தவெளி ஆக்கங்கள், இணையவழி ஆளுகை, தொழில்நுட்பச் சீர்திருத்தம், இணையவெளியில் தனியுரிமை, இணையவெளிப் பாதுகாப்பு போன்ற தலைப்புகளில் இந்நிறுவனம் கவனம் செலுத்துகிறது.</p>
<p>2. ஆக்சுபோர்டு இன்டர்நெட் இன்ஸ்டிடியூட் என்ற ஆய்வு நிறுவனம் ஆக்சுபோர்டு பல்கலைக்கழகத்தைச் சேர்ந்தது. இது இணையச் சமூகத்துக்காகவே தனித்துவமாக உருவாக்கப்பட்ட துறை.</p>
<p>3. ஹூஸ் நாலெட்ஜ் என்ற இயக்கம், உலகளவில் ஒடுக்கப்பட்ட சமூகங்களின் அறிவுசார் ஆக்கங்களை இணையவெளியில் கொண்டு வர முயற்சி எடுக்கிறது.</p>
<p>நாங்கள் மூவரும் இணைந்து, இணையத்தில் பயன்பாட்டிலுள்ள மொழிகளைப் பற்றிய ஆய்வறிக்கையை தயாரிக்கிறோம். புள்ளிவிவரங்களையும், தகவல்களையும் வெளியிட்டு, பன்மொழிச் சூழலில் எந்தளவு பின்தங்கி இருக்கிறோம் என்பதை உணர்த்த உள்ளோம். இணையவெளியில் ஆக்கங்களை வெளியிட எங்களால் முடிந்த சில வாய்ப்புகளையும் வழங்க உள்ளோம்.</p>
<p><strong>உங்கள் உதவி எங்களுக்கு தேவைப்படுவதன் காரணம்:</strong> இத்தகைய சிக்கல்களை எதிர்நோக்கி வருவோரின் அனுபவங்களையும், அவர்கள் முயன்ற தீர்வுகளையும் பற்றி அறிந்துகொள்வதே இவ்வாய்வின் நோக்கம்.</p>
<p>நீங்கள்,</p>
<ul>
<li>ஒடுக்கப்பட்ட சமூகத்தைச் சேர்ந்தவராக உணர்ந்தாலோ, உங்கள் சமூகத்தின் அறிவுசார் உள்ளடக்கங்கள் இணையவெளியில் கிடைப்பதில்லை என்று கருதினாலோ, உங்கள் மொழி எழுத்துவடிவங்கள் அணுகவும், படிக்கவும் ஏற்றவகையில் கணினிமயமாக்கப்படவில்லை என்று உணர்ந்தாலோ,</li>
<li>தொழில்நுட்பராக இருந்து, ஆதிக்கத்துக்கு உட்பட்டோரின் மொழிகளுக்காக விசைப்பலகைகள் செய்பவராக இருந்தாலோ,</li>
<li>மொழியியலாளராக இருந்து, பல்வேறு சமூகங்களை ஒருங்கிணைத்து, தொழில்நுட்பத்தை அவர்களுக்கு புரியும் வகையிலும், அணுகும் வகையிலும் கிடைக்கச் செய்தாலோ,</li>
<li>… உங்களைத் தான் தேடிக் கொன்டிருக்கிறோம்!</li></ul>
<p>உங்கள் இணையவெளி அனுபவங்களை எங்களுக்கு தெரிவிப்பதன் மூலம், ஒவ்வொரு மொழிச் சமூகத்தின் நிலையையும் நாங்கள் அறிந்துகொள்ள உதவியாக இருக்கும். அத்துடன், எத்தகைய வாய்ப்புகளை ஏற்படுத்தித் தரலாம் என்றும் நாங்கள் சிந்திக்க உதவியாய் இருக்கும்.</p>
<p> </p>
<h3>உங்களிடம் நாங்கள் கேட்க விரும்பும் சில கேள்விகள்:</h3>
<ul>
<li>நீங்களும், உங்கள் மொழிச் சமூகத்தினரும் இணையவெளியில் உங்கள் மொழியை எப்படி பயன்படுத்துகிறீர்கள்?</li>
<li>இன்றைய நிலையில், இணையவெளியில் உங்கள் மொழியைக் கொண்டு செய்ய முடியாதது இருப்பின், அதற்கு என்ன செய்ய விரும்புவீர்கள்?</li>
<li>இணையவெளியில் உங்கள் மொழியில் என்னென்ன ஆக்கங்கள் இருக்கின்றன, எவை இல்லை? (எடுத்துக்காட்டாக, செய்திகள், சமுக வலைத்தளம், கல்விசார் உள்ளடக்கம், அரசுசார் உள்ளடக்கம், மனமகிழ் வீடியோக்கள், இணையவழி கற்றல், போன்றவை)</li>
<li>உங்கள் மொழியில் ஆக்கங்களை படைப்பதற்கு எந்த தளத்தை நாடுவீர்கள், எந்த தொழில்நுட்பத்தை பயன்படுத்துவீர்கள்? (எ.கா : ஒளி, ஒலி, உரை, உரைநடை ஒழுங்கமைவு, பிழைத்திருத்திக் கருவி போன்றவை)</li>
<li>உங்கள் மொழியில் எழுதுவதற்கோ, பகிர்வதற்கோ முயலும் போது என்னென்ன மாதிரியான சிக்கல்களை இணையவெளியில் சந்திக்கிறீர்கள்? (எ.கா: அணுக்கம் இன்மை, கருவியில் எழுத்துரு ஆதரவின்மை, பிழை திருத்த கருவி இன்மை)</li></ul>
<p> </p>
<h3>ஆய்வேடு சமர்ப்பித்தல்:</h3>
<p>மேற்கண்ட கேள்விகளுக்கு உங்கள் சமூகத்தினரிடமும், உங்களிடமும் அனுபவம் மூலம் விடை கிடைத்திருக்கும் என நம்புகிறோம். அவற்றைப் பற்றி தெரிந்து கொள்ள விரும்புகிறோம்!</p>
<p>கட்டுரையாகவோ, கலைப்படைப்பாகவோ, பதிவு செய்யப்பட்ட ஆவணமாகவோ, வேறு வடிவிலோ உங்கள் படைப்புகள் இருக்கலாம். நீங்கள் விரும்பினால் உங்களை பேட்டி காணவும் தயாராக இருக்கிறோம். உங்கள் படைப்புகள் எந்த மொழியில் இருந்தாலும் ஏற்போம். எங்களிடமுள்ள பன்மொழிச் சமூகத்திடம் உங்கள் படைப்புகளை கொடுத்து அவற்றை சீராய்வு செய்யச் சொல்வோம்.</p>
<p>உங்களுக்கு பங்கேற்க விருப்பமா? raw@cis-india.org என்ற மின்னஞ்சல் முகவரிக்கு, செப்டம்பர் இரன்டாம் தேதிக்கு முன்னர் அனுப்புக. 300 சொற்களுக்கு மிகாமல், கீழ்க்காணும் விவரங்களைக்</p>
<ul>
<li>உங்கள் பெயர்</li>
<li>இருப்பிடம் – பிறந்த நாடும், தற்போது வாழும் நாடும்</li>
<li>உங்கள் மொழி(கள்)</li>
<li>உங்கள் சமூகத்தினரைப் பற்றிய தகவல் (அ) நீங்கள் விரும்பும் சமூகத்தினரைப் பற்றிய தகவல்</li>
<li>எந்தெந்த கேள்விகளுக்கு பதிலளிக்க விரும்புகிறீர்கள், ஏன்</li>
<li>உங்கள் படைப்பு எந்த வடிவில் உள்ளது</li>
<li>உங்கள் பங்களிப்பை மேம்படுத்தல் நாங்கள் ஏதும் செய்ய வேண்டுமா</li></ul>
<p> </p>
<h3>காலகட்டம்:</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>2 செப்டம்பர், 2019:</strong> உங்கள் படைப்புகள் எங்களை வந்தடைய வேண்டிய கடைசி நாள்</li>
<li><strong>1 நவம்பர், 2019:</strong> தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்ட படைப்பாளர்களிடம் விவரம் தெரிவிக்கப்படும் நாள்</li>
<li><strong>1 திசம்பர், 2019:</strong> முதற்கட்ட பங்களிப்பு நடைபெறும். பங்களிப்பை ஜனவரி மாத மத்தியில் முடிக்க முயற்சி செய்வோம்.</li></ul>
<p>தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்ட படைப்பாளிகளுக்கு 500 அமெரிக்க டாலர்கள் ஊக்கத்தொகையாக வழங்கப்படும். நாங்கள் தயாரிக்கும் அறிக்கையில் அவர்களின் படைப்பு வெளியிடப்படும்.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-call'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-call</a>
</p>
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sneha-pp
Language
Research
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Digital Knowledge
Decolonizing the Internet's Languages
Featured
State of the Internet's Languages
Digital Humanities
Homepage
2019-08-07T12:29:25Z
Blog Entry
-
State of the Internet's Languages 2020: Announcing selected contributions!
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-selected-contributions
<b>In response to our call for contributions and reflections on ‘Decolonising the Internet’s Languages’ in August, we are delighted to announce that we received 50 submissions, in over 38 languages! We are so overwhelmed and grateful for the interest and support of our many communities around the world; it demonstrates how critical this effort is for all of us. From all these extraordinary offerings, we have selected nine that we will invite and support the contributors to expand further.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Cross-posted from the Whose Knowledge? website: <a href="https://whoseknowledge.org/selected-contributions/" target="_blank">URL</a></h4>
<p>Call for Contributions and Reflections: <a href="https://cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-call" target="_blank">URL</a></p>
<hr />
<img src="https://whoseknowledge.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/DTI-L-webbanner-1.png" alt="Decolonizing the Internet's Languages" />
<p> </p>
<p>Thank you to all of you who wrote in: we would publish every one of your contributions if we could! Each of you highlighted unique aspects of the problem and possibility of the multilingual internet, and it was extremely difficult to select a few to include in the ‘State of the Internet’s Languages Report’. Whether your submission was selected or not, we hope you will continue to be part of this work with us, and that the report will reflect your thoughtful concerns and interests in a multi-lingual internet.</p>
<p>The nine selected contributions will be a significant aspect of the openly licensed State of the Internet’s Languages report to be published mid-2020. In different formats and languages, they span many kinds of language contexts across the world, from many different communities and perspectives. They will form part of a broader narrative combining data and experience, highlighting how limited the current language capacities of the internet are, and how much opportunity there is for making our knowledges available in our many languages.</p>
<p>A special thank you to the final contributors – we’ll be in touch shortly with more details. We’re looking forward to working with you as you develop your contributions and share your experiences!</p>
<p>The selected contributions are from:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<h4><em>Caddie Brain, Joel Liddle, Leigh Harris, Graham Wilfred</em></h4>
<p>As part of a broader movement to increase inclusion and diversity in emojis, Aboriginal people in Central Australia are creating Indigemoji, the first set of Australian Indigenous emojis delivered via a free app. Caddie, Joel, Leigh and Graham aim to describe how to reflect Aboriginal experiences online, to increase the accessibility of Arrernte language in the broader Australian lexicon, to position Arrernte knowledge on digital platforms for future generations of Arrentre speakers and learners, and to contribute more broadly to the decolonisation of the internet.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Claudia Soria</em></h4>
<p>Claudia will describe “The Digital Language Diversity Project” funded by the European Commission under the Erasmus+ programme. The project has surveyed the digital use and usability of four European minority languages: Basque, Breton, Karelian and Sardinian. It has also developed a number of instruments that can help speakers’ communities drive the digital life of their languages, in the form of a methodology named “digital language planning”.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Donald Flywell Malanga</em></h4>
<p>Donald will share his experiences conducting two panel discussions with elderly and ten young Ndali People in Chisitu Village based in Misuku Hills, Malawi. He aims to hear their stories and make sense of them relating to how Chindali could be spoken/expressed online, examine the barriers they face in sharing/expressing their language online, and unearth possible solutions to address such barriers.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Emna Mizouni</em></h4>
<p>Emna will interview African and Arab content creators and consumers to share their experiences in posting content in their own language and expose their cultures. She will reach out to different ethnicities from Africa to gather data on the reasons they use the “colonial languages” on the internet and the burdens they face, whether technical such as internet connectivity and accessibility, lack of devices, social or cultural barriers, etc.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Ishan Chakraborty</em></h4>
<p>Ishan will explore the experiences of individuals who identify themselves as both disabled and queer, and who are not visible online in Bengali. Online research papers and academic works in Bengali are significantly limited, and even more so in the case of works on marginalities and intersections. One of the most effective ways of making online material accessible to persons with visual disability is through audio material, and Ishan will explore some of these possibilities.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Joaquín Yescas Martínez</em></h4>
<p>Joaquin will be describing the free software, open technology initiatives and the sharing philosophy of “compartencia” in his community of Mixe and Zapotec peoples in Mexico. He will explore initiatives such as Xhidza Penguin School, an app to learn the language online, and learning workshops to look at new methodologies for sharing and using the language. It is not only a means of communication but it also encompasses a different way of understanding the world.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Kelly Foster</em></h4>
<p>Kelly will draw attention to the work being done to revitalise indigenous languages and the struggles to represent the Nation Languages of the Caribbean and its diasporas in structured data and on Wikipedia. She aims to have the native names of the islands, locations and indigenous peoples on Wikidata, labelled with their own language so she can generate a map of the Caribbean with as many native names as possible. But the language of the Taino people of the islands that are now called Jamaican, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Haiti has been labelled as extinct, as are the people, by European researchers. Though a victim of the first European genocide of the Caribbean, they live on in the tongues and blood of people who are more often racialised as Black and Latinx.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Paska Darmawan</em></h4>
<p>As a first-generation college student who did not understand English, Paska had difficulties in finding educational, inspiring content about LGBTQIA issues in their native language, let alone positive content about the local LGBTQIA community. They plan to share a mapping of available Indonesian digital LGBTQIA content, whether it be in the form of Wikipedia articles, websites, social media accounts, or any other online media.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h4><em>Uda Deshpriya</em></h4>
<p>Uda will explore the lack of feminist content on the internet in Sinhala and Tamil. Mainstream human rights discussions take place in English and leaves out the majority of Sri Lankans. Women’s rights discourse remains even more centralized. Despite the fact that all primary criminal and civil courts work in local languages, statutes and decided cases are not available in Sinhala and Tamil, including Sri Lanka’s Constitution and its amendments. This extends to content creation through both text and art, with significant barriers of keyboard and input methods.</p>
</li></ul>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-selected-contributions'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/stil-2020-selected-contributions</a>
</p>
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Language
Digital Knowledge
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State of the Internet's Languages
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Researchers at Work
Decolonizing the Internet's Languages
2019-11-01T18:12:49Z
Blog Entry
-
User Experiences of Digital Financial Risks and Harms
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/user-experiences-of-digital-financial-risks-and-harms
<b>The reach and use of digital financial services has risen in recent years without a commensurate increase in digital literacy and access. Through this project, supported by a grant from Google(.)org, we will examine the landscape of potential risks and harms posed by digital financial services, and the disproportionate risk that information asymmetry and barriers to access pose for users, especially certain marginalised communities. </b>
<h3>Project Background</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong> </strong>There is a big evidence gap in the understanding of the financial risks and harms experienced by users of digital financial services. Consequently, adequate consumer protection frameworks and processes to address these harms have been lagging. A survey of 32,000 Indian consumers found <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/42-indians-experienced-financial-fraud-in-last-3-years-report/articleshow/93341725.cms">only 17%</a> who lost money through banking frauds were able to recoup their funds. Filling this gap is crucial to inform responsive policy making, platform design and data governance.</p>
<p><strong> </strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">While a lot more attention is paid to financial frauds and scams, through this study, we aim to situate these alongside experiences of harms that are understudied and sometimes overlooked. Users may also experience financial harm, when negatively impacted by:</p>
<ol>
<li>Financial misinformation</li>
<li>Loss of control over their assets</li>
<li>Loss of potential income</li>
<li>Difficulty accessing social protection</li>
<li>Financial abuse perpetrated alongside other forms of domestic and family abuse </li>
<li>Unsustainable levels of debt, i.e. over-indebtedness, and </li>
<li>Exclusion from financial services</li></ol>
<ol dir="ltr"></ol>
<p dir="ltr">The Centre for Internet and Society is undertaking a mixed methods study to better understand user awareness, perceptions and experiences of digital financial risks and harms.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">For this study, we will survey nearly 4000 users, with differing levels of access to digital devices, digital services and the internet, and undertake semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with specific target groups and stakeholders. We aim to highlight the experiences of persons with disabilities, gender and sexual minorities, the elderly, women, and regional language first users; to better understand how discrimination and exclusion may increase their burden of risk when using digital financial services.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr"><strong>Key research questions guiding our project are:</strong></p>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">How are digital financial risks understood and experienced by users of digital financial services? Which socioeconomic factors amplify risks for different user groups?</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">What concerns have emerged relating to data privacy, misinformation, identity theft and other forms of social engineering and mobile app based fraud?</li>
<li>How accessible are providers’ and government’s platform based reporting and grievance redressal systems?</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">What role can fintech platforms, social media platforms, banking institutions, and regulatory bodies play in reducing digital financial risks across the ecosystem?</li></ol>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">Project Aims</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">Through this study, we aim to:</p>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Assess the financial risks and harms users are exposed to when using social media, digital banking, and fintech platforms. While looking at general users, we will also specifically explore this experience for the elderly, gender and sexual minorities, regional language users and persons with visual disabilities.</li>
<li>Develop a framework to categorise the nature of vulnerabilities, risks and harms faced by the concerned user groups</li>
<li>Create a credible evidence base for key stakeholders with regards to experiences of digital financial risks and harm.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Provide recommendations for better policy and platform design to address harms, specifically those arising from lack of accessibility and information asymmetry.</li>
<li>Identify best practices to respond to digital risks and foster safety and equity in digital financial services</li></ol>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">Come Talk to Us:</h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;" dir="ltr">If you have experiences or insights to share, or if you're interested in learning more about our study, please reach out.<br /><br />We also invite researchers, financial service providers, developers and designers of fintech platforms, and civil society organisations working on digital safety, to speak to us and help inform the study. You may contact <a class="mail-link" href="mailto:garima@cis-india.org">garima@cis-india.org</a></p>
<hr />
<p><strong>Research Team</strong>: Amrita Sengupta, Chiara Furtado, Garima Agrawal, Nishkala Sekhar, Puthiya Purayil Sneha, and Yesha Tshering Paul</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/user-experiences-of-digital-financial-risks-and-harms'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/user-experiences-of-digital-financial-risks-and-harms</a>
</p>
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Amrita Sengupta, Chiara Furtado, Garima Agrawal, Nishkala Sekhar, Puthiya Purayil Sneha, and Yesha Tshering Paul
Financial Technology
Financial Platforms
Digital Financial Harms
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RAW Blog
Accessibility
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RAW Research
Research
Homepage
2023-12-22T16:05:26Z
Blog Entry
-
Unpacking Algorithmic Infrastructures: Mapping the Data Supply Chain in the Healthcare Industry in India
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/unpacking-algorithmic-infrastructures
<b>The Unpacking Algorithmic Infrastructures project, supported by a grant from the Notre Dame-IBM Tech Ethics Lab, aims to study the Al data supply chain infrastructure in healthcare in India, and aims to critically analyse auditing frameworks that are utilised to develop and deploy AI systems in healthcare. It will map the prevalence of Al auditing practices within the sector to arrive at an understanding of frameworks that may be developed to check for ethical considerations - such as algorithmic bias and harm within healthcare systems, especially against marginalised and vulnerable populations. </b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">There has been an increased interest in health data in India over the recent years, where health data policies encourage sharing of data with different entities, at the same time, there has been a growing interest in deployment of Al in healthcare from startups, hospitals, as well as multinational technology companies.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Given the invisibility of algorithmic infrastructures that underlie the digital economy and the important decisions these technologies can make about patients' health, it's important to look at how these systems are developed, how data flows within them, how these systems are tested and verified and what ethical considerations inform their deployment.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><img src="http://editors.cis-india.org/home-images/ResearchersWork.png/@@images/00a848c7-b7f7-41b4-8bd9-45f2928fd44e.png" alt="Researchers at Work" class="image-inline" title="Researchers at Work" /></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><strong>The </strong><strong>Unpacking Algorithmic Infrastructures</strong> project, supported by a grant from the Notre Dame-IBM Tech Ethics Lab, aims to study the Al data supply chain infrastructure in healthcare in India, and aims to critically analyse auditing frameworks that are utilised to develop and deploy AI systems in healthcare. It will map the prevalence of Al auditing practices within the sector to arrive at an understanding of frameworks that may be developed to check for ethical considerations - such as algorithmic bias and harm within healthcare systems, especially against marginalised and vulnerable populations.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Research Questions</h3>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">To what extent organisations take ethical principles into account when developing AI , managing the training and testing dataset, and while deploying the AI in the healthcare sector.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">What best practices for auditing can be put in place based on our critical understanding of AI data supply chains and auditing frameworks being employed in the healthcare sector.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; ">What is a possible auditing framework that is best suited to organisations in the majority world.</li>
</ol>
<h3>Research Design and Methods</h3>
<p>For this study, we will use a comprehensive mixed methods approach. We will survey professionals working towards designing, developing and deploying AI systems for healthcare in India, across technology and healthcare organizations. We will also undertake in-depth interviews with experts who are part of key stakeholder groups.</p>
<p>We hereby invite researchers, technologists, healthcare professionals, and others working at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Healthcare to speak to us and help us inform the study. You may contact Shweta Monhandas at <a href="mailto:shweta@cis-india.org">shweta@cis-india.org</a></p>
<ol> </ol>
<hr />
<p>Research Team: Amrita Sengupta, Chetna V. M., Pallavi Bedi, Puthiya Purayil Sneha, Shweta Mohandas and Yatharth.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/unpacking-algorithmic-infrastructures'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/unpacking-algorithmic-infrastructures</a>
</p>
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Amrita Sengupta, Chetna V. M., Pallavi Bedi, Puthiya Purayil Sneha, Shweta Mohandas and Yatharth
Health Tech
RAW Blog
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Artificial Intelligence
2024-01-05T02:38:22Z
Blog Entry
-
Locating the Mobile: An Ethnographic Investigation into Locative Media in Melbourne, Bangalore and Shanghai
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/locating-mobile/locating-the-mobile
<b>From Google maps, geoweb, GPS (Global Positioning System), geotagging, Foursquare and Jie Pang, locative media is becoming an integral part of the smartphone (and shanzhai or copy) phenomenon. For a growing generation of users, locative media is already an everyday practice. </b>
<div id="parent-fieldname-text" class="plain kssattr-atfieldname-text kssattr-templateId-blogentry_view.pt kssattr-macro-text-field-view">
<p>The transition from the analogue to the digital, from dial-up to
broadband internet access was dramatic in how it changed our notions of
space, catalysing new ways of thought and practice. In the case of
locative media the uptake is more accelerated with it already engaging
more than ten times those involved in the analogue-digital transition.
The spread and usage of locative media is fast and promises to produce
an even more dramatic transformation as the net becomes portable and
pervasive.</p>
<p>As yet we know little about the impact locative media is having, and
will have upon people’s livelihoods and identity, or on public policy
around privacy, identity, security and cultural production. Discourse in
the field has opened up questions of art, innovation and
experimentation (de Souza e Silva & Sutko 2009; Hjorth 2010, 2011).
However, there remains a dearth of nuanced research on locative media
that provides in-depth, contextual accounts of its socio-cultural and
political dimensions. Little work has been conducted into locative media
as it migrates from art and into the ‘messy’ (Dourish & Bell 2011)
area of the everyday.</p>
<p><em>Locating the Mobile</em> seeks to address this knowledge gap by
undertaking close studies of locative media in three
locations—Bangalore, Melbourne and Shanghai. We aim to capture and
analyse the multiplicities of locative media practice emerging in both
developed and developing contexts. </p>
<p>These three locations have relatively high smartphones (or copies
like shanzhai) usage and are indicative of twenty-first century
migration, diaspora and transnational practices. As one of the leading
regions for mobile media innovation (Hjorth 2009; Bell 2005; Miller
& Horst 2005), the various contested localities in the Asia-Pacific
provide a rich and complex case study for mobile media as it moves into
locative media. The three locations also show how the presence of
digital and internet technologies is ‘flattening’ the globalised
landscape and bringing about dramatic changes in the ways in which these
cities shape and develop (Shah 2010). We consider how place informs
locative media practices and how, in turn, these practices are shaping
new narratives of place. </p>
<p><em>Locating the Mobile</em> seeks to collect and analyse some of the
emergent, tacit, innovative and ‘making-do’ practices informing the
rise, and resistance to, locative media. Drawing on pertinent issues for
the present and future of locative media, Locating the Mobile aims to:</p>
<ol><li>Pioneer and develop models and templates for comprehending the implications of locative media.</li><li>Develop a nuanced and situated understanding of locative media as part of cultural practice.</li><li>Provide, through multi-site analysis, new insights into the impact of locative media upon narratives of place and belonging.</li><li>Develop socio-cultural understandings of the role locative media plays in notions of intimacy and privacy.</li></ol>
<p>By
bringing together an expert team that represent a commitment to probing
the social, cultural and community dimensions of technological
innovation, Locating the Mobile will develop methodologies that capture
the dynamic and mundane features of this emergent media practice. By
doing so, Locating the Mobile will move beyond binary debates about
surveillance and privacy or ‘parachute’ case studies of locative art
towards <strong>nuanced and complex understandings of locative media and its implication for future cultural practices</strong>.</p>
<h3>Significance and Innovation</h3>
<p>The nascent field of locative media is impacting upon cultural
practice, place-making and policy in ways we can only imagine. While
much analysis has been conducted in mobile media (Goggin & Hjorth
2009) and experimental forms of locative media/art (de Souza e Silva
& Sutko 2009), the increased ubiquity of locative media through
devices such as the smartphone will undoubtedly transform the way in
which place and mobility is articulated. Locating the Mobile seeks to
substantially expand and contextualise upon the burgeoning area of
locative media through a variety of innovative and significant ways.</p>
<p><em>Locating the Mobile</em> is<strong> original </strong>in its <strong>topic</strong>, <strong>method</strong>, <strong>outcomes</strong> and <strong>industry collaboration</strong>. <strong>Firstly</strong>,
it is significant in that it brings depth and innovation to the
emergent area of locative media, and its impact upon discourses around
mobile media in ideas of mobility and place-making. In the face of
parachute nature of many locative art research (de Souza e Silva &
Sutko 2009), Locating the Mobile is one of the first studies
internationally to explore locative media over time in specific
locations. <strong>Secondly</strong>, it deploys a variety of methods
(such as surveys, focus groups, interviews and diaries for scenario of
use, overlaid with data-mining) across different devices (mobile phone,
iPad) and platforms (Foursquare, Jie Pang) to analyse the local and
socio-cultural dimensions of use. With its team of experts in mobile
media (Hjorth, Bell and Horst), communication for development (C4D)
(Tacchi and Shah), gaming (Hjorth), social networking (Shah, Zhou and
Hjorth) as well as a range of methodologies, this three-year study will
investigate and contextualise locative media in Bangalore, Melbourne and
Shanghai. Despite its ubiquity in many locations in the Asia-Pacific
region, much of the locative media literature remains Anglophonic or
Eurocentric in focus.<strong> Thirdly</strong>, through multi-site
analysis of locative media practices we will provide innovative ways in
which to reflect upon narratives of place, belonging and
transnationalism. <strong>Fourthly</strong>, by pioneering the first
multi-site analysis of locative media over time, Locating the Mobile
will develop the much missing socio-cultural understandings of locative
media and how it impacts upon intimacy and privacy upon individual,
group and policy levels. We will now detail these four key areas of
significance and innovation. <strong>We will pioneer and develop models and templates for comprehending the implications of locative media</strong>.
In these models we actively address locative media in the transnational
context of contemporary feelings about belonging, possession, mobility,
migration, and dislocation. As locative media becomes more pervasive,
the power of its banality needs further understanding beyond ‘global’
generalisations (see www.pleaserobme.com). Like the rise of mobile media
that was accompanied by the ‘subversive user’ (Hjorth 2009), we need to
figure out the digital subject who is shaped—both historically and
socio-culturally—through the pervasive spread of locative media. As
Gabriella Coleman (2010) observes in her review of ethnographic
approaches to digital media, there are three main overlapping
categories: research on the relationship between digital media and the
cultural politics of media; the vernacular cultures of digital media;
the prosaics of digital media (and this attention to the commonplace,
the unromantic, the quotidian). In the case of locative media,
ethnographic approaches—emphasising the situated, vernacular and
prosaic—are needed in order to understand the relocations of mobility
across a variety notions: technological, electronic and psychological to
name a few. Moreover, given the relatively high proportion of Indian
and Chinese migrants in Melbourne—and migration in Bangalore and
Shanghai—exploring locative media can <strong>provide new models for conceptualising the impact of migration, diaspora, and transnationalism on place</strong>.</p>
<p><strong>We will develop a nuanced and situated understanding of locative media as part of cultural practice</strong>
through methods that deploy both qualitative (ethnographic) and
quantitative (datamining) approaches such as ‘ethno-mining’ (Anderson et
al. 2009). With the emergence of ethnomining approaches—that is,
data-based mining combined with ethnography—new models for analysing
media and mobility can be found. Locating the Mobile addresses this need
for innovative methodologies that capture the dynamic nature of
locative media by situating it within three legacies: social, cultural
and historical mediatisation. Further, Locating the Mobile seeks to
frame locative media as evolving through the cultural precepts informing
mobile media and urbanity LP120200829 (Submitted to RO) Dr Larissa
Hjorth PDF Created: 16/11/2011 Page 8 of 123 discourses. Drawing upon
case studies from a region renowned for divergent and innovative use of
mobile media (Hjorth 2009) and gaming (Hjorth & Chan 2009)—the
Asia-Pacific—Locating the Mobile seeks to understand the lived and local
dimensions of locative media and how it can inform emergent and older
forms of place-making, belonging and migration. By focusing upon this
nascent but burgeoning area in global mobile media practice—locative
media—Locating the Mobile not only places Australia as a forerunner in
innovative, original, and challenging methodologies for new media, but
also, by bringing together key industry partners, Intel, CIS and Fudan
University,<em><br /></em></p>
<p><em>Locating the Mobile</em> seeks to contextualise the research in
terms of industry and community outcomes. In this sense, Locating the
Mobile clearly addresses the National Priority 3, Frontier Technologies
(see below for more details).</p>
<p><strong>We will provide, through multi-site analysis, new insights
into the impact of locative media upon narratives of place and belonging</strong>
through our three case study locations—Melbourne, Bangalore and
Shanghai. Locative media can provide new models for conceptualising the
impact of migration, diaspora, and transnationalism on place. Although
place has always mattered to mobile media (Ito 2003; Bell 2005; Hjorth
2003), locative media both amplify, redirect and redefine practices
around place, community and a sense of belonging—phenomenon that impacts
upon cultural policy and media regulation (Goggin 2011). Along with the
digital interfaces that overlay our physical experiences as we enter
into a state of augmented reality (AR), the presence of these
cartographic, geospatial locative platforms also changes the ways in
which the cities and how we navigate with them (Shah 2010). With the
rise of locative media like Google maps we are seeing new ways to frame
and narrate a sense of place through various technological lenses
overlaying the social with the informational. This phenomenon is
especially the case with smartphones and their plethora of applications
(apps) drawing heavily upon locative media—even most photo apps come
with locative media. With locative media we see the arrival of increased
accessibility to augmented<br />reality (AR). Instead of replacing the
analogue with the digital, the physical with the virtual, they open up
‘hybrid realities’ (a term used by de Souza e Silva to describe AR
mobile games) that need new conceptual tools and located frameworks to
unravel the dynamics. We are no longer looking at just the technology
mediated hypervisual digitality but also exploring what these locative
media augment and simulate in everyday practices.</p>
<p><strong>We will develop socio-cultural understandings of the role locative media plays in notions of intimacy and privacy</strong>
and how we might comprehend locative media’s implications on individual
and cultural practices, and regulation. In the second generation of
locative media that sees it move increasingly into the mainstream,
questions about security, privacy and identity—and how these are shaped
by the local—come into focus (Dourish & Anderson 2006). For Dourish
and Anderson (2006) locative media can been viewed as a form of
‘Collective Information Practice’ that have social and cultural
implications upon how privacy and security are conceptualised. For
others such as Siva Vaidhyanathan (2011) locative media like Google maps
and street views are about a corporate surveillance. As a burgeoning
field of media practice intersecting daily life, there is a need for
in-depth situated accounts into locative media and their
cultural-economic dimensions to understand the impact they will have on
intimacy, privacy, identity and place-making. In Locating the Mobile, by
developing and implementing new hybrid models for analysing locative
media (Anderson et al. 2009), we consider the role locative media plays
in how place shapes, and is shaped by, these practices and the future
implications around cultural policy. The comparative dimension brings a
rich data-set to bear on our understanding of locative media and the
questions it may pose in the future. The outputs are significant not
only for Australian mobile communication, gaming and internet studies—by
providing a regional context for evaluating the socio-technologies—but
also demonstrates internationally Australia’s lead in ground-breaking
research into locative media (Priority 3, ‘frontier technologies’) in
arguably the most significant sites for global ICTs production and
consumption, the Asia-Pacific.</p>
<p><strong>National Research Priorities</strong>: With the rise of
smartphones becoming ubiquitous, location-based services have burgeoned.
And yet, little is known about this area and its impact upon
individuals, LP120200829 (Submitted to RO) Dr Larissa Hjorth PDF
Created: 16/11/2011 Page 9 of 123 organisations and governments. Given
this phenomenon, a comprehensive understanding of the impact upon
locative media upon notions of privacy, identity and place-making is
needed. In the twenty-first century, locative media will become an
increasingly important part of everyday life—for individuals,
communities, businesses and government agencies. Thus it is imperative
that we have a robust comparative understanding of locative media in
Australia and across the region. By conceptualising this impact within
the context of the region, Locating the Mobile ensures Australia is at
the frontier of new technologies and their impact upon future
technological practices and policies. Such an understanding is
fundamental to Australia’s technology and cultural sectors, thus
contributing to National Research Priority 3 through one of the
strongest currencies in twenty-first century global market, mobile
media, as well as contributing to the broader long-term project of
locating Australia in the region. By drawing on qualitative,
cross-cultural longitudinal research into locative media, Locating the
Mobile will document, analysis and provide future recommendations for
how locative media is impacting upon people’s experience of place and
identity. A study like this is important as it is innovative for not
only pioneering methodologies to evaluate this media phenomenon but also
to understand some of its long-term implications on how mobile media
intervenes and even reconfigures experiences and perceptions of place
which, in turn, impact upon cultural policy.</p>
<p>Collaborators: Larissa Hjorth (RMIT University, Melbourne), Genevieve Bell (Intel, Shanghai)</p>
</div>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/locating-mobile/locating-the-mobile'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/blogs/locating-mobile/locating-the-mobile</a>
</p>
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Larissa Hjorth and Genevieve Bell
Net Cultures
Researchers at Work
Research
2015-10-24T13:41:47Z
Blog Entry
-
Not a Goodbye; More a ‘Come Again’: Thoughts on being Research Director at a moment of transition
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/not-a-goodbye-more-a-come-again
<b>As I slowly make the news of my transition from being the Research Director at the Centre for Internet and Society, Bangalore, to taking up a professorship at the Leuphana University, Lueneburg, Germany, there is a question that I am often asked: “Are you going to start a new research centre?” And the answer, for the most part, is “No.”</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Not because I don’t see the value of creating institutional spaces like these or that starting and running CIS has been anything short of a dream, but because I don’t how to. When I tell people I don’t know how CIS came into being, they suspect that I am being either facetious or dismissive. But I am not. If somebody asked me to write an Origin Story for CIS, I would be baffled – or probably sum it up by saying that it happened. There was the germ of an idea, a whole lot of people who responded to it, and like the great Tolkienian epic, it was a story that grew in its telling.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">I was 27, when Sunil Abraham, the now Executive Director and I met together in New Delhi, to talk about what a research organisation that represents the public interest at the intersections of Internet & Society would look like. We spent three days in the Delhi heat, coming up with the most fantastic ideas about methods, structures and core areas of interest. It was one of those divine exercises where you build the template for your dream work and then, like a fairy-tale, we had incredible people who came and supported us to make that dream a reality. In six months of that first conversation – I had just turned 28 and was completing the last drafts of my Ph.D. dissertation – CIS got officially registered and with some of the most incredible people, who have been with us, both in their generous affective investment as well as in their intellectual and professional support, we kicked-off a research centre, that has become not only hard to ignore but also significantly important in bringing about scholarly and practice based research around the different facets of how the emergence and widespread reach of the Internet is changing the ways in which we become human, social and political in emerging information societies of the Global South.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In the 7 years since that first conversation started, I have learned so much from CIS and the networks that built around it, that it would be impossible to write an exhaustive account of it. However, as I now take up a new position at the CIS as a member of its board, and continue to collaborate with the on-the-ground teams intellectually, from my new position as a Professor, there are five things I want to dwell upon, more to remind myself of important lessons learned, but also as approaches that the new director and team might want to reference:</p>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><b>Research cannot be individually focused</b><br />One of the things that academic training does is that it promotes the idea of an individual researcher. We write, publish, seek grants and present our work, taking individual credit and building a body of work that is centred on us. True, we collaborate and we participate and we are opening up more distributed modes of learning and research, but at the end of the day, there is still an imagination of a research community that is built of individual scholars who work in a happy symbiosis and synthesis.<br /><br />The biggest lesson I learned with the CIS was that research requires collectives – peers, supporters, and critics – that can help materialise a vision. Instead of trying to do ‘my’ research, it was the first time that I was enabling others’ research. I had a say in building the research vision, and establishing protocols of rigour and review, but to have a dream, and then to share it with others, so that it becomes a collective dream was an incredible experience. It was the beginning of a method that I hope informs all my work, where research methods are constantly going to accommodate for and be shaped by collective visions and approaches rather than just the individual as a lone warrior. More than anything else, it reassures us that we are not alone, either in our triumphs or our road-blocks, and it builds a community of thinkers that is more important than just the single authored outputs that we bring out.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><b>Research requires infrastructure</b><br />Institutions are infrastructure. However, our jobs are so segregated, that we don’t always realise the incredible effort that goes into building such institutions and then making them work as efficient infrastructure to support research. It is very rare, in research publications that we thank our everyday office staff, the accounts team that processes the complicated bureaucracies of research funding, the programme managers who create networks and evaluation formats, or the numerous people who perform ‘non-research’ jobs so that we can do the research. <br /><br />I had worked in project and programme manager positions before CIS. I had also worked as an independent researcher and consultant before that. But this was the first time I actually took the dual responsibility of not only initiating research but also providing the infrastructure for it. And I know that I am a wiser person for it. The intricate world of fund-raising, managing and developing networks, of implementing and monitoring research projects and contracts, and the need to constantly find sustainable options for the research programmes is something that requires an incredible amount of effort and resources. The researchers often are kept away from this world, or we often just ignore the intense quotidian activities that give us the privilege of doing our work, and my time with CIS taught me not only to appreciate this, but also to recognise these tasks as research.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><b>All research must try and answer the ‘So What?’ question</b><br />Within academic circles, research has inherent value. We do have the freedom to develop new frameworks and ideas that might not have any immediate relevance and might in fact even fail without seeing the light of day. Academia is privileged because as long as we perform our pedagogic tasks, we have the space to experiment and often work on areas that might not benefit anybody outside the disciplines that we are located in.<br /><br />At CIS, working at such close quarters with colleagues who are experts in policy and regulation, research became critical for me. It wasn’t research for research’s sake. It was research with a cause. At the same time, making the research relevant was not an exercise in dumbing it down so that it can be reduced to easy implementation. The effort required at making academic and intellectual research accessible, while still retaining its complexity has been a heady experience for me. Since CIS, I have tried to make sure that all research is able to answer the ‘So What?’ question, and every time, it has made the research more robust, more rigorous and having a greater audience and impact than it would otherwise have. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><b>To be a research organisation is to be unafraid</b><br />One of the most fantastic things about being a young research organisations was that we were not afraid to voice our opinions and voice them loud. In the last 6 years, CIS has evolved into a strong voice that is not unanimous, but is still clear. We have had disagreements with established research and policy actors. We have critiqued decisions taken by policy and development institutions when we felt that they were flawed. We have provided a critical commentary to different instruments of law and regulation when necessary. We have challenged academic researchers in their methodology as well as in their disconnect from the ‘real world’. And we did it, because early on, the people who guided us, taught us, that research organisations have to be unafraid. <br /><br />Unafraid, not just to ask tough questions of those outside, but also of asking tough questions internally. The team, as it has grown, has been a smorgasbord of disciplinary and stakeholder locations. We don’t necessarily speak the same language. We don’t also, agree on many critical points. But we never tried to be a consensus generation institute. Instead, we learned to coexist and even collaborate in our differences – it was something that external partners often had problems with. How can one set of people work towards critically opposing a phenomenon when others might actually write in favour of some of the aspects of that same phenomenon? How is it possible that some in the institute have great collaborations with a network that the others critique persistently in their work? These tensions, for me, have been generative and I hope that they continue, both in the institution but also in my future work.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify; "><b>Researchers are people too</b><br />This is one of the strangest things to realise, but it is a good lesson to remember. Academia and research work through abstractions. At some point, the researchers become names. They become only a body of work, a certain number of words. But dealing with researchers is to deal with human beings. We have to remember that researchers, while they are often driven and passionate and unable to extricate their lives from their work, do have lives and bodies and socialities that need to be managed. Institutions often get driven by matrices of measurement and politics of promotion and evaluation, at the neglect of the people who actually build it. The constant push at CIS was to recognise that we are all too human in our everyday lives. And to build work environments, relationships and spaces that nurture the people we work with is the primary responsibility of all research. <br /><br />These points are probably too vague, but this blog post is already too long. I just wanted to take this opportunity to write some ‘Notes to the self’ about things that have been the most important to me in being the co-founder and Research Director at the Centre for Internet and Society. And now, it is time for me to move on. I want to place myself in an academic setting where I learn, I get some headspace to think and write, and do the one thing that I enjoy the most – teach. Starting 1st October 2014<a href="#fn*" name="fr*">[*] </a>I am stepping down as the Research Director and taking up a professorship in a new and exciting university, designing courses and research agendas at the intersections of internet studies, media studies, culture studies and aesthetic studies, bringing together some of my most passionate areas of interest. However, I continue to be interested and invested in CIS’ institutional growth. I shall be a part of the search committee as we invite a new Research Director in the Bangalore office, I shall be a part of the Board that governs the CIS, and I shall always think of CIS as my home, continuing mentoring and implementing existing collaborations but also building more, especially towards the pedagogic and knowledge production side of things.<br /><br />When the final decisions about this transition were made last week, I had thought I would be emotional and heart broken. Instead, I only feel excited. I have a wonderful set of colleagues in Bangalore, and they, in turn, are at the centre of networks of support, love, empathy and trust. CIS will benefit from having a new Research Director who will bring new visions, new methods, new processes and infrastructure to the table, and I hope that as my own academic career grows, I shall find myself returning to CIS in different capacities and roles, both for what I could contribute to it, but also for what I continue to learn from the rich range and variety of activities that it anchors.</li>
</ol>
<hr />
<p style="text-align: justify; ">[<a href="#fr*" name="fn*">*</a>].For me, this is not a goodbye, but just a change in roles at the CIS. I will continue to use my CIS credentials and email address, and will be found on the existing contact details there for any queries or interactions with and on behalf of the CIS. So no need to change your address books, just yet.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/not-a-goodbye-more-a-come-again'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/not-a-goodbye-more-a-come-again</a>
</p>
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nishant
Researchers at Work
Featured
Internet Studies
Research
2014-06-15T02:17:06Z
Blog Entry
-
Living in the Archival Moment
http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/living-in-the-archival-moment
<b>The archive has been and continues to be a key concept in Digital Humanities discourse, particularly in India. The importance of the archive to knowledge production in the Humanities, the implication of changes in archival practice with the advent of electronic publishing and digitisation, and the focus on curation as a critical and creative process are some aspects of the debate that this blog post looks at. </b>
<p> </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In a rather delightful essay titled ‘Unpacking my Library’, published in 1968, Walter Benjamin dwells upon the many nuances of the art of collecting — books in this particular case — on everything from the sometimes impulsive acquisition to the processes of careful selection and classification which go into creating a library. This figure of the collector and practice of collecting are important to our understanding of a central concept in Digital Humanities - the archive - particularly as it occupies a predominant space in the imagination of the field in India, and processes of knowledge production and the history of disciplines in general. The influx of digital technologies into the archival space in the last decade has been an impetus for the large scale digitisation of material, but it has also thrown up several challenges for traditional archival practice, including the preservation of analogue material, the problems of categorising and interpreting large volumes of data, and the gradual disappearance or re-definition of the traditional figure of the collector — a concern echoed across several spaces extending from private online archival efforts to large collaborative knowledge repositories like the Wikipedia. With the questions that the Digital Humanities seems to have posed to traditional notions of authorship or subject expertise, the ‘digital humanist’, when we imagine such a person, can be seen as a reinvention of this figure of the collector — a curator of materials and traces, here of course, digital traces.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The concept of the archive has been important to knowledge production and particularly the development of academic disciplines; whether driven by concerns of the state or the impulses of the market, there have been different ways of defining and understanding the archive, not only as a documentary record of history, but as a metaphor for collective memory and remembrance which includes technology in its very imagination. One of the most elaborate formulations of the archive has been in the work of Jacques Derrida, where apart from proposing the death and preservation drives as primary to the archival impulse, he also highlights the process of archiviation, or the technical process of archive-building that shapes history and memory. Michel Foucault in his concept of the archive looks at it as ‘a system of discursivity which establishes the possibility of what can be said’,<a name="fr1" href="#fn1">[1]</a>thus pointing to the archive as a space not just of preservation but also production, with an impact on the process of knowledge creation. There is today a consensus, at least in its academic understanding that archives cannot be relegated to being self-contained linear spaces of objective historical record, but that archival practice itself has political implications in terms of how collective memory and history, or as indicated by Foucault, <em>histories</em> are preserved and retold through a process of careful selection. Disciplines themselves may therefore be seen as archives of knowledge, and one may stretch this analogy to say that they may also appear as self-contained spaces with restrictions on entry for different ways of remembering and reading. More importantly, the question of what constitutes the archive and what objects or materials may be archived reflects a larger debate about problems with the definition of disciplines and shifting disciplinary boundaries.<a name="fr2" href="#fn2">[2]</a>The issue of access is what several archival and digitisation projects in the early phase of Digital Humanities in the West seemingly sought to address, by ‘opening up’ and animating the archive in some sense through the use of digital technologies, which has allowed one to envisage a model of the networked or conceptual archive developed through a process of sharing and collaboration. However, as is apparent, the conditions of access to such archives and their interpretation have not been problematised enough, if at all, particularly with respect to how they contribute to generating new kinds of knowledge or scholarship. (For more on a theoretical overview of the concept and function of the archive, see the post on ‘Archive Practice and Digital Humanities’ by Sara Morais).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">While the focus of Digital Humanities debates in the West now seem to primarily encompass methods of visualising data that the archive is an important source for, in the Indian context it is the ‘incompleteness of the archive’ that still seems to be a bone of contention. Many scholars and practitioners we spoke to see archive creation as one of the key questions of Digital Humanities as it has emerged in India, and the possibilities and challenges that this brings to the fore, (particularly in terms of access to rare materials and extending these debates to regional languages) as something that the field will need to contend with at some point. The role of digital technologies in fostering this activity of archive-building is stressed in these debates. In an earlier monograph titled Archives and Access produced as part of CIS-RAW, Dr. Aparna Balachandran and Dr. Rochelle Pinto trace a material history of archival practice in India, specifically looking at conflicts and debates surrounding state and colonial archives, and the politics of access, preservation and digitisation. The monograph also points towards in some way the move of the archive from being solely the prerogative of the state to now being within the reach of the individual, engendered by increased access to technology, and the ‘publicness’ that the visual nature of the internet fosters. However they also talk of the possibility of continuing forms of state or market control over the archive precisely through the internet and digital technologies, with the nature of individual access and use again being mediated through digitisation. Abhijeet Bhattacharya, Documentation Officer with the archives at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Kolkata who was also part of the Archives and Access project, speaks about this change. From a time even twenty years ago, when it was difficult to define the archive, it has slowly transformed into a practice that encompasses various methods of digitisation and has become increasingly personal. While digitisation may have resolved the problems of physically accessing archives to a large extent, it may not always be the best option, as the archival or analogue material needs to be in good condition so as to make for good digitised copies, thus emphasising the need for preservation. The growth of private collections, which create new kinds of intellectual and nostalgic spaces, have also been important in this shift to archiving the personal and the everyday, though in many instances such material may not be available for public use or consumption. The publicness or hyper-visibility that the visual nature of the internet and digital technologies accords to the archive is seen tied to a narrative of loss here, and against the rhetoric of preservation which is still in many spaces deemed to be the primary function and imagination of the archive.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The increased availability of space for data accumulation due to digital technologies also contributes to a ‘problem of excess’, and that is where curation and building new kinds of tools come in as a critical and creative exercise. Dr. Amlan Dasgupta, Professor of English and director of the School of Cultural Texts and Records, Jadavpur University reiterates this opinion. He talks about the internet as fostering an ‘age of altruism’, where the proliferation of technological gadgets has brought about a culture of voluntarily sharing materials online. This of course challenges notions of authority and brings forth the problems of the unarranged library which Benjamin’s essay also points towards, but the archive can be used as a metaphor to understand how notions of authorship and authority are being challenged as is apparent in the Digital Humanities discourse. The theory-practice divide is also something that ails this particular domain like many others; not only is there an inadequate understanding of how to access and use the archive on the part of students and researchers alike, but there is a lack of standardisation of the practice of archive management and the science itself, in terms of metadata, problems of ownership and copyright, and most importantly inadequate infrastructure, training and expertise on preservation of analogue materials. While it may not be within the ambit of digital humanities to address all of these questions, the renewed interest in archival practice and the diversification of its modes is something is that would continue to be an integral aspect of its practice. In fact what digitisation has also led to is diversity in the modes of documentation itself, and the larger process of archiving, which has important implications for the kinds of questions one may ask within certain disciplinary formations, history being an important example. The nature of material in the archive is never quite the same, so is the manner of working with and interpreting them. Dr. Indira Chowdhury, historian and faculty member at the Srishti School of Art, Media and Design, Bangalore and the Centre for Public History (CPH) speaks of the changes that digital technologies have produced in studying oral history, specifically in terms of recording and interpretation of interviews. The mode of documentation, particularly the digital, adds a new layer to the manner in which the voice, sounds or even silence is recorded or interpreted. Although there are still some basic but crucial obstacles such as with transcription, the digital space may allow for tools that help with more nuanced interpretation of recorded material, and large volumes of it; a possibility that CPH is looking into at the moment. One of the approaches of Digital Humanities may be address these knowledge gaps through critical tool-building, in terms of how one may work with different ways of reading and interpreting material.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The digital archive is one space where many of these questions about the process of archive-creation and the separation between preservation and production that is often made in the existing discourse come into conflict, thus inflating the definition of the term much more. New technologies of publishing, the proliferation of electronic databases and growth of networks that in turn encourage production and the increasing amount of born-digital materials then present new questions for the concept of the archive and scholarship.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The role of technology has been significant in the development of the concept of the archive; in fact the archive, in its very nature would be a technological object, or a space where one can trace a history of the disciplines in relation to technology. The introduction of the digital has added yet another dimension to this question. Dr. Ravi Sundaram, Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, who also initiated the Sarai programme speaks of how the advent of the digital has brought about several shifts in the imagination of the archive, which he sees as two distinct phases. Sarai was one of the early models of a concept driven, networked archive, based on a culture of ‘mailing lists’ that built conversations around topics which in themselves constituted the archive. The shifts came with Web 2.0 with which archiving the everyday became a possibility, given the access to inexpensive gadgets and the pervasiveness of social media. While the model of the networked, curated and public archive still has valence today, a significant next step would be to see how one can extend these questions to thinking differently about the archive, by developing new protocols for entering, sharing and circulation of material, and producing new knowledge or concepts around these ideas. This would be crucial in terms of generating research and scholarship around the archive itself as a concept, and realising the full potential of network-generated information. Another pertinent question is that of infrastructure, which is a political question as well. The investment on infrastructure for the archive is determined by different kinds of interests and will play an important role in how archival efforts will ultimately develop. As Dr. Sundaram reiterates, the point to note is that new archival efforts are not only general repositories, but critical interventions in themselves. They foster new kinds of visibilities, like the Pad.ma archive for example which works with existing footage and reinvents or adds new layers of meaning to it through annotations and citations. This also opens up possibilities for new kinds of questions to be asked about existing material. Private archival efforts, many initiated by individuals are also becoming more niche and specific, driven by a specific research agenda, public interest in conservation or as critical and creative interventions in a particular area. Some examples of this are the Sound and Picture Archives for Research on Women (SPARROW), Pad.ma and Indiancine.ma, the Indian Memory project and Osianama. In some of these examples, the archive may be used as more of a metaphor rather than a description or classificatory term, because of the layers of meaning that they generate around an existing object or ‘trace’. However, while entering the digital space may have enabled more sharing and dissemination of material, how much of these efforts also make their way into larger civil society and policy debates, scholarship and pedagogy is a crucial question. Arjun Appadurai, in an essay titled ‘Archive and Aspiration’, which was also reproduced as part of a research art project,<a name="fr3" href="#fn3">[3]</a> traces the growth of the migrant archive and how electronic mediation shapes collective memory and aspiration. He points out that ‘The archive as a deliberate project is based on the recognition that all documentation is a form of intervention and, thus, that documentation does not simply precede intervention, but is its first step. Since all archives are collections of documents (whether graphic, artifactual or recorded in other forms), this means that the archive is always a meta-intervention. This further means that archives are not only about memory (and the trace or record) but about the work of the imagination, about some sort of social project. These projects seemed, for a while, to have become largely bureaucratic instruments in the hands of the state, but today we are once again reminded that the archive is an everyday tool. Through the experience of the migrant, we can see how archives are conscious sites of debate and desire. And with the arrival of electronic forms of mediation, we can see more clearly that collective memory is interactively designed and socially produced." In another essay reproduced as part of the same project, Wolfgang Ernst talks about the change in the notion of archive from ‘archival space’ to ‘archival time’, in a digital culture, in which the key is the dynamics of the permanent transmission of data. Cyberspace or the internet, according to Ernst produces a new kind of memory culture, which is devoid of organisational memory that is essentially the premise of the traditional text-based archive. He says "In cyber ‘space’ the notion of the archive has already become an anachronistic, hindering metaphor; it should rather be described in topological, mathematical or geometrical terms, replacing emphatic memory by transfer (data migration) in permanence. The old rule that only what has been stored can be located is no longer applicable.13 Beyond the archive in its old ‘archontic’ quality, the Internet generates, in this sense, a new memory culture. Digitalization of analogous stored material means trans-archivization. Linked to the Internet rather than to traditional state bureaucracies, there is no organizational memory any more but a definition by circulating states, constructive rather than re-constructive. Assuming that the matter of memory is really only an effect of the application of techniques of recall, there is no memory. The networked data bases mark the beginning of a relationship to knowledge that dissolves the hierarchy associated with the classical archive."</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">One can therefore trace the definite shift in the concept and nature of the archive from being a static repository to a critical intervention and creative exercise, and technology being quite integral to its imagination. Most significantly perhaps, the change has been one from the notion of record to that of affect. Archive-building as an affective practice, which has an impact on how knowledge is produced, organised and disseminated is a crucial aspect of meaning-making practices. Related to this is another issue in terms of the amount of data that is available in the archives, which demands new protocols of access and collaboration, and the role of curation in making such data relevant and comprehensible. The notion of the archive or as in this case data as an affective object becomes pertinent here. The problem of excess mentioned by many of the scholars and practitioners would be relevant to the question of big data or big social data; accessing or interpreting such large volumes of information would require critical tools and new kinds of architecture. These shifts also relocate the figure of the collector from traditional practices to new ways of visualising collections and the art of collecting itself, which are now beyond the scope of the human subject. The matter of immediate import here would then be the changes in modes of reading and writing that are brought about by the proliferation of and engagement with big social data. How do we read data, what are changes in reading practices, how do they affect writing and visualisation and what is the nature of the reader thus constructed form some of the areas of exploration for the Digital Humanities, and will be taken up in the forthcoming blogs.</p>
<p>[<a name="fn1" href="#fr1">1</a>]. Foucault quoted in Manoff (2004), p.18.</p>
<p>[<a name="fn2" href="#fr2">2</a>]. Ibid.</p>
<p>[<a name="fn3" href="#fr3">3</a>]. Archive Public is a research art project that looks at bringing together archival art and solidarity actions. See http://archivepublic.wordpress.com/ for more on this.</p>
<hr />
<h2>References</h2>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Benjamin, Walter, “Unpacking My Library”, in Illuminations, trans.Harry Zohn, Ed. Hannah Arendt. New York: Schoken Books (1969) pp 59 - 67.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Derrida, Jacques: “Archive Fever: A Freudian Impression”, trans. Eric Prenowitz. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press (1995).</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Manoff, Marlene:” Theories of the Archive from Across the Disciplines.”<em> </em>In: <em>Libraries and the Academy</em>, Vol. 4, No. 1 (2004), pp. 9–25. Copyright © 2004 by The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD 21218. accessed May 5, 2014 :<a href="http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/35687/4.1manoff.pdf?sequence=1">http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/35687/4.1manoff.pdf?sequence=1.</a></li></ol>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/living-in-the-archival-moment'>http://editors.cis-india.org/raw/digital-humanities/living-in-the-archival-moment</a>
</p>
No publisher
sneha
Digital Knowledge
Mapping Digital Humanities in India
Research
Digital Humanities
Researchers at Work
2015-11-13T05:27:34Z
Blog Entry
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Intermediary Liability in India: Chilling Effects on Free Expression on the Internet
http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/chilling-effects-on-free-expression-on-internet
<b>The Centre for Internet & Society in partnership with Google India conducted the Google Policy Fellowship 2011. This was offered for the first time in Asia Pacific as well as in India. Rishabh Dara was selected as a Fellow and researched upon issues relating to freedom of expression. The results of the paper demonstrate that the ‘Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines) Rules 2011’ notified by the Government of India on April 11, 2011 have a chilling effect on free expression.</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Intermediaries are widely recognised as essential cogs in the wheel of exercising the right to freedom of expression on the Internet. Most major jurisdictions around the world have introduced legislations for limiting intermediary liability in order to ensure that this wheel does not stop spinning. With the 2008 amendment of the Information Technology Act 2000, India joined the bandwagon and established a ‘notice and takedown’ regime for limiting intermediary liability.<br /><br />On the 11th of April 2011, the Government of India notified the ‘Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines) Rules 2011’ that prescribe, amongst other things, guidelines for administration of takedowns by intermediaries. The Rules have been criticised extensively by both the national and the international media. The media has projected that the Rules, contrary to the objective of promoting free expression, seem to encourage privately administered injunctions to censor and chill free expression. On the other hand, the Government has responded through press releases and assured that the Rules in their current form do not violate the principle of freedom of expression or allow the government to regulate content.<br /><br />This study has been conducted with the objective of determining whether the criteria, procedure and safeguards for administration of the takedowns as prescribed by the Rules lead to a chilling effect on online free expression. In the course of the study, takedown notices were sent to a sample comprising of 7 prominent intermediaries and their response to the notices was documented. Different policy factors were permuted in the takedown notices in order to understand at what points in the process of takedown, free expression is being chilled.<br /><br />The results of the paper clearly demonstrate that the Rules indeed have a chilling effect on free expression. Specifically, the Rules create uncertainty in the criteria and procedure for administering the takedown thereby inducing the intermediaries to err on the side of caution and over-comply with takedown notices in order to limit their liability; and as a result suppress legitimate expressions. Additionally, the Rules do not establish sufficient safeguards to prevent misuse and abuse of the takedown process to suppress legitimate expressions.<br /><br />Of the 7 intermediaries to which takedown notices were sent, 6 intermediaries over-complied with the notices, despite the apparent flaws in them. From the responses to the takedown notices, it can be reasonably presumed that not all intermediaries have sufficient legal competence or resources to deliberate on the legality of an expression. Even if such intermediary has sufficient legal competence, it has a tendency to prioritize the allocation of its legal resources according to the commercial importance of impugned expressions. Further, if such subjective determination is required to be done in a limited timeframe and in the absence of adequate facts and circumstances, the intermediary mechanically (without application of mind or proper judgement) complies with the takedown notice.<br /><br />The results also demonstrate that the Rules are procedurally flawed as they ignore all elements of natural justice. The third party provider of information whose expression is censored is not informed about the takedown, let alone given an opportunity to be heard before or after the takedown. There is also no recourse to have the removed information put-back or restored. The intermediary is under no obligation to provide a reasoned decision for rejecting or accepting a takedown notice.</p>
<p>The Rules in their current form clearly tilt the takedown mechanism in favour of the complainant and adversely against the creator of expression.</p>
<table class="plain">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>The research highlights the need to:<br />
<ul>
<li> increase the safeguards against misuse of the privately administered takedown regime</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>reduce the uncertainty in the criteria for administering the takedown</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li> reduce the uncertainty in the procedure for administering the takedown</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li> include various elements of natural justice in the procedure for administering the takedown</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>replace the requirement for subjective legal determination by intermediaries with an objective test</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/intermediary-liability-in-india.pdf" class="internal-link" title="Intermediary Liability in India">Click</a> to download the report [PDF, 406 Kb]</p>
<hr />
<h3>Appendix 2</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/intermediary-liability-and-foe-executive-summary.pdf" class="internal-link">Intermediary Liability and Freedom of Expression — Executive Summary</a> (PDF, 263 Kb)</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/counter-proposal-by-cis-draft-it-intermediary-due-diligence-and-information-removal-rules-2012.odt" class="internal-link">Counter-proposal by the Centre for Internet and Society: Draft Information Technology (Intermediary Due Diligence and Information Removal) Rules, 2012</a> (Open Office Document, 231 Kb)</li>
<li><a href="http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/counter-proposal-by-cis-draft-it-intermediary-due-diligence-and-information-removal-rules-2012.pdf" class="internal-link">Counter-proposal by the Centre for Internet and Society: Draft Information Technology (Intermediary Due Diligence and Information Removal) Rules, 2012</a> (PDF, 422 Kb)</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<p>The above documents have been sent to:</p>
<ol>
<li>Shri Kapil Sibal, Minister of Human Resource Development and Minister of Communications and Information Technology</li>
<li>Shri Milind Murli Deora, Minister of State of Communications and Information Technology</li>
<li>Shri Sachin Pilot, Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology</li>
<li>Dr. Anita Bhatnagar, Joint Secretary, Department of Electronics & Information Technology, Ministry of Communications & Information Technology</li>
<li>Dr. Ajay Kumar, Joint Secretary, Department of Electronics & Information Technology, Ministry of Communications & Information Technology</li>
<li>Dr. Gulshan Rai, Scientist G & Group Coordinator, Director General, ICERT, Controller Of Certifying, Authorities and Head of Division, Cyber Appellate Tribunal </li>
</ol>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/chilling-effects-on-free-expression-on-internet'>http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/chilling-effects-on-free-expression-on-internet</a>
</p>
No publisher
Rishabh Dara
Freedom of Speech and Expression
Public Accountability
Internet Governance
Research
Featured
Intermediary Liability
Censorship
2012-12-14T10:22:24Z
Blog Entry