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Widernet Project topic of lecture featuring Cliff Missen
Jan. 8, 2008—A project that helps developing countries improve their computer skills and digital communications will be the focus of a special lecture presented at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Monday, Feb. 4, 2008.
The lecture will feature Cliff Missen of Widernet.org and egranary.org who will speak about his efforts and successes in bringing the Internet in a Box to places where the wires and wireless don’t reach—particularly in Africa.
The Widernet Project is a service that "trains computer technicians and coaches decision-makers at universities in the developing world, providing on-site hands-on training, cutting-edge reserach on information technology issues facing the developing world, and donating new and refurbished computer equipment to partner universities." The lecture will focus on Missen's efforts to bring technology and educational resources to those in locations without access.
The event will be held in the Pleasants Family Room of the Louis Round Wilson Library on the UNC at Chapel Hill campus from 3 to 5 p.m.
The lecture is sponsored by iblblio of the School of Information and Library Science and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at UNC at Chapel Hill and INTRAHealth International.
Facebook event: http://unc.facebook.com/event.php?eid=6740898935
Driving and Parking
For driving instructions, please click here. The Wilson Library is located across from the Bell Tower on South Road. It's located on UNC at Chapel Hill's central campus.
- Campus Map
- For parking and transportation:
- Morehead Lot (At the Planetarium on Franklin St.)
- Rosemary Parking Deck (Behind the Post Office at Franklin and Henderson Streets)
- Chapel Hill city lots.
- Highway 54 Visitor Lot (near the intersection of Country Club St. and South St.)
- Ramshead Parking Deck (at the G.W. Hill Alumni Center)
- Friday Center Park-and-Ride Lot (take the bus to and from campus)
- For those who need handicap access, please contact the SILS office at 919.962.8366.
The Widernet Project
Launched in 2000, the WiderNet Project, a service program based at the University of Iowa School of Library and Information Science, is improving digital communications in developing countries.
The project trains computer technicians and coaches decision-makers at universities in the developing world, providing on-site hands-on training, cutting-edge research on information technology issues facing the developing world, and donating new and refurbished computer equipment to partner universities. Over 3,600 technicians, decision makers, and librarians have been through our training programs across Africa.
The WiderNet Project also provides millions of digital educational resources to those without adequate Internet connectivity via the innovative eGranary Digital Library.
More information about the project can be found at widernet.org
eGranary Digital Library
The eGranary Digital Library—"The Internet in a Box"—provides millions of Internet resources to institutions lacking adequate Internet access. Through a process of copying web sites (with permission) and delivering them to partner institutions in developing countries, this digital library delivers fast access to educational resources including video, audio, books, journals, and Web sites. These resources are served from Web servers connected to local area network (LANs) inside the subscriber institution or from USB drives connected to a single computer.
The eGranary Digital Library was founded in 2001 and is developed by the WiderNet Project, a service program based at the University of Iowa's School of Library and Information Science.
The eGranary is installed in more than 200 schools, clinics, and universities in Africa, India, Bangladesh, and Haiti. The project aims to expand its installations to thousands of schools, hospitals and universities in underserved areas around the globe.
More information about the project can be found at egranary.org
About Cliff Missen
Cliff Missen is the director of the WiderNet Project and an instructor in the School of Library and Information Science at the University of Iowa.
The WiderNet Project works to improve digital communication in developing countries through the development of human capacity and program planning. With over 20 years professional experience in computers, networking, multimedia design, teaching, and applications development, Missen oversees the development of the eGranary Digital Library, an innovative way to deliver the world's knowledge to people and institutions with inadequate Internet access.
His first visit to Africa was with a medical team in 1982 and he continues to teach and promote appropriate water well drilling technology through the U.S. non-profit organization Wellspring Africa.
Following a year as a Senior Fulbright Scholar at the University of Jos (Nigeria) in 1999, he founded the University of Iowa's WiderNet Project which has delivered technology training programs for over 3,000 African university administrators, librarians, and technicians with funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Hewlett Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation, USAID, and the U.S. Department of State.
The project has raised over $1.5 million in hardware and software donations from companies like Microsoft, Seagate, and 3Com while project volunteers have refurbished over 1,200 used computers for partner universities.
Missen's mission: "I want to see the day when African technicians—so steeped in understanding of ICT technology—bend and twist these tools to create appropriate and affordable communications systems for the most rural villages in Africa."