Technology for Community Empowerment - Presentation Transcript
Technology to reconstruct Communities in Tension (CiT) Marlon Parker Wesley Nitsckie “ Passionate about reconstructing communities”
Reconstructing Communities
Community in Tension (CiT)
CiT is a Community where the wellbeing
of citizens is threatened
Technology to reconstruct Communities
Proposed solution
Universities can play an important and leading role in addressing problems that negatively impact the wellbeing of communities.
Often ICT solutions are developed based on perceived anticipated needs without sufficiently considering the continuing actual-use-in-practice – Is the solution usable and useful for the user? Is it sustainable?
This can be best achieved if a collaborative approach is used involving reseachers, students, citizens and other stakeholders from the onset where citizens become co-developers of the ICT solution.
Project Focus
ICT Solution to facilitate the:
care of citizens
dissemination of information, e.g., to inform citizens about the problems, their consequences and preventative mechanisms;
education of citizens, e.g., train citizens specific skills etc.
Care Inform Educate Social Innovation Empowerment
Living Lab
A Living Lab is a user-centric research methodology for sensing, prototyping, validating and refining complex solutions in multiple and evolving real life contexts.
It is a human-centric Research and Development approach to ICT solutions and innovations
Interaction Space University Community Incubation Space Community Development Space Socio-Techno “ Bridge”
Athlone Living Lab
Collaborative Network
Advice Support Network
Face to Face Counseling
Help Line Counseling
Advice Support Network
Drug Advice Support (DAS)
Endorsed by National Government
Trained Advisors
+- 5000 subscribers
Tuesday and Thursday, 3pm – 5pm
+- 300 conversations per session
More than 16 000 conversations
80 000+ messages
Positive Advice Support (PAS)
Strong link between HIV and Substance Abuse
HIV and AIDS advice using mobile phones
Possibility of national service
Collaboration with Cell-Life
Career Advice Support (CAS)
Emerged through conversations with youth over DAS
Currently very few places on the Cape Flats where youth can go for Career Advice and Support
Professional Opportunities
Find Your Angel
24Hour service on MXit where information is available about Substance Abuse, HIV, Stress, Abuse
Concept is to Find Your Angel who is the contact where you can acquire help with the social problem
Challenges
Buy in from the communities
Funding for projects
Protecting the Collaboration Space
Sustainability plan
Conclusion
Technology allows opportunities for empowerment and social innovation when used appropriately in context
If innovative solutions are successfully adopted and co-developed by the communities they could continue using it
The impact of the project should result in an improvement in a community’s wellbeing
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