Technology, human rights & movement building around the worldTechSoup Canada
By: Christopher Tuckwood, The Sentinel Project
Presented at Toronto Net Tuesday, June 4 2013.
Event recap & recording: https://www.techsoupcanada.ca/en/community/blog/human-rights-technology-and-movement-building-around-the-world
risis mapping is a new field of study that uses modern technology to analyze the combination of time, location and content. According to a prominent blog about crisis mapping entitled iRevolution by Patrick Meier, it is where “[s]cholars, practitioners, and communities alike are working together to create, analyze, visualize and use real-time data for humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction and development (Meier, “Proposing” 2009).” This combination of theory and application for social benefit gives crisis mapping the opportunity to create substantial change when addressing crises.
A presentation by Dr. Swamy Venuturupalli, MD, FACR from Lupus LA's annual patient education conference at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA.
Dr. Swamy Venuturupalli is a board-certified rheumatologist practicing in Los Angeles. He is Clinical Chief of the Division of Rheumatology at Cedars Sinai Medical Center and Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA as well as being Editor-in-Chief of Current Rheumatology Reports.
Dr. Venuturupalli grew up in Bombay, India, the son of two physicians. In 1995, he received his medical degree from the prestigious Topiwala National Medical College in Bombay. Dr. Venuturupalli completed his residency in Internal Medicine, with distinction, at the Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY. Following his residency, he was appointed Chief Resident in the department of medicine at Syracuse University, where he was in charge of managing and training 65 residents.
In 1999, Dr. Venuturupalli moved to Los Angeles for a combined fellowship in health services research with UCLA's School of Medicine, the RAND Corporation, and the Greater Los Angeles Veteran's Administration Medical Center. Along with his cohort, he conducted research on complementary and alternative medicine, publishing studies on Ayurvedic medicine, dietary supplements, and mind-body medicine. Dr. Venuturupalli then completed a rheumatology fellowship at the UCLA-Olive View medical program in 2002.
Dr. Venuturupalli's role as research investigator includes over a hundred clinical trials involving conditions such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory muscle diseases, ankylosing spondylitis, etc. He participates in ongoing rheumatology research with Dr. Daniel Wallace, a leading physician in the field, at the Cedars Sinai Division of Rheumatology. Dr. Venuturupalli lectures frequently to the general public and to the staff and faculty at Cedars Sinai Hospital on various topics in rheumatology, including alternative and complementary medicine. He was also recently invited to give grand rounds at Cedars on topics such as antiphospholipid syndrome and myositis. Dr. Venuturupalli has authored numerous text-book chapters, is published in peer-reviewed journals, and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Current Rheumatology Reviews.
For the past eight years, Dr. Venuturupalli has held a private practice in association with a group of 4 rheumatologists. Dr. Venuturupalli is highly regarded by his colleagues and is a sought-after teacher in his field of expertise. He has served as the past president of the Southern California Rheumatology Society, a non-profit professional organization of rheumatologists focusing on professional education.
Areas of expertise: Inflammatory Muscle disease, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Anti- Phospholipid syndrome, Sjogren's syndrome, Osteoporosis, Vasculitis.
The event will feature Senior ICT expert of DAI, Jessica Heinzelman, to do a talk on practical examples of mobile technologies in development. Come learn about Jessica and DAI’s work helping development projects and CSOs utilize ICT to improve the impact and scale of their work. She will share the process she takes to design effective projects through practical examples including providing legal information to 700,000 women and girls in Sierra Leone, using SMS to provide civic education and prevent conflict in Kenya, designing a biosecurity in Indonesia, and using mobiles to collect data with greater accuracy and efficiency.
Speaker Bio: Jessica Heinzelman is a Senior ICT Specialist with DAI. Jessica leverages her expertise in information communication technologies (ICTs), strategic design, partnerships and project management to advance international development objectives through contextually appropriate strategies and technology innovations. She has worked in Kenya, Nigeria, Tunisia, Burundi, South Africa, Jordan, Zambia, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Cambodia, Sierra Leone and Pakistan and traveled to over 33 countries globally. Ms. Heinzelman holds a Master of Arts in Law & Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.
Technology, human rights & movement building around the worldTechSoup Canada
By: Christopher Tuckwood, The Sentinel Project
Presented at Toronto Net Tuesday, June 4 2013.
Event recap & recording: https://www.techsoupcanada.ca/en/community/blog/human-rights-technology-and-movement-building-around-the-world
risis mapping is a new field of study that uses modern technology to analyze the combination of time, location and content. According to a prominent blog about crisis mapping entitled iRevolution by Patrick Meier, it is where “[s]cholars, practitioners, and communities alike are working together to create, analyze, visualize and use real-time data for humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction and development (Meier, “Proposing” 2009).” This combination of theory and application for social benefit gives crisis mapping the opportunity to create substantial change when addressing crises.
A presentation by Dr. Swamy Venuturupalli, MD, FACR from Lupus LA's annual patient education conference at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA.
Dr. Swamy Venuturupalli is a board-certified rheumatologist practicing in Los Angeles. He is Clinical Chief of the Division of Rheumatology at Cedars Sinai Medical Center and Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA as well as being Editor-in-Chief of Current Rheumatology Reports.
Dr. Venuturupalli grew up in Bombay, India, the son of two physicians. In 1995, he received his medical degree from the prestigious Topiwala National Medical College in Bombay. Dr. Venuturupalli completed his residency in Internal Medicine, with distinction, at the Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY. Following his residency, he was appointed Chief Resident in the department of medicine at Syracuse University, where he was in charge of managing and training 65 residents.
In 1999, Dr. Venuturupalli moved to Los Angeles for a combined fellowship in health services research with UCLA's School of Medicine, the RAND Corporation, and the Greater Los Angeles Veteran's Administration Medical Center. Along with his cohort, he conducted research on complementary and alternative medicine, publishing studies on Ayurvedic medicine, dietary supplements, and mind-body medicine. Dr. Venuturupalli then completed a rheumatology fellowship at the UCLA-Olive View medical program in 2002.
Dr. Venuturupalli's role as research investigator includes over a hundred clinical trials involving conditions such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory muscle diseases, ankylosing spondylitis, etc. He participates in ongoing rheumatology research with Dr. Daniel Wallace, a leading physician in the field, at the Cedars Sinai Division of Rheumatology. Dr. Venuturupalli lectures frequently to the general public and to the staff and faculty at Cedars Sinai Hospital on various topics in rheumatology, including alternative and complementary medicine. He was also recently invited to give grand rounds at Cedars on topics such as antiphospholipid syndrome and myositis. Dr. Venuturupalli has authored numerous text-book chapters, is published in peer-reviewed journals, and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Current Rheumatology Reviews.
For the past eight years, Dr. Venuturupalli has held a private practice in association with a group of 4 rheumatologists. Dr. Venuturupalli is highly regarded by his colleagues and is a sought-after teacher in his field of expertise. He has served as the past president of the Southern California Rheumatology Society, a non-profit professional organization of rheumatologists focusing on professional education.
Areas of expertise: Inflammatory Muscle disease, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Anti- Phospholipid syndrome, Sjogren's syndrome, Osteoporosis, Vasculitis.
The event will feature Senior ICT expert of DAI, Jessica Heinzelman, to do a talk on practical examples of mobile technologies in development. Come learn about Jessica and DAI’s work helping development projects and CSOs utilize ICT to improve the impact and scale of their work. She will share the process she takes to design effective projects through practical examples including providing legal information to 700,000 women and girls in Sierra Leone, using SMS to provide civic education and prevent conflict in Kenya, designing a biosecurity in Indonesia, and using mobiles to collect data with greater accuracy and efficiency.
Speaker Bio: Jessica Heinzelman is a Senior ICT Specialist with DAI. Jessica leverages her expertise in information communication technologies (ICTs), strategic design, partnerships and project management to advance international development objectives through contextually appropriate strategies and technology innovations. She has worked in Kenya, Nigeria, Tunisia, Burundi, South Africa, Jordan, Zambia, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Cambodia, Sierra Leone and Pakistan and traveled to over 33 countries globally. Ms. Heinzelman holds a Master of Arts in Law & Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.
eParticipation in East Africa: Theory, platforms and cases - Amahoro Mu MatoraVictor van R
eParticipation in East Africa: Theory, platforms and a case - Amahoro Mu Matora - from Burundi that is considered in detail. A lecture for the Virtual University of Uganda - www.virtualuni.ac.ug
Offered in Beirut by invitation, lots of interest but UN bureaucracy, like the US Government political leadership, is absolutely not interested in the truth at any cost even if it lowers all other costs.
Importance of information system in raising public awareness about domestic v...Masum Hussain
Across the globe, information system tools have helped fuel social movements. Information system has been shown to strengthen social actors’ ability to challenge and change power
relations in society, providing platforms for debate, reflection, influencing and mobilizing people. To better understand the potential of information system to engage especially young
people in efforts to prevent domestic violence the Partners for Prevention regional project, Engaging Young Men Through Information system for the Prevention of Domestic violence’
which supported information system awareness campaigns designed to raise awareness and motivate young people to take action to prevent domestic violence has revealed practical
lessons from three awareness campaigns on the effective use of information system tools for violence protection.
Big Data Hubris: Limitations in Aggregating Uber and Google DataTom Weinandy
Big data hubris is the belief that big data sets are a substitute for, rather than a supplement to, traditional data collection and analysis. Thomas will share how his understanding of big data has evolved during his economics research and why 273 million Uber trips is not considered “big” enough. He will also discuss lessons learned from the rise and fall of Google Flu Trends.
Is a Recession Coming? The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Economic TrendsTom Weinandy
There has been a lot of recent chatter by journalists, academics and businesses as to whether the next recession is imminent. But what does the data say? This session will analyze current trends that show both positive and negative signals on the strength and direction of the U.S. economy. It will also discuss the risks that could trigger a downturn. You will leave with a better understanding of how to interpret the economic trends reported in business news.
This poster was prepared for the 2011 Celebration of Scholarship at John Carroll University.
A major in Social Entrepreneurship teaches students to think critically and creatively, identifying innovative opportunities that solve social problems. It utilizes entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage purpose-driven ventures that create a positive change for society. Social Entrepreneurs are self-motivated individuals that strive toward the risky pursuit of an articulated mission.
See the proposal here: http://www.slideshare.net/TomWeinandy/major-in-social-entrepreneurship-proposal
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 3DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 3. In this session, we will cover desktop automation along with UI automation.
Topics covered:
UI automation Introduction,
UI automation Sample
Desktop automation flow
Pradeep Chinnala, Senior Consultant Automation Developer @WonderBotz and UiPath MVP
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
PHP Frameworks: I want to break free (IPC Berlin 2024)Ralf Eggert
In this presentation, we examine the challenges and limitations of relying too heavily on PHP frameworks in web development. We discuss the history of PHP and its frameworks to understand how this dependence has evolved. The focus will be on providing concrete tips and strategies to reduce reliance on these frameworks, based on real-world examples and practical considerations. The goal is to equip developers with the skills and knowledge to create more flexible and future-proof web applications. We'll explore the importance of maintaining autonomy in a rapidly changing tech landscape and how to make informed decisions in PHP development.
This talk is aimed at encouraging a more independent approach to using PHP frameworks, moving towards a more flexible and future-proof approach to PHP development.
Kubernetes & AI - Beauty and the Beast !?! @KCD Istanbul 2024Tobias Schneck
As AI technology is pushing into IT I was wondering myself, as an “infrastructure container kubernetes guy”, how get this fancy AI technology get managed from an infrastructure operational view? Is it possible to apply our lovely cloud native principals as well? What benefit’s both technologies could bring to each other?
Let me take this questions and provide you a short journey through existing deployment models and use cases for AI software. On practical examples, we discuss what cloud/on-premise strategy we may need for applying it to our own infrastructure to get it to work from an enterprise perspective. I want to give an overview about infrastructure requirements and technologies, what could be beneficial or limiting your AI use cases in an enterprise environment. An interactive Demo will give you some insides, what approaches I got already working for real.
GDG Cloud Southlake #33: Boule & Rebala: Effective AppSec in SDLC using Deplo...James Anderson
Effective Application Security in Software Delivery lifecycle using Deployment Firewall and DBOM
The modern software delivery process (or the CI/CD process) includes many tools, distributed teams, open-source code, and cloud platforms. Constant focus on speed to release software to market, along with the traditional slow and manual security checks has caused gaps in continuous security as an important piece in the software supply chain. Today organizations feel more susceptible to external and internal cyber threats due to the vast attack surface in their applications supply chain and the lack of end-to-end governance and risk management.
The software team must secure its software delivery process to avoid vulnerability and security breaches. This needs to be achieved with existing tool chains and without extensive rework of the delivery processes. This talk will present strategies and techniques for providing visibility into the true risk of the existing vulnerabilities, preventing the introduction of security issues in the software, resolving vulnerabilities in production environments quickly, and capturing the deployment bill of materials (DBOM).
Speakers:
Bob Boule
Robert Boule is a technology enthusiast with PASSION for technology and making things work along with a knack for helping others understand how things work. He comes with around 20 years of solution engineering experience in application security, software continuous delivery, and SaaS platforms. He is known for his dynamic presentations in CI/CD and application security integrated in software delivery lifecycle.
Gopinath Rebala
Gopinath Rebala is the CTO of OpsMx, where he has overall responsibility for the machine learning and data processing architectures for Secure Software Delivery. Gopi also has a strong connection with our customers, leading design and architecture for strategic implementations. Gopi is a frequent speaker and well-known leader in continuous delivery and integrating security into software delivery.
"Impact of front-end architecture on development cost", Viktor TurskyiFwdays
I have heard many times that architecture is not important for the front-end. Also, many times I have seen how developers implement features on the front-end just following the standard rules for a framework and think that this is enough to successfully launch the project, and then the project fails. How to prevent this and what approach to choose? I have launched dozens of complex projects and during the talk we will analyze which approaches have worked for me and which have not.
Connector Corner: Automate dynamic content and events by pushing a buttonDianaGray10
Here is something new! In our next Connector Corner webinar, we will demonstrate how you can use a single workflow to:
Create a campaign using Mailchimp with merge tags/fields
Send an interactive Slack channel message (using buttons)
Have the message received by managers and peers along with a test email for review
But there’s more:
In a second workflow supporting the same use case, you’ll see:
Your campaign sent to target colleagues for approval
If the “Approve” button is clicked, a Jira/Zendesk ticket is created for the marketing design team
But—if the “Reject” button is pushed, colleagues will be alerted via Slack message
Join us to learn more about this new, human-in-the-loop capability, brought to you by Integration Service connectors.
And...
Speakers:
Akshay Agnihotri, Product Manager
Charlie Greenberg, Host
Let's dive deeper into the world of ODC! Ricardo Alves (OutSystems) will join us to tell all about the new Data Fabric. After that, Sezen de Bruijn (OutSystems) will get into the details on how to best design a sturdy architecture within ODC.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
Software Delivery At the Speed of AI: Inflectra Invests In AI-Powered QualityInflectra
In this insightful webinar, Inflectra explores how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming software development and testing. Discover how AI-powered tools are revolutionizing every stage of the software development lifecycle (SDLC), from design and prototyping to testing, deployment, and monitoring.
Learn about:
• The Future of Testing: How AI is shifting testing towards verification, analysis, and higher-level skills, while reducing repetitive tasks.
• Test Automation: How AI-powered test case generation, optimization, and self-healing tests are making testing more efficient and effective.
• Visual Testing: Explore the emerging capabilities of AI in visual testing and how it's set to revolutionize UI verification.
• Inflectra's AI Solutions: See demonstrations of Inflectra's cutting-edge AI tools like the ChatGPT plugin and Azure Open AI platform, designed to streamline your testing process.
Whether you're a developer, tester, or QA professional, this webinar will give you valuable insights into how AI is shaping the future of software delivery.
Builder.ai Founder Sachin Dev Duggal's Strategic Approach to Create an Innova...Ramesh Iyer
In today's fast-changing business world, Companies that adapt and embrace new ideas often need help to keep up with the competition. However, fostering a culture of innovation takes much work. It takes vision, leadership and willingness to take risks in the right proportion. Sachin Dev Duggal, co-founder of Builder.ai, has perfected the art of this balance, creating a company culture where creativity and growth are nurtured at each stage.
5. Enabling Robust Multi-way
Communication in Crisis Scenarios
Aditya Vashistha
University of Washington
Joint work with Bill Thies at Microsoft Research India
www.ivrjunction.org
@ivrjunction
6. Voice Remains Primary Interface
for Mobile Subscribers
Most subscribers lack smart phones
Smart Phone: ~ 5%
Feature Phone: 50-70%
(e.g., music player)
Basic Phone: 30-50%
Mobile Internet: < 3% of subscribers
Internet Penetration is expected to be 19% in 2014
7. Literacy and Language Barriers
Literate
in English
Language
Known
Literate in
Other
Language
Non-Literate
Text interfaces are hindered by low literacy and language diversity!
How can we reach out to people who are low-literate?
How can we reach out to literate tribal people (limited font support)?
8. Designing Technology for People
Low-literate
Low SES
Dumb Phone
No Internet
Image Credit: Jayanta Shaw/Reuters/Corbis
13. More Advantages!
• Easy to Install, Configure and Maintain
• Resilient to Intermittent Power & Internet Outages
• Resilient to Internet Crackdown by Network
Provider or Internet
• All hardware fit in a laptop bag
14. Setting Up ‘Your’ Voice Forum
• Laptop
• Windows OS
• Internet
• IVR Junction Software (free)
• Free Web services
• YouTube account
• SkyDrive or Dropbox account
• Facebook page
• Paid Components
• GSM or Fixed line modem
($100 per port)
• Voxeo Prophecy 11
(free for 2 ports, $298 for 4 ports)
15. Protect Indian Women Voice Petition
Giving Voice to the Protestors in India
IVR Junction has enabled women rights activists from all
economic backgrounds and varied literacy levels to raise their
voice for advocating women safety and empowerment.
19. Lessons Learnt
Technology Amplifies Human Intent and Capacity; It
Doesn’t Substitute for Them - Kentaro Toyoma
Use technology only when necessary!
End Users Must Trust the (Technology) System
Work with “trusted” grassroots organizations!
20. Lessons Learnt
More Data is not Always Good; BAD Data Hurts!
Facts verification is critical especially in crisis
mapping!
Don’t Overestimate or Underestimate End Users
Some people struggle with even IVR and SMS;
Intrinsic motivation and intermediated use enable
some to perform complex tasks
23. Limits to crowdsourcing HR
violations
• Lack of quality information
• No (standard) taxonomy
• Lack of source evaluation
• Deduplication, verification and analysis
hampered
• Lack of feedback loops and empowerment
• Data security and users’ safety
24. How to address these
issues?
• Paradigm shift: from monologue to dialogue
• Low-tech (SMS or USSD)
• 5W1H questions
• Semantic and syntactic analyses combined with
machine learning and micro-tasking
• Ethics
25.
26.
27. Challenges
• Users’ safety and data security (USSD?)
• Low literacy rates and vernacular languages
(IVR + microtasking)
• Sensitization of user base
• Buy-in from NGOs and IOs
• Funding
28. Next steps
• ICCM Self-organized session @ 15:30 Room 7
• Finalize market research/SWOT analysis with OSJI
• Requirement analysis + Feasibility plan
• First prototype
• Pilot in situations
32. Generating, Mapping and Analyzing
Conflict Data
An Overview of Civil Society, Liberian
Government and United Nations
Collaboration in Liberia
33. Early Warning / Early Response
Actors
Comprise of civil society organizations, government
agencies, UN agencies and other international partners
working on issues of peacebuilding and conflict
prevention.
With support from Humanity United and other
partners, the Liberia Peacebuilding Office coordinates
the group
EWER Working Group comprises of 27 plus
organizations and a large network of communitybased reporters that work to provide relevant data via
frontline sms for the EWER incident-reporting
map, developed by Ushahidi (www.lern.ushahidi.com)
34. How does the group Work?
Organizations are grouped into clusters according
to their individual thematic focus ( some
organizations are in more than one cluster):
1. Warning
2. Response
3. Technology
4. Research
35. Strategic Approach to EWER in
Liberia
SA #1
The creation and support of a nationwide network
comprising of civil society, government and United
Nation organizations that are:
a. Collaborating and sharing information relating to
issues that could lead to widespread violence while
b. Formulating recommendations for policy makers on
ways of addressing those issues that threaten
peace and national security
36. Strategic Approach to EWER in
Liberia
SA #2
• The development of a community based early
warning and early response system involving
county peace committees which help identify
local conflict factors; and resolve and
transform these local conflicts through
mediation, dialogue and other community
initiatives.
37. SA #3
• Linking community based early warning / early
response actors with the Government’s
regional justice and security system through
rapid response centers in three regional hubs
38. What are we trying to achieve?
Short Term (1-3 years)
OUTPUS
OUTCOMES
IMPACT
Major potential community
violent conflicts in Liberia are
detected, mapped and dealt with
before escalating to the county
and national level.
1. Peacebuilding Office has the capacity to
collect, mapped assess and communicate
information on potential threat to peace both
at the community and national levels
2. Information from Community based EWER
systems reaches relevant decision makers and
the public, and informs early action in the
form of contingency planning and early
response for national and county level
3. Members of county peace committees are
trained to identify and report on ewer issues
and engage in first stage early response
activities
1. EWER through a
network of civil
society actors (
EWER Working
group)
2. EWER through
county peace
committees and other
community level
actors
39. How Short term?
Medium term
Existing initiatives
EWER Working group
Establishing a
community
based ewer
mechanism
involving
peace
committees
New initiatives/pilot
studies
EWER small
grants
initiatives to
build
capacity, moti
vate and
enable CSO to
engaged in
response
activities
1. Expand collection
and mapping
capabilities
2. Consolidation
3. Establishing
community managed
rapid response pool
fund
4. Comm-police rapid
response centers at
three regional hubs
40. ER Course of Action
• Watch – aggregate information as reports come
in
• Inquire – actively seek additional information
for ongoing analysis
• Analyze – conduct in-depth analysis with a view
of generating possible response
options, including setting up task forces to
intervene where necessary
• Refer – make referrals to state security
agencies, peace committees, etc
• Close – the issue is resolved and no further
action is anticipated
42. Some Lessons Learned Relating to
Mapping
• One will expect a low tech data collection method
like sms to be simple, but it proved difficult for some
• Constant feedback to reporters on data utilization is
necessary for motivation
• Mapping and even collating conflict trend data is
meaningless unless it comes with recommendations
for possible response
• Individual organization working early warning
achieve far less than when they operate in networks
and integrate their work in a coordinated manner
No data connection. Though overtime people will have more smart phones, it will still take a decade or two to fix the illiteracy problem. Internet penetration is very low even in small towns. But it is not a question of device. It’s a question of how people use a phone. People will continue to use the phone for voice communication
Stress on language diversity as well. How to customize UI?
Various socio-economic constraints: Earn less than $100 a monthDevice constraints: Basic mobile phone,No GPSHave no or low-literacy
Great Adoption!Intuitive to UseExpensiveIsolatedExtremely Hard toInstallConfigureMaintain
There are now 6 billion mobile phone subscribers around the world. The vast majority of these users are in the developing world.However, the capabilities of most mobile subscribers is far less than what we enjoy in rich countries. Most mobile subscribers have basic phones that support only voice calls and SMS. While they can use their phones to consume information – news, weather, sports, etc. – it is difficult or impossible for low-income users to be producers of information. In the world of the Internet, what proved most transformative was the ability for everyone to become a producer of user-generated content. How can we enable everyone to have a voice on the Internet, even if they have only a basic cell phone and limited literacy?IVR Junction accomplishes this goal by connecting an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system with global social media.Using IVR Junction, users place a phone call to a server, which anyone can configure using our software, a laptop, and an off-the-shelf modem. IVR Junction synchronizes these recordings with standard cloud-based services, including Facebook, YouTube, and SkyDrive. This enables anyone with a mobile phone to gain a global audience of millions of people. It also enables optional moderation of content using administrator features on YouTube.
The distributed architecture of IVR Junction enables not only affordability, but also flexibility and resilience to crackdown. Suppose that the physical location of one of the IVR Junction nodes is compromised. In this case, voice forum facilitators don’t need to shut down the whole service. What they need to do is to set up another node in the same geographic location. As soon as the new node (i.e., a new installation on a different laptop) is connected to the other nodes, it will automatically recover all the data, will be functional and start servicing the users of that geographic region/calling region of the crisis-ridden country immediately. Even if one node is compromised and is controlled by the people who are trying to shut down the service, the compromised node will be unable to distort or destroy the data collected using other nodes of IVR Junction. The only way to destroy or distort the data collected using all nodes of IVR Junction would be to take control of the master ship, which in this case is the content moderation channel (YouTube) which can be controlled from anywhere in the world and is resilient to local crackdown.
The biggest strength of our solution is that any individual or organization can set up a robust two-way communication portal in a few hours and run the whole IVR system just from an ordinary Windows-based laptop (no fancy servers required!). In most of the developing countries and crisis ridden countries, many geographic locations have intermittent availability of electricity and Internet connectivity. IVR Junction is designed to run on a low-end laptop or computer. The low cost, ease of deployment and mobility of the laptop enables non-expert users to set up the system by themselves. Also, while the GSM modem requires an electrical outlet, the remainder of IVR Junction is tolerant to intermittent power and Internet outages. The modems are low-powered and can work with an external battery or solar panel in case of power outages. Each local repository is synchronized with the cloud in an opportunistic manner, depending on the available Internet connectivity. The access points of IVR Junction can be scaled up to support many parallel callers. Modems can be added incrementally, with calls forwarded between numbers that are busy (i.e. by using line hunting logic). The whole IVR system and hardware, laptop installed with IVR Junction, GSM modems, GSM SIM cards, external battery or solar panel and USB dongle for Internet, can fit into a laptop bag. This provides an excellent opportunity to change the location and set it up again in case of threat of natural disaster or physical crackdown Conflicts and crises often occur in places where existing telecommunications and Internet infrastructure can become unreliable, compromised and even manipulated by those seeking to do harm during a crisis. In the extreme scenario of a long-term, nationwide crackdown on Internet services within a country, the IVR Junction server and data can easily be ported to a Universal International Freephone Number15 which is hosted in a different country.
Explain the components as you are describing themi.e. Utility of Dropbox/SkyDrive, YouTube Channel, Prophecy etc.
IVR Junction is enabling women rights activists from all economic backgrounds and varied literacy levels to use their phones to raise their voice for advocating women safety and empowerment.IVR Junction is used to create a new kind of petition which is:More persuasiveWell articulated Emotionally effectiveAnd displays stronger association with a cause
Somaliland has a functioning and organic democracy that combines the traditional tribal representation and elected parliamentarians.But there is a disconnectbetween ruling elites and the public which leads to instability and misinformationbecause of the fragile tribal structure in the region. Commerce and media outlets are concentrated in cities like Hargeisa, Barbra and Burco. This imbalance of regions creates a sense of political alienation between rural communities and the capital city.a) The state-owned radio, newspapers do not reach remote areasb) Newspapers have regional, tribal and political affiliation. This leads to facts distortion and misinterpretation. This media fragmentation causes instability especially in tribal and conflict zones as study commissioned by Somaliland’s Academy of Peace and Development.Newspapers are the main source of critical information, but literacy level is too low, which makes it difficult for majority of the population to get accurate information. We want to examine how audio feed of public institutions and important figures can decrease misinformation, which a major problem in Somaliland.
IVR Junction has enabled a live audio discussion forum on the official parliament website of Somaliland! Both members of parliament as well as ordinary citizens discussed on the issues related to governance. This webpage is just one click away from the parliament home page. (About the Parliament -> Public Feedback).
People in Mali can now call a number to listen 3 minute news broadcast by Voice of AmericaThey can also record their feedback, comments, questions and news itemsAll user generated recordings are accessible on a YouTube channel for global audience
We are deploying IVR Junction with numerous partners around the world. Example deployments include:In Mali, the Voice of America is using IVR Junction to disseminate news and collect feedback from listeners.In Somaliland, the parliament is using IVR Junction to foster two-way communication between legislators and the rural population.In India, we are using IVR Junction in support of women’s rights dialogues as well as a cultural channel for the visually impaired.Collectively the system has recorded messages from over 20,000 callers.