[huridocs-tech] Impact of ICTs on Democratization and Good Governance

The DOT-COM Alliance and the InterAction Information and Communications
Technology Group invite you to attend an ICT Speaker Series Event

"The Impact of ICTs on Democratization and Good Governance"

Thursday, June 5, 4-6pm
Academy for Educational Development Conference Center
1825 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 8th Floor
Washington, DC  20009

This event is open to the public and we encourage you to distribute this
message to others.

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The first session of the series focuses on Democracy and Good Governance
and will explore the theories and practices around technology policies
and e-government strategies.

An esteemed panel of speakers will present their views on the impacts of
information and communication technologies on democratization and good
governance. A discussion will follow the presentations and participants
will have the opportunity to share their experiences and best practices
in this area.


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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
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Moderator:

Dr. Eric Rusten
Deputy Director, dot-ORG, The Academy for Educational Development
Dr. Rusten will moderate this session and speak on the role of
non-governmental organizations in advancing technology in the government
sector in developing countries. As the Deputy Director for the USAID
funded dot-ORG program (part of the DOT-COM Alliance), Dr. Rusten works
to address the digital divide through increasing public access to ICTs
and developing innovative applications of these technologies to tackle
development needs. Most recently, he has developed and implemented
e-government programs in Rwanda and Romania.

Speakers:

Dr. George Sadowsky
Executive Director, Global Internet Policy Initiative, Senior Technical
Advisor, dot-GOV
Dr Sadowsky will describe legal and regulatory reforms and the policy
framework that will foster the development of an open and democratic
Internet in developing countries. As the executive director of the
Global Internet Policy Initiative (GIPI), and Senior Technical Advisor
for dot-GOV, another USAID funded DOT-COM program, Dr. Sadowsky assists
countries in redefining and evolving their policy environments - their
legal systems, their regulatory structures, and other policies - so that
the benefits of the Internet and related information and communication
technologies can be more rapidly and fully realized by all sectors of
society.

Dr. Michael Hudson
Professor of International Relations and Seif Ghobash Professor of Arab
Studies Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University
Dr. Hudson will discuss the impact of information technologies on civil
society and democratization in the Middle East. As the Saif Ghobash
Professor of Arab Studies and Professor of International Relations in
the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, Dr. Hudson has
written extensively on how information technologies, Islamist networks
and the changing political terrain in the Middle East have impacted
democratization in the Arab world.

Mr. Ari Schwartz
Associate Director, Center for Democracy and Technology
Mr. Swartz will speak on the effects of e-government on democratization
and good governance.  As the Associate Director of the Center for
Democracy and Technology, Mr. Schwartz works on expanding access to
government information via the Internet. He explores the impact of
online advocacy on civil society and focuses on defending and building
privacy protections by advocating for increased individual control over
personal information.

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DISCUSSION AND RECEPTION
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After the presentations, there will be time for questions and
discussion. An informal reception will follow the presentations.

The DOT-COM/InterAction ICT Speaker Series is intended to explore ways
in which Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) impact
development efforts. The main goals of the speaker series include
sharing information about innovative and effective uses of technology in
development efforts, building a community around a broad spectrum of
information technology interests, and exploring gaps and challenges to
effective implementation and use of technologies in our work.

This event is open to the public, and we encourage you to distribute
this message to others.

RSVPs are not required but would be appreciated and can be sent to Julie
Fossler at <jfossler@interaction.org>. The Academy for Educational
Development Conference Center is located at 1825 Connecticut Avenue, NW,
8th Floor, in Washington, DC.

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If you have questions or comments, please email Siobhan Green,
Information and Dissemination Coordinator, DOT-COM Alliance,
<sgreen@aed.org>


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