But technology can be a double-edged sword, capable of bringing as much harm as it can good - this has been the case for all new technologies. This double-edged dilemma is often unintentional, an unexpected by-product of new technology having an unforeseen impact on its users.

Case in point is that of television - which brought free entertainment and timely news into the homes of millions, enriching their lives and bringing rural and urban closer together, helping to bring an end to the information gap that separated urban centers from the vast rural expanses. But TV also brought new pressures to conform and assimilate. In isolated regions like the Arctic, the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada described the impact of TV on the long-isolated villages of the North as "neutron bomb television" - contributing to the erosion of the Inuit language and culture. To counter this threat posed by these alien broadcast signals, the Inuit learned how to make their own TV programs, and before long had their own dedicated broadcast network - planting the seed for the emergence of Canada's nationwide, indigenous broadcast network, APTN. In the village of Igloolik, a small Inuit production company names Isuma made the very first Inuit feature film, The Fast Runner, winning the Camera d'Or for Best First Feature Film at the Cannes Film Festival in 2001 -- and helping to launch a wave of indigenous indy-filmmaking. Now, Isuma.tv provides the world's indigenous people with their own website for sharing their video creations.

Our founder had the privilege of working in the Arctic for nearly a decade during the 1990s, participating in the movement to re-appropriate print, radio and TV media and harness them as tools to preserve traditional indigenous language and culture - watching how these new technologies, when in the hands of local peoples, can give them a voice, reinvigorate their confidence, and help foster a sense of balanced development, without sacrificing traditional knowledge and traditions. In this way, the villages of the North could preserve their unique perspective and treasure chest of historical knowledge, while gaining the skills necessary to participate in the new digital economy.

The Internet is even more powerful than broadcasting as a transformative medium. That's because it's both interactive, fostering communication between its millions of users, and because its barrier to entry is so low. Television production once required expensive equipment and an even more expensive means of distribution, whether by satellite, local transmitters, or cable - all cost-prohibitive infrastructure for the developing world.

But to participate in the Internet revolution and to become a content creator and distributor costs just a small fraction of traditional broadcasting - meaning more and more people can participate in the digital renaissance if provided with its basic tools. That is where Technology for a Small Planet comes in.

Planting the Seeds for Technology Innovation

Technology for a Small Planet believes that the first step toward greater inclusion and participation is making more widely available the many technology-components that define the new ICT ecosystem: digital still and video cameras; digital audio recorders and players; mobile and ultramobile PCs; free software to publish or broadcast on the web through blogs, podcasts, audio/video/photo sharing, and other web-based media.

We focus on the gadgets and devices whose revolutionary impact can be compared to that of Gutenberg's press, and which are generally mobile, easy to transport, and thus idea to transfer from wealthy communities to poor ones. Other organizations are hard at work helping to bring the Internet and wireless communications networks to communities in the developing world, such as Inveneo.org; our mission is to foster the proliferation of digital devices that people can use to record their traditions, preserve their languages, and which can then be disseminated over the emerging voice and data networks working their way to villages around the world.

While the world is getting smaller, it is still a vast place, and we know we can't help close the digital divide everywhere or all at once - that's why we're starting slowly, identifying pilot projects where we can make a difference.

Preserving Indigenous Culture and Language

The world is filled with thousands of unique and precious indigenous languages, spoken by and large by an aging population whose numbers are declining. As we lose our elders, we lose our connection to the past, and all the traditional knowledge and customs preserved by indigenous language speakers. In a generation, much of the world's traditional knowledge will disappear unless we act now to slow this erosion. We know that we can't stop the pace of economic globalization, nor do we want to. We believe connecting to the digital economy can lift isolated communities out of poverty. But we also believe the very same tools used to connect the world can also be used to preserve traditional knowledge before it disappears.

If you live in or work with a community with a surviving indigenous language that faces the risk of linguistic extinction, and would like us to donate new tools of digital creativity so you can record your elders' stories, songs and lessons, as well as capture images of traditional village life, let us know. Similarly, if you have, or work with an organization or company that has, surplus digital equipment available for donation, particularly older but functional digital cameras suitable for screen images (ie, 1 to 3 megapixel cameras), let us know. We will work with you to place your equipment to help fulfill these goals. 

We know that we can't go it alone, so we will work hard at identifying likeminded organizations that share our vision, and who are already hard at work in the communities around the disconnected world that are in need of new technology - so that they, too, can cross the digital divide, and join the digital world. We've worked with or are in discussion with such organizations as the Albert Einstein Institution promoting nonviolent change around the world, and the Mosuo Cultural Development Organization, working to preserve the language and culture of the Mosuo people of the Lugu Lake area. If your organization or community is working to cross the digital divide, let Technology for a Small Planet know, so that we can work together!

While setting up our first pilot project in Vietnam last year, we worked out of an Internet café in the lobby of Camellia's Guest House in Sapa, in the northern part of the country near the Chinese border. Every evening, it filled up with young Hmong teens surfing the web, using video and text IM to communicate in their own language, and also for sending messages in our language to new friends all over the world. Of fascination to us was the fact these Hmong youngsters could not read or write in English, yet they were able to adapt - finding travelers from overseas able to translate e-mails and IMs for them and help them compose replies.

On the road to Tibet a few weeks later, near the Yunnan border, we came across another Internet café filled with young junior monks in their bright red and orange robes, similarly communicating with our world at large at night, while studying their traditions during the day. Straddling the digital and the disconnected world, these young people are pointing the way toward balanced development, adapting modern ICT tools to build a bridge between both worlds. 

Yet not far from both of these Internet cafes were very poor villages lacking electricity and paved roads, where horse-drawn carts and water buffalo are still in wide use, and where the promise of the digital renaissance seems a far-off dream. New technology has yet to work its way down the road just a short distance - not unlike our very own 'last mile' problem that slowed the growth of broadband in the digital world. Our digital world, while so close, continues to remain a world away for so many - yet is a world full of promise and hope.

So what can you do?

Technology Donors

If you are an individual or organization in the digital world with surplus ICT equipment ready to be replaced; old digital cameras, camcorders or audio recorders in your attic or basement; or if you represent an ICT vendor with overstock inventory that's now obsolete and needs to cleared off your shelves, let Technology for a Small Planet know: some of this equipment might prove quite valuable, often with little or no refurbishing - whether around the world, or in a nearby community where the digital renaissance has yet to make its presence felt. So before you discard your older ICT equipment, contact Technology for a Small Planet - we might be able to find a user who will truly appreciate your kindness. Similarly, if you're an ICT vendor and your products are manufactured in East Asia close to the communities we work with, it's even easier to donate equipment to us - since distribution to communities in need is much easier.

As an alternative, if you would like to donate cash to Technology for a Small Planet, we can use that cash to buy PC and communications gear on the open market close to a community in need, removing the high costs of shipping and import tariffs, and speeding up deployment to the community in need. Technology for a Small Planet can work with your generous donation to develop an ICT project where your cash will do wonders, helping a community on its journey across the digital divide.

 

We are not yet a registered charitable organization, so can not offer you a tax deduction - yet! But in late 2008 we expect to be able to become a registered charitable foundation. In the meantime, many of our partners are registered charities so if you donate directly to them, you might be able to enjoy some near-term tax relief.

Partner Communities and Organizations

If you work with a nonprofit, community, or educational organization that serves a disconnected community anywhere in the world, whether here in the forgotten corners of America or on the far side of our planet, and in need of computer and communications equipment that could benefit your community, let us know. We'll work hard to help bring together the necessary ICT equipment and expertise to help your community fulfill its dreams, and to build the connections it needs to become part of the digital world.

Who's Who:

Staff:
Barry Zellen
Founder/Executive Director

Harold Abraham
Office Assistant 

Advisory Board:
Ha Cao
Hanoi, Vietnam/Cambridge, MA

Arthur Chin
Cupertino, CA

Edwin Kolausok
Yellowknife, NT, Canada

Jimson Lee
Vancouver, BC, Canada

Qiang Li
Shanghai, China

Corey Taylor
Montreal, QC, Canada/Cambridge, MA

Location:
Technology for a Small Planet
955 Massachusetts Ave, #352
Cambridge, MA 02139

Contact:
Phone: (716) 432-0037
Email: editor@technologyinnovator.com


We are still accepting new advisory board members to provide guidance to our efforts to bridge the digital divide.