Raising the Bar
Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to share the NDITech team's work in citizen technology, open data and open government, and internet freedom at MediaBarCamp in Vilnius, Lithuania. For those that may not be familiar with BarCamp, it is an international network of user-generated conferences (also known as "unconferences") that feature open, participatory workshop-events, the content of which is provided by participants. The beauty of this design is that attendees are able to help shape the discussions and mold the event structure to serve their needs.
MediaBarCamp provides the opportunity to stimulate development of new media projects in Belarus, but also arrange coordination between existing projects in the region. This year, MediaBarCamp was able to bring together projects from around the world, including other closed societies, to help participants exchange information on how to successfully operate despite media restrictions and other challenges that impact freedom of expression and access to information.
Several of the presentations [disclaimer: most presentations are in Russian] provide valuable insight into what technologies and platforms are widely used inside Belarus, raised awareness of digital security practices that users should embrace, as well as other projects pertaining to IT education, use of new media and mobile apps, and other creative uses of technology to foster public interest in technology and media issues.
Discussions around these different projects helped inspire other participants to innovate their ongoing work based on the experiences of their counterparts in other countries. I know I and my other colleagues here at NDI look forward to seeing how these projects progress at next year's MediaBarCamp.