A recent file for copyright of Birkam yoga has attracted new attention to the Indian government’s efforts to safeguard their traditional knowledge. The Indian government has put a group together which is working on protecting material such as ancient texts written in Sanscrit, Urdu and Persian, yoga positions, and traditional healing practices. The Indian government has already set up a database for this knowledge called the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (you need a member to use it), which will eventually function in English, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish. This project started back in 2001 with collaboration from National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR), the Department of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy, the and Department of Industrial Policy and Promotio. The project is expected to be completed in December 2008.

Such a massive project might initially seem unrealistic and daunting to tackle, specially since patents are usually given to “new” inventions, but given this increasingly growing practice by private companies to patent and restrict use to plants and practices that have been used for millennia, maybe this isn’t such a crazy idea after all.

India’s push to protect its traditional knowledge actually began a while back. In 2003 India proposed a law to fight “protect traditional knowledge and Western piracy [...] knowledge“. This proposal sought to encourage disclosure of traditional knowledge and reward those who help out. Once the information was gathered, it could be patented and thus protected from encroachment.

Earlier this month Suketu Mehta wrote an opinion piece in the International Herald Tribune where she points out the contradictions and complications with this process. She points out that knowledge in India has been protected through caste lines, not legal or economic ones, and that while piracy is common in India, often Indians get upset when Westerners make money of their traditional knowledge. In the end she comments that this new practice of wanting to claim ownership of everything is hurting those in the developing world. In 2005, under pressure from the WTO, the Indian Parliament passed a law making it illegal to make generic versions of patented medications. This in a national with over a billion people, many of which live in absolute poverty.

We’ll see where all this rush to put everything in private hands ends up…

You can see and read more on the subject from PBS; USA Today; BBC.

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Room to Read is an amazing nonprofit organization founded by John Wood, a former executive at Microsoft who had his life flipped upside down after traveling to Nepal. On this trip Wood realized that books are very scarce in many corners of the world, and while at a local school a man commented that maybe Wood might return some day with books. This simple comment stayed with him, and indeed he did return, not just once, but repeatedly, and with books, lots of them.

Today this simple idea of bringing books to people who need them has become a major organization dedicated to bringing not only libraries, but educational opportunities to people in need. Room to Read began in Nepal, but has expanded into Cambodia, India, Laos, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and South Africa. Room to Read has also started granting scholarships for girls to attend school, creating opportunities for young girls who might otherwise never have gotten a chance to attend school. The organization has also branched into publishing, printing books with local, relevant stories and in bilingual editions. They are also working on creating computer & language labs. The idea is to narrow the digital divide, and to help children become world players by being able to engage the world both in their native language as well as in English.

Room to Reads success has likely come from Wood’s endless dedication to this mission, as much as to the fact that he has surrounded himself with highly motivated people and has worked hard to keep the organization’s overhead costs as low as possible. In the coming years they hope to begin working in Latin America, and continue expanding in Asia.

John Wood has written a book recounting his story of how this organization came to be; “Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.”

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Now when pollution and global warming seem to be an accepted concern, people around the world are trying to come up with new option for running their cars (instead of opting for NOT running their cars, but that’s another story).

Brazil has had great success with ethanol produced from sugar cane, and the USA has been working on producing ethanol from corn, although this isn’t such a great alternative since the agribusiness in the USA consumes so much fertilizer, pesticides, energy and water, that running cars on corn based ethanol won’t really be helping the environment. Yet around the world people are still working on this problem and coming up with interesting, possible, solutions.

In Jagdalpur, India, a few people have begun growing jatropha, which produced seeds that can be made into biofuel. This plant can grow in wetlands and apparently can produce four times as much biofuel per hectare than soybeans, and ten times more than corn! According to an article in the Christian Science Monitor, several Indian states have been encouraging this crop by starting farmers out with 500 free saplings.

Papua New Guinea has been experimenting with biofuel coming from coconut oil which is widely available on the island. An article in the BBC says that the people on the island of Bougainville have received inquiry request for this new development from as far as Europe and Iran. An interesting aspect of this project is that the oil is being produced in backyard refineries, thus creating more employment. There are also projects working to make biofuel from feedstock algae. Currently this sounds easier in theory than in practice, but they might just get it right in the future.

Here’s also a crash course on biofuels – according to the USA department of Energy.

Feeling a little adventuresome? Here are instructions on making your own biofuel.

05.15.07 – Japan is also experimenting with biofuels. The University of Tokyo is funding a project to make biofuel out of discarded rice hulls to be converted into ethanol. Japan is currently the second largest consumer of gasoline, after the USA. Read more about this project here.

06.11.07 – While in some cases biofuels seems to be a favorable approach to the burning of fossil fuels, in Colombia they seem to be causing poverty, displacement and violence. On June 5, 2007 the Guardian had an article about armed forces in Colombia, mainly paramilitaries, driving peasants off the land in order to promote palm oil for biofuel. The bizarre twist seems to be that the paramilitaries have realized that this is a cash crop that can be promoted without fear of eradication by the Colombian government, nor does it attract negative attention from the rest of the world, particularly from the USA and it’s never ending battle to fight drugs. The article also mentioned some of the peasants wanting to fight back, but finding out that deeds to their land had been falsified and thus had been “bought” by larger farmers. Colombia currently has about 3 million internally displaced people, making it one of the world’s worse cases, along with Darfur and Congo. And while the USA has spent over $5 billion for Plan Colombia, coca production rose by 8% last year.

06.21.07 – Today an article in the BBC highlighted yet another possible source for biofuels – fruit. This proposed fuel, called dimethylfuran, is said to hold 40% more energy than ethanol, does not evaporate so quickly, and is less volatile. Still the article mentioned the foreseeable problem of having fuel production compete for land with regular food crops.

06.25.07 – The Christian Science Monitor has yet another article of the world wide ripple effect biofuels are causing. Every year Mexico grows large amounts of agave to produce a national staple, tequila. But currently agave growers are starting to replace their traditional agave fields, some of which have been designated World Heritage sites by UNESCO, in order to grow corn for the growing USA demand for ethanol. This starting trend endangers not only a national, cultural, staple, but also puts the nation’s poorest at risk of hunger, since corn tortillas have been historically relied on to fend off starvation.

06.08.07 – Today the BBC has an article about his palm oil production for biofuels in Kalimantan has displaced numerous farmers off the land, some without any compensation. The EU’s promise to replace 10% of its transportation fuel, along with other demands for biofuels had pushed large companies to produce the crop however possible, in some cases leading to abuse of local farmers. Still negotiations are beginning to take place, some with the help of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which brings together retail, producers, and a variety of NGOs.

08.17.07 – An article in the BBC today says that a UK based team of scientist believe that reforestation and habitat protection would provide better results per square foot, than using the land to produce crops for biofuels. However, they do explain that so called second generation biofuels, meaning those that use feedstock, such as straw, grasses and wood, rather than grain and palm oils offered much better land conversion rates.

08.22.07 – Today the Guardian has an article about how the demand for biofuels, specially those made out of Maize have caused tortilla prices in Mexico to soar. Tortillas are a staple food in Mexicans diets, and the food item that has historically kept the poorest people from starving. The Mexican government negotiated a price freeze in February, but there is still fear that increase demand for Maize for fuel production will continue to jeopardize people’s ability to avoid hunger.

Image info here.

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As mentioned in a previous post, OpenCourseWare is a project which aims at providing high quality educational material on the web for free. Lucifer Chu, a man who became wealthy by creating Chinese translations of fantasy novels, is helping promote MIT courses available through this media, to the Chinese speaking world. To date, Mr. Chu, along with four full-time editors and a number of volunteers have completed translations for 178 courses and are working on about 600 more. CORE, China Open Resources for Education has also contributed to translations with versions in simplified Chinese. Opensource OpenCourseware Prototype System (OOPS) has contributed translations in traditional Chinese.

When MIT decided to join OpenCourseWare, some feared that making their course content available for free on the web would discourage potential students from actually coming to the university and paying tuition. Instead the university has notices that these free courses have served to pique people’s curiosity about what is available at the university, so plenty of students from all around the globe are still enrolling every year.

You can find the NY Times article on the matter here.

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One Laptop per Child (OLPC) is a non-profit organization trying to address the lack of resources many Third World Countries struggle with and how these affect education and hinder technological development. Keeping in mind that many countries can only afford to spend $20 per child per year on education (compared to about $7,500 that the USA spends), OLPC tries to circumvent traditional approaches to the situation, and instead want to make available the tools that can allow children to explore and learn on their own. OLPC feel that efforts should continue to build school and train teachers in the poorest corners of the world, but simultaneously wants to try a more direct approach. The idea is to transform these children with personal laptops into teachers. Each child can explore the world on their machine, and will later be able to teacher elders and other children about what they have learned; in this way the entire community can benefit.

These laptops are designed for use by the world’s poorest children. They run on open source software, keeping in mind that while all children won’t become programmers, they should have the opportunity to continue growing without constrains by their equipment. The machine itself is designed to run on very low power, and some of the earliest models were powered through cranking, or with a foot-pedal. The display must also be sunlight-readable, since most children will be outdoors when working on their laptops. The machine itself is small, light and has a handle for easy carrying. It also has a monitor which rotates, allowing for others to participate.

This program was first designed to involved governments into buying laptops for children, and initial conversations involved proposals for Brazil, Argentina, Libya, Nigeria and Thailand. Recently Uruguay and Rwanda have also joined in. Currently the program continues to grow through donations by individuals, businesses and foundations.

If you want to learn more about the project visit their site and their wiki. You can find information on donating and participating here.

04.03.07 – I just found a webcast by Walter Bender, president of OLPC, discussing this project; you can access it here. There is another webcast by Nicolas P. Negroponte, chairman and co-founder of OLPC,which can be accessed here.

04.17.07 – The OLPC interface runs on a lightweight version of Fedora Linux, called Sugar. You can take a look at it here.

07.15.07 – Intel has just joined forces with OLPC, after creating competition for each other, in trying to offer low cost computers to children in the developing world. Currently there is no talk about changing processing chips, yet the idea is to develop a variety of low cost computers in the future that can function of a variety of platforms. Intel has been producing the Classmate for sale in developing countries at a cost of US $200.00. You can read more about this in an article by the BBC.

07.23.07 – After much anticipation and testing, OLPC is posed to start massive production, explaining that they finally have orders large enough to make the project viable. You can read more about this at an article by the BBC. And here is another article explaining the different components of the laptop and how they work.

06.08.07 – It seems that everyone is in a rush to grab a piece of the computer market in the developing world. Today the BBC has an article about other major computer producers rushing towards this market, although they differ form the OLPC project in that these other companies are out just to make some money. Beijing based Levono has announced a low cost computer that can be plugged into the TV

10.29.30- Uruguay just became the first country to buy a large number of these computers to make available to children 6 – 12. They hope to make these laptops available to every children in the country by 2009. You can read more about this in an article from the BBC.

11.15.07 – “Give One – Get One” has started for the USA and Canada and will run until November 26, 2007. You can order yours here.

One Laptop per Child (OLPC) es una organización sin fines de lucro tratando de resolver la falta de recursos vivida en muchos lugares del Tercer Mundo y cómo estos afectan la educación y obstaculizan el desarrollo tecnológico. Teniendo en cuenta que muchos países sólo pueden gastar $20 por niño por año en educación (en comparación con cerca de 7.500 dólares que EE.UU. gasta), la OLPC intenta sobrepasar los enfoques tradicionales de la situación y en su lugar desea poner a disposición las herramientas que pueden permitir a los niños explorar y aprender por su propia cuenta. OLPC sienten que los esfuerzos deben continuar para construir escuelas y formar maestros en los rincones más pobres del mundo pero a la vez quiere probar un acercamiento más directo. La idea es transformar a estos niños con computadoras portátiles personales en profesores. Cada niño puede explorar el mundo en su máquina y más tarde será capaz de compartir este conocimiento con sus maestros y otros niños, de esta manera toda la comunidad pueda beneficiarse.

Estos portátiles están diseñados para uso con los niños más pobres del mundo. Los computadores funcionan con software de código abierto teniendo en cuenta que si bien no todos los niños se convertirán en programadores, si deben tener la oportunidad de continuar creciendo sin limitaciones por su equipo. La máquina en sí está diseñado para funcionar con una corriente eléctrica muy baja y algunos de los primeros modelos se cargan a través una manivela, o con un pedal. La pantalla también debe ser legible bajo luz solar, ya que la mayoría de los niños estarán al aire libre cuando estén trabaja en sus computadoras portátiles. La máquina en sí es pequeña, ligera y tiene un agarradera para facilitar su transporte. También cuenta con un monitor que rota, lo que permite a otros a participar.

Este programa fue diseñado por primera vez para negociar con gobiernos involucrados en la compra de computadores portátiles para los niños. En la conversaciones iniciales incluían propuestas para la participación de Brasil, Argentina, Libia, Nigeria y Tailandia. Recientemente, Uruguay y Rwanda también se han unido. Actualmente el programa sigue creciendo a través de donaciones de particulares, empresas y fundaciones.

Si desea obtener más información sobre el proyecto visite su sitio web y en su wiki. Puede encontrar información sobre la donación y participar aquí.

04.03.07 – Acabo de encontrar un webcast por Walter Bender, presidente de OLPC, hablando de este proyecto, se puede acceder a él aquí. Hay otro webcast por Nicolas P. Negroponte, presidente y co-fundador de OLPC que se puede acceder aquí.

04.17.07 – La interfaz de OLPC funciona con una versión ligera de Fedora Linux, llamado Sugar. Puede echar un vistazo a aquí.

07.15.07 – Intel ha unido sus fuerzas con OLP, después de hacerse la competencia unos a otros, para tratar de ofrecer ordenadores de bajo costo a los niños en el tercer mundo. Actualmente no se habla sobre el cambio de chips de procesamiento, pero la idea es desarrollar una variedad de computadoras de bajo costo en el futuro que puede funcionar de una variedad de plataformas. Intel ha estado produciendo el Classmate en venta en los países en desarrollo a un costo de EE.UU. $ 200.00. Puede leer más sobre esto en un artículo de la BBC.

07.23.07 – Después de mucha anticipación y las pruebas la OLPC se plantea comenzar la producción masiva, explicando que finalmente tienen órdenes lo suficientemente grande como para hacer viable el proyecto. Puede leer más sobre esto en un artículo de la BBC. Y aquí hay otro artículo que explica los diferentes componentes de la computadora portátil y su funcionamiento.

06.08.07 – Parece que todo el mundo tiene prisa para tomar un pedazo del mercado de las computadoras en el mundo en desarrollo. Hoy la BBC tiene un artículo acerca de otros productores importantes de la computadora guiadas a este mercado, y aunque difieren del proyecto OLPC, en que estas otras empresas simplemente buscan ganar dinero. Levono, basada en Beijin, ha anunciado un equipo de bajo costo que puede ser conectado a la TV

10.29.30-Uruguay acaba de convertirse en el primer país en comprar un gran número de estos equipos para ponerlos a disposición de los niños entre 6 – 12 años. Tienen la esperanza de que estos portátiles estén a disposición de todos los niños en el país antes del 2009. Puede leer más sobre esto en un artículo de la BBC.

11.15.07 – “Give One – Get One” ha comenzado para los EE.UU. y Canadá, y se extenderá hasta el 26 de noviembre 2007. Usted puede pedir el suyo aquí.

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I’m still not over my fascination with open source, so here is more on the subject…

I just learned about the OpenCourseWare which “is a free and open digital publication of high quality educational materials, organized as courses.” Basically, through open source software it aims at providing anyone who can get online the highest quality of education available on this planet at absolutely no charge; Amazing! The Open Course Ware Consortium, which administers this initiative, states that their goals are to encourage the adoption of this systems, develop new courses, and ensure the program’s long term sustainability.

Currently for educational institutions to participate in this program, they must commit to publishing material from at least ten courses, under the institution’s name. In some cases, educational institutions have gone much further. MIT has joined OpenCourseWare and currently make ALL their course content available to everyone. Basically you can get an MIT education for free, you just don’t have access to professors, nor do you get the diploma at the end. In MIT’s case, some professors have eagerly embraced the program, while others are very upset about this, feeling that this initiative in undermining the university’s main role, which is that of selling intellectual property. You can listen/read NPRs Market Place report on the matter here.

Currently educational institutions in 17 countries world wide, plus a variety of NGOs have joined OpenCourseWare to help promote education. Among those participating in the USA are MIT, Harvard’s Law School Berkman Center for Internet and Society, The University of Notre Dame, and John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Around the world you can find courses from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (Colombia), Kyoto University (Japan), Universidad de Monterrey (Mexico), and the University of Klagenfurt (Austria), among many others. Some of the NGOs involved include the African Virtual University, Creative Commons, and China Open Resources for Education (CORE).

(This was initially used as a post for my Technology class.)

Todavía no se me pasa la fascinación con el movimiento de “open source”, así es que aquí hay un poco mas sobre el tema…

Me acabo de enterar del proyecto OpenCourseWare, una plataforma de contenido educacional de alto nivel, abierto a todos, y organizado como cursos académicos, todo completamente gratis. Básicamente, por medio de software abierto el proyecto estará ofreciendo a todo quien tenga acceso al Internet, una educación de la mas alta calidad, sin costo alguno. ¡Simplemente sorprendente! El Consorcio de OpenCourseWare, quien administra este proyecto, explica que su meta es la adopción de este sistema, la continuación del desarrollo de cursos, y trabajar para que el proyecto sea viable a largo plazo.

Actualmente para que una institución académica pueda participar, esta debe comprometerse a ofrecer el contenido de por lo menos 10 cursos, bajo el nombre de dada institución. En algunos casos, algunas instituciones académicas han ido mucho mas lejos. MIT se unio al OpenCourseWare de lleno, ofreciendo absolutamente todo su contenido académico. A lo único que no tendrá acceso será a los profesores, ni tendrá diploma al final del curso. En el caso de MIT, algunos profesores han visto el proyecto con muy buenos ánimos, mientras otros no esta de acuerdo, alegando que el punto de la institución es vender su propiedad intelectual, y que si se regala esta, la institución dejara de tener una razón para existir. Usted puede escuchar el programa radial de NPR, Market Place tratando el tema, aquí.

Actualmente 17 instituciones alrededor del mundo, además de varias ONGs se han unido al proyecto de OpenCourseWare para ayudar a promover la educación de todos. Entre aquellos que participan en EEUU están MIT, el Berkman Center for Internet and Society, La Universidad de Notre Dame, y la facultad de Salud Publica de la Universidad John Hopkins. Alrededor del mundo podrá encontrar cursos de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia (Colombia), la Universidad de Kyoto (Japón), la Universidad de Monterrey (México), y la Universidad de Klagenfurt (Austria), entre muchas otras. Algunas de las ONG participando son la Universidad Virtual Africana, Creative Commons, y China Open Resources for Education.

(Esta entrada originalmente fue escrita para mi clase de tecnología.)

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