Resources

The author describes the development of an on-line social networking website. Members of the international Forest Connect Alliance had expressed a strong demand for greater information-sharing. The website provided a platform for members to quickly and easily access and share information about state-of-the-art practice in small and medium-sized forest enterprises. Since its creation, the online social network has attracted an increasing number of genuinely active members. Although donors still need persuasion to fund further website development, early indications are that the initiative is having a positive impact.

This author reflects on the rising popularity of mobile telephony for development purposes. Across the world, the mobile phone is becoming a more accessible, affordable and convenient means of communication than the Internet and computers. Particularly in Africa, as the cost of services and handsets continue to reduce, mobile phones are increasingly becoming the preferred tool for accessing and sharing information. As the impacts of this new ôrevolutionö are starting to be assessed, the author argues that mobile phones have the potential to become the first universally accessible information communications technology.

The authors describe the work of the Busoga Rural Open Source and Development Initiative (BROSDI) in Uganda. BROSDI works with a network of farmer organisations to generate, collect and share local information about effective agricultural practice. BROSDI integrates a range of Web 2.0 tools and more traditional approaches û from digital radio, mobile phones, and blogs to regular Knowledge Sharing Forums and working with Village Knowledge Brokers

The authors describe how a joint project with the Aboriginal Walkatjurra Cultural Centre in Australia, Curtin University of Technology and University of British Columbia Okanagan have been exploring the use of Web 2.0 tools to help revitalise culture and enhance community development. This article explores how the use of Web 2.0 and other digital tools has contributed towards this aim û and how using the tools helped to positively engage youth in such activities.

The author examines how we appropriate simple tools for development purposes and also how æusing the right tools for the right job at the right time, is something that we all have to understandÆ. He describes how grassroots activists have been leading innovators in the use and appropriation of Web 2.0 tools and explores how the mobile phone revolution is helping to overcome issues of access and connectivity. Lastly, he discusses the importance of filtering online content for relevance, meaning and context, and the emergence of trusted, expert online editors and aggregators.

There are vast numbers of Web 2.0 tools, applications, platforms, and services available. Many of them are free or low-cost and easy-to-use. This section provides a series of short introductory guides to a selection of commonly used Web 2.0 tools: blogging; micro-blogging and Twitter; wikis; online social networking; RSS feeds; tagging; social bookmarking; glossary of Web 2.0 terms. Each guide provides a brief description of the tool and how it can be used for development purposes, along with links to further information and where applications can be downloaded online