Bridging the Digital Divide
This 13-minute documentary film offers an introductory look at major issues tied to the diffusion of the internet. It is built from interviews conducted in 2006 with international internet stakeholders from 18 different nations at the world’s first Internet Governance Forum in Athens, Greece.
This content is shared under a restricted Creative Commons Noncommercial license allowing no derivative works. The Athens IGF was the first of five annual global events sponsored by the UN to focus on discussion of the overarching issues tied to the future of information and communications technologies. More than 1,200 participants shared information, experiences and best practices.
People featured in the film include:
Markus Kummer- Executive coordinator of the Internet Governance Forum Secretariat. This Swiss diplomat also led the secretariat of the United Nations Working Group on Internet Governance, appointed to plan the first Internet Governance Forum, and he chaired the group that developed the text on internet governance for the World Summit on the Information Society’s “Declaration of Principles.”
Robin Gross – Executive Director of IP Justice, an international civil liberties organization promoting access to knowledge; one of 47 people from around the world appointed to form the first UN IGF Advisory Group, and a leader of dynamic coalitions formed to address specific internet governance issues that came together at the first IGF meeting in Athens in 2006. Based in San Francisco, USA.
Milton Mueller- Director, Master of Science in Telecommunications and Network Management program, Syracuse University; co-founder of the Global Internet Governance Academic Network. Based in Syracuse, New York, USA.
Susy Struble – Director of IT Standardization and Government Policy for Sun Microsystems; goal is promotion of social and economic progress through interoperable IT systems. Based in San Francisco, USA.
Claudio Menezes– Senior Programme Specialist, Information Society Division, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; works on internet issues including multilingualism and ICT and persons with disabilities. Based in Paris, France.
‘Gbenga Sesan – Vice Chairman of the African Technical Advisory Committee; Program Manager for Lagos Digital Village; was selected to be Nigeria’s first Information Technology Youth Ambassador. Based in Lagos, Nigeria.
Steve Ballinger – Press Officer, Amnesty International, a non-governmental organization that campaigns for internationally recognized human rights; he coordinates the organization’s media work in China, Iran, Colombia and Europe. Based in London, United Kingdom.
K Atique – e – Rabbani- Managing Director, The Computers Ltd; Former Secretary General of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services; expert on Native Language Internet Address. Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Anas Tawileh- Co-founder of the Syria Chapter of the Internet Society and initiator of the Arab Commons Initiative; involved in free and open-source software projects and advocacy. Based in Syria and Cardiff, Wales.
Mary Wong – Professor of Law, Franklin Pierce Law Center; intellectual property and information technology policy specialist; advocate and solicitor qualified for the Supreme Court of Singapore; member of Singapore’s e-Commerce Consultative Committee. Based in Concord, New Hampshire, USA.
Nityesh Bhatt – Associate Professor, Ph.D. in e-governance, Pacific Institute of Management. In addition to his teaching, he has a research consultancy and he conducts training in technology policy for corporations. Based in Udaipur, India.
Marsha Guthrie – Information Technology Management Services, Caribbean Development Bank. Leader, Internet Governance Capacity-Building Program, DiploFoundation. Based in St. James, Barbados.
Romina Bocache- Researcher on Internet Governance Policy; associated with the DiploFoundation. Studies internet governance and policy for development. Based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Veronica Cretu – President of CMB Training Centre in the Republic of Moldova; Leader with the Internet Governance Capacity Building Program, DiploFoundation. Based in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova.
Arturo Di Corinto – Cognitive psychologist and new-media expert at the University of Rome; founder of the Avvisi Al Naviganti BBS and Cittadigitali; journalist; active in advocacy for free software and the investigation of issues tied to software patents. Based in Rome, Italy.
Hanane Boujemi – Researcher on Internet Governance Policy; associated with the DiploFoundation. Involved in bridging the digital divide and studying the impact of information and communications technologies on development. Based in Morocco.
Vinton Cerf – Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google; chairman of the board for ICANN; and co-designer of the internet’s enabling TCP/IP protocols and the basic architecture of the internet; founding president of the Internet Society. While he travels the world regularly in support of internet projects, his home base is in Herndon, Virginia, USA.
This video is offered for use under a Creative Commons Noncommercial License allowing no derivative works. Executive producers, Erin Barnett and Janna Quitney Anderson; chief engineer, Bryan Baker; videographers, Barnett and Baker; editor, Barnett.