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A key change at iCommons
If you're not part of the iCommons mailing list, take a look at the letter that Heather Ford, Executive Director of iCommons, sent to the list yesterday:
Dear friends,
At the 2 August iCommons Board Meeting, the board decided to make some difficult but necessary changes at iCommons. It has become clear over the past months that our vision for iCommons is different from the... more
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Bibliotheca Alexandrina Brings CC to Egypt
anas (United Kingdom) · Jul 12th, 2007 12:13 am · 45 votes · 2 comments
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| Bibliotheca Alexandrina |
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With its legendary history that spans thousands of years, Bibliotheca Alexandrina is one of the most prominent monuments for learning, dialogue and tolerance. Throughout its history, Bibliotheca Alexandrina has been committed to the dissemination of knowledge, literacy, arts and culture. Today, the library is assuming the lead to enrich the creative landscape in Egypt by promoting the philosophy of Creative Commons in the land of the Pharaohs.
Behind the initiatives of raising awareness and educating the creative community about the Creative Commons culture is Ms. Hala Essalmawi, attorney at law at Bibliotheca Alexandrina. She has been very active in advocating for the case of Access to Knowledge and Creative Commons and has initiated and organized several events and workshops to promote these ideas. The last initiative consisted of two workshop (three days each) conducted in Cairo (26-28 May) and Alexandria (29-31 May). The workshops were specifically designed and structured to equip participants with better understanding of the international Intellectual Property and Copyright regime and to introduce a set of emerging tools for the dissemination of knowledge.
Probably one of the most significant achievements of the workshops was the ability to bring together participants from widely different background as diverse as scientists, librarians, lawyers, judges and intellectual property professionals. The highly interactive format of the workshop facilitated discussion and sharing of experiences among participants, which were particularly relevant to the Egyptian context and the applicable laws and legislations. The discussions highlighted the development perspective of the copyright system in Egypt and the region and fostered a constructive and engaging dialogue.
Fortunately, experts in the workshop had something to offer. The ideas of Free and Open Source Software (F/OSS) and Creative Commons were presented as possible solutions that would leverage the creative production in the country. Participants were introduced over the period of one full day to the rationale behind the emergence of F/OSS and Creative Commons and how they aim to address the complex copyright issues inherent in the rapidly changing digital revolution. Creative Commons licensed were then discussed and the ideas re-enforced through practical exercises and guidance on how to choose the most appropriate license.
Evidenced by the overwhelmingly positive feedback from participants and observers, the initiative was highly successful in achieving its objectives in educating participants about the philosophy of Free and Open Source Software (F/OSS) and Creative Commons and creating a core for a community of practice that would actively promote these ideas and their implantation in a country that never lacked creativity. Bibliotheca Alexandrina’s ambitions are even higher, and several other initiatives are in the pipeline to empower the local communities with the knowledge and tools required to unleash the power of their creativity.
tags: cairo-alexandria egypt media-events events workshop legal cc
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