The Centre for Internet and Society
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Where's My Data? Submission for Knight News Challenge 2015
https://cis-india.org/raw/wheres-my-data-submission-for-knight-news-challenge-2015
<b>We are very excited to be contribute to a join submission with DataMeet and Oorvani for the Knight News Challenge 2015. We are proposing "an application for users to search for locally-relevant data, discuss missing data, demand data, explore and respond to data demands by others, and start data crowd-sourcing exercises." Please go to the submission page and support our project. The text of the proposal is available below. It was prepared by Nisha Thompson of DataMeet, Meera K of Oorvani, and I. The 'Where's My Data' banner is created by Nisha using icons from the Noun Project.</b>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Please support our project by visiting and 'applauding' it on the Knight News Challenge website: <a href="https://www.newschallenge.org/challenge/data/entries/where-s-my-data">https://www.newschallenge.org/challenge/data/entries/where-s-my-data</a>. You will have to log in to the website though, apologies for that.</strong></p>
<p> </p>
<h2>Where's My Data? Search, Demand, and Collect Data</h2>
<h3>In one sentence, describe your idea as simply as possible.</h3>
<p>An application for users to search for locally-relevant data, discuss missing data, demand data, explore and respond to data demands by others, and start data crowd-sourcing exercises.</p>
<p><img src="https://cis-india.org/raw/histories-of-the-internet/CISRAW_WheresMyData.png/image_preview" alt="KNC 2015 - Where's My Data" class="image-inline image-inline" title="KNC 2015 - Where's My Data" /></p>
<p> </p>
<h3>Full Description</h3>
<p>The proposed application aims to solve two key problems in accessing reliable data faced by citizens, journalists, and researchers. The first problem is knowing where a required data set can be found, and the second problem is collecting the required data set if it does not exist in the first place.</p>
<p>Many individual initiatives have been developed to collect specific data. For example, Powercuts (http://powercuts.in/) was a Ushahidi installation to crowd-source data using Twitter, Kiirti (http://www.kiirti.org/) was used to map complaints about auto drivers, IChangeMyCity (http://www.ichangemycity.com/) is a platform that collects general complaints from around Bangalore. However, these apps were either short lived because they could not sustain their one premise or they do not give insight into what people want to know and what data is important to them. Also, they often did not open up this data to be used by others, beyond visualisations offered on the sites.</p>
<p>Citizens have many questions regarding their urban surroundings - how much water is coming to the neighbourhood daily, where are the waste pick up trucks, what is the status of a road repairing process, etc, the answers require data that either is difficult to get or doesn't answer their query in the way they want. Journalists and researchers are also interested in collecting and analysing these same data sets. A one off platform for one issue won't properly represent the demand for information in modern day (data starved) India.</p>
<p>For example, a local residents’ group wanted to impress on their elected rep the seriousness of the incidence of a disease, as the local government was not taking concrete steps to manage the emerging epidemic. In the absence of official data on suspected cases of illness, this application could help them to reach out through e-mails and social media networks to do a quick survey on how many residents or their family members have got affected.</p>
<p>The application will not only make it easier to undertake such crowd-sourcing efforts, but also to share the data back and make it open for usage by others, including journalists and researchers.</p>
<p>We are already building an Urban Open Data Platform for Bengaluru, India. The application will allow searching this portal and any other such portal, especially if any is developed by the municipality. It will also pipe the crowd-sourced data to this Urban Open Data Platform.</p>
<p><img src="https://cis-india.org/raw/histories-of-the-internet/CISRAW_CitizenMatters.jpg/image_preview" alt="KNC 2015 - Citizen Matters" class="image-inline image-inline" title="KNC 2015 - Citizen Matters" /></p>
<p> <img src="https://cis-india.org/raw/histories-of-the-internet/CISRAW_OpenBangalore.png/image_preview" alt="KNC 2015 - Open Bangalore" class="image-inline" title="KNC 2015 - Open Bangalore" /></p>
<p>This tool will reduce duplication of data gathering, gives data a longer shelf life and acts as a source of public data that feeds into a city-wide urban Open Data Portal under development by a consortium that we are part of.</p>
<p> </p>
<h3>How will the Application Work?</h3>
<ol><li>The application will allow the user to search for data across the data catalogues connected to the application.</li>
<li>If the data is not found, the user can post details about the required data, which other users in her/his networks can see and comment on. They can either point the person towards an existing data set, or support the need to collect the data being demanded.</li>
<li>When the user finds out that the data set s/he needs does not exist, the application will allow her/him to start a crowd-sourcing exercise, using various channels such as e-mails, social media posts, web-based questionnaires, etc.</li>
<li>For each of these channels, a separate plug-in will be developed so as to open up the software development process. For this project, we will focus on developing plug-ins for two channels: 1) questionnaires integrated with the <a href="http://bangalore.citizenmatters.in/">Citizen Matters</a> website, and 2) use tweets to collect replies using a unique hashtag.</li>
<li>User can share the crowd-sourcing request within her/his own social networks, or use one of the groups (say, the Citizen Matters group focusing on local journalism, or the <a href="http://datameet.org/">DataMeet</a> group focusing on open data enthusiasts in the city) to share their calls for data collection.</li></ol>
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<h3>Briefly Describe the Need that You're Trying to Address</h3>
<p>A common cry in Indian cities is the lack of datasets required to understand issues, either at local or at national scales. This tool will be the place to voice demands, ask others about potential sources, or an easy way to create data sourcing activities.This will enable journalists, advocacy organisations, and researchers to search for data and help others to find the data they are looking for. It also records demands for non-existing data and helps take initiatives to collect such data.</p>
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<h3>What Progress have You Made so Far?</h3>
<p>The team is already working on an Urban Open Data Platform, that will host public data, and a data catalog. We have already executed a few crowd-sourcing projects, and helped develop tools for journalists and researchers interested in civic issues.A data source search tool has been in development in the form of Open Data JSON <<a href="https://github.com/datameet/opendata.json">https://github.com/datameet/opendata.json</a>>. A Bangalore focused data catalog has been in use for awhile as well and provides a base of data to use for people’s search <<a href="http://openbangalore.org">http://openbangalore.org</a>>.</p>
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<h3>What would be a Successful Outcome for Your Project?</h3>
<p>Success for this project means having a better understanding of what information is needed most by people and what data is required. We will gain detailed evidence regarding what kind of data people want. This entails a collection of questions, who is asking and from where, and what data gaps exist. The number of crowdsourcing projects initiated shows the intensity of the need, and how comfortable citizens are asking for data and proactively starting a data collection project.</p>
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<h3>Please List your Team Members and their Relevant Experience/Skills</h3>
<p>Meera K, Oorvani Foundation, a media group who will provide editorial support to curate data, dissemination of data or queries, and audience reach. Nisha Thompson and Thejesh GN, from DataMeet, open data community, who will provide the technology and community aspects of the tool. Sumandro Chattapadhyay of the Centre for Internet and Society, will help planning the project and linking the effort with other Indian and global initiatives in open data and development.</p>
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<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/wheres-my-data-submission-for-knight-news-challenge-2015'>https://cis-india.org/raw/wheres-my-data-submission-for-knight-news-challenge-2015</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroCityOpen DataPracticeCrowdsourcingResearchers at Work2015-10-05T15:00:16ZBlog EntrySequoia India’s Designathon 2016
https://cis-india.org/raw/sequoia-india-designathon-2016
<b>Along with their annual hackathon, Sequoia India organised a designathon in Bangalore on September 10-11, 2016. The participants picked one of three tracks - gamification, information visualisation, and smart acceleration - and developed an interface design or clickable prototype or a demo video. Sumandro Chattapadhyay was invited to participate as a mentor for the information visualisation track.</b>
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<h4>URL: <a href="http://www.sequoiahack.com/sequoia-design/">http://www.sequoiahack.com/sequoia-design/</a></h4>
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For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/sequoia-india-designathon-2016'>https://cis-india.org/raw/sequoia-india-designathon-2016</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroPracticeResearchers at Work2016-09-17T13:39:12ZBlog EntryThe Zen of Pad.ma: 10 Lessons Learned from Running Open Access Online Video Archives in India and beyond
https://cis-india.org/raw/the-zen-of-padma
<b>Sebastian Lütgert and Jan Gerber, the co-initiators of, and the artists/programmers behind the pad.ma (Public Access Digital Media Archive) project will deliver a lecture at CIS on Wednesday, February 03, 6 pm, on their experiences of learnings from running open access online video archives in Germany, India, and Turkey. Please join us for coffee and vada at 5:30 pm.</b>
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<img src="http://cis-india.org/raw/the-zen-of-pad-ma-10-lessons-learned-from-running-open-access-online-video-archives-in-india-and-beyond/leadImage" alt="The Zen of Pad.ma - Lecture by Sebastian Lütgert and Jan Gerber, Feb 03, 6 pm" />
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<h2>The Zen of Pad.ma</h2>
<p>Eight years after the launch of Pad.ma and three years since the inception of Indiancine.ma, Sebastian Lütgert will take a closer look at some of the strategies -- decisions and decision making processes, foundational principles and accidental discoveries -- that may have helped make these projects sustainable. While most of the lessons begin with concrete questions related to software and technology, most of them will end up pointing beyond that: towards a general theory of collaboration, towards strategies against premature separation of labor, and towards a few practical proposals for successful self-organization on the Internet.</p>
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<h2>Biographies</h2>
<p><strong>Sebastian Lütgert</strong>, media artist, programmer, filmmaker and writer, lives and works in Berlin. Co-founder of Bootlab, textz.com, Pirate Cinema Berlin, Pad.ma and Indiancine.ma. Lecturer at the Academy of the Sciences in Berlin, various publications on cinema, copyright, radical subcultures and the politics of technology.</p>
<p><strong>Jan Gerber</strong>, video artist and softwate developer, lives and works in Berlin. Co-initiator of Pirate Cinema Berlin, Pad.ma and Indiancine.ma, author of numerous Open Source software projects, most recently Open Media Library. Involved in a variety of open-access archive projects around the world.</p>
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For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/the-zen-of-padma'>https://cis-india.org/raw/the-zen-of-padma</a>
</p>
No publishersneha-ppPracticeDigital HumanitiesDigital MediaOpen AccessResearchers at WorkEventArchives2016-01-28T08:25:18ZEvent7 Ways to Con/fuse the Internet with Analogy (Intergalactic Mix) - Talk by Surfatial
https://cis-india.org/raw/7-ways-to-con-fuse-the-internet-with-analogy-intergalactic-mix-talk-by-surfatial-september-26-6-pm
<b>Surfatial, a trans-local collective that works with text and sound will talk about their essay which was recently published. The talk will also address concerns on how the internet can be used in alternate contexts including presenting work in alternative formats and using the internet for synchronous collaborative cultural production.</b>
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<p><strong>The talk will be held at the Centre for Internet & Society's office in Bangalore on September 26 at 6.00 p.m.</strong></p>
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<h2>Abstract</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Surfatial will present their work as a trans-local collective that works with text and sound. They will talk about their essay which was recently published on the RAW blog, as well as concerns of how the internet can be used in alternate contexts. As a continuation from their essay <a href="http://cis-india.org/raw/blog_101-ways-of-starting-an-isp-no-53-conversation-content-weird-fiction"> 101 ways of Starting an ISP: No. 53- Conversation Content and Weird Fiction</a> they are interested in exploring alternate formats of presenting the work they produce and in using the internet for synchronous collaborative cultural production.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">They structure this talk as a storytelling session and will share stories of how the internet is used on other planets. Stories of the internet on seven planets will be shared. Each story will describe its specific conditions of operation. These stories are seven ways of doing so. How will an external search engine index these stories? Will they be fact or fiction? The external archive of the search engine will be ways to con/fuse the internet with our narratives.</p>
<h2>Speakers</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Surfatial is a trans-local collective that operates through the internet. They use conversations to aid learning outside established structures. They are concerned with enabling dis-inhibition through the internet, for expressing what may not be feasible in physical reality. They organise internet-based audio conferences called study-groups where they deal with philosophical questions and a self-reflective exchange of individual experiences. They have previously presented their work at Soundphile 2016, Delhi; play_book (in collaboration with Thukral & Tagra), Gurgaon; CONA, Mumbai, and Mumbai Art Room. Their upcoming engagement is with ZK/U, Berlin.</p>
<ul>
<li>Facebook - <a href="https://www.facebook.com/surfatial">https://www.facebook.com/surfatial</a></li>
<li>Website - <a href="http://www.museumofvestigialdesire.net/offices/surfatial">http://www.museumofvestigialdesire.net/offices/surfatial</a></li>
<li>Twitter - <a href="https://twitter.com/surfatial"> https://twitter.com/surfatial</a></li></ul>
<hr />
<p>Surfatial is Malavika Rajnarayan, Prayas Abhinav and Satya Gummuluri.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/7-ways-to-con-fuse-the-internet-with-analogy-intergalactic-mix-talk-by-surfatial-september-26-6-pm'>https://cis-india.org/raw/7-ways-to-con-fuse-the-internet-with-analogy-intergalactic-mix-talk-by-surfatial-september-26-6-pm</a>
</p>
No publishersneha-ppPracticeResearchers at WorkEvent2018-07-02T18:33:42ZEventLaunch of Silicon Plateau Vol-1
https://cis-india.org/raw/launch-of-silicon-plateau-vol-1
<b>Please join us on Friday, November 27, 2015 at 6.30 pm for the book launch of Silicon Plateau Vol-1.</b>
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<p><img src="https://cis-india.org/SiliconPlateauVolume1_Cover.png/image_preview" alt="Silicon Plateau Vol-1 - Cover" class="image-inline image-inline" title="Silicon Plateau Vol. 1 - Cover" /></p>
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<h3>Born from a collaboration with or-bits.com and the Researchers at Work (RAW) programme at the Centre for Internet and Society, Silicon Plateau is the first volume of a publishing series aimed at observing how the arts, technology and society intersect in the city of Bangalore. Guided by our belief in the importance of understanding technologies in their specificity rather than their universality, Silicon Plateau presents observations emerging from the personal experiences and perspectives of a variety of contemporary artists, writers and researchers, national and international, who either live in or have spent a period of time in the city, or have just crossed paths with its communities.</h3>
<p> </p>
<h3>Silicon Plateau Vol–1 features works by Abhishek Hazra, IOCOSE, Tara Kelton, Anil Menon, Achal Prabhala, Sunita Prasad, Sreshta Rit Premnath, Renuka Rajiv, Anja Gollor & Mirko Merkel, and Christoph Schäfer.</h3>
<p> </p>
<h3>VENUE: T.A.J. Residency, No. 21 (New No. 53), 2nd Cross, Wheeler Road Extension, Cooke Town, Bangalore, 560084.</h3>
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<h3>PLEASE NOTE: Coming from Pottery road up to Wheeler Road Extension there are three roads called 2nd Cross. Take the third one on the right-hand side, just after D'Costa Café. The road is also marked with a blue sign for CCBI. Also note that our building does not have parking.</h3>
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For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/launch-of-silicon-plateau-vol-1'>https://cis-india.org/raw/launch-of-silicon-plateau-vol-1</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroSilicon PlateauPracticeResearchers at WorkEvent2015-11-26T04:32:41ZEventAnnouncing Silicon Plateau #01
https://cis-india.org/raw/announcing-silicon-plateau-01
<b>We are very pleased to announce that the RAW programme is supporting a new collaborative publishing project led by T.A.J. Residency / SKE Projects and or-bits.com. The first volume of the series titled 'Silicon Plateau' will feature contributions by a group of artists, researchers, and writers, including IOCOSE, Tara Kelton, Anil Menon, Sunita Prasad, Achal Prabhala and Sreshta Rit Premnath, along with contextual writing and documentation material. Here is an excerpt from the editorial note written by Marialaura Ghidini, the co-editor of the volume.</b>
<p> </p>
<img src="https://cis-india.org/raw/announcing-silicon-plateau-01/image" alt="Sreshta Rit Premnath - New York Living in Bangalore" title="Announcing Silicon Plateau #01" />
<p> </p>
<p>The scope of the series is to explore the contemporary interaction between the arts and technology as informed by experiences of Bangalore (the ‘Silicon Valley’ of India). Such exploration will be guided by the
perspectives of contemporary artists, writers and thinkers, national and international, who have either spent a period of time in the city or crossed paths with its communities whose work and interests — from
the creative industry to law and historical research — lie at the intersection between the arts and technology. The approach we have adopted to explore how technology informs the arts and the socio-cultural environment, and how the latter affects usages and understandings of technological tools, is multidisciplinary and hybrid, and uses the city of Bangalore as the starting point for broader reflections and actions.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Advocating for the importance of thinking about digital and web technologies in their specificity rather than their universality, the series will propose across-disciplines narratives about the encounters — fortuitous, anticipated or even inconvenient — that artists, writers, technologists, lawyers, economists and more have had with the city. The nickname of Bangalore, <em>Silicon Plateau</em>, which derives from its geographical location on the Deccan Plateau in the state of Karnataka, has been used as the title of the series because we think it metaphorically highlights the contradictions inherent to our exploration. Adopting the term <em>plateau</em>, which indicates the reaching of a state of little change, to refer to a city that has transformed at rapid speed over the last few decades results in a linguistic combination that reflects the complexities inherent to discussing arts and technology in relation to local histories and occurrences rather than global narratives and popular beliefs.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>This fist edition of <em>Silicon Plateau #01</em> will focus on the way in which the city is represented in the public realm, from public spaces to those manufactured by the real estate industry. It will look at
representations of Bangalore as a set of phenomena triggered by the ways in which the IT industry is reflected in the city, such as its market-driven narratives, and how passers-by and short term residents
encounter them in the everyday. The contributors have been invited to reflect on how these modes of presenting and representing often lead to the creation of metaphors and cultural signs that might tell us
more about discussing the interaction between the arts and technology.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>Silicon Plateau #01 </em>will be about that which lies behind first ‘impressions’ and constructed representations as determined by uses and understanding of technology, the tools and its infrastructures,
existing, imagined, or projected.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>Silicon Plateau #01</em> will be released, in print and online, in May 2015 and launched soon after.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>Image Credit: <a href="http://sreshtaritpremnath.com/" target="_blank">Sreshta Rit Premnath</a>, Projections (1964/2014), photocopies on corrugated plastic and chroma key paints.</em></p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/announcing-silicon-plateau-01'>https://cis-india.org/raw/announcing-silicon-plateau-01</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroSilicon PlateauPracticeResearchers at Work2015-10-05T15:00:59ZBlog EntryManuel Beltrán - Institute of Human Obsolescence - Cartographies of Dispossession
https://cis-india.org/raw/manuel-beltran-ioho-cartographies-of-dispossession
<b>Join us at the Delhi office of CIS on Thursday, April 4, at 5 pm for a talk by Manuel Beltrán, founder of the Institute of Human Obsolescence (IoHO), which explores the future of labour and the changing relationship between humans and machine. Cartographies of Dispossession (CoD), their current project at IoHO, explores the forms of systematic data dispossession that different humans are subject to, and investigates how data becomes both the means of production as much as the means of governance. </b>
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<p><img src="https://cis-india.org/ManuelBeltran_IoHO.jpg/image_large" alt="Manuel Beltrán - IoHO" class="image-inline image-inline" title="Manuel Beltrán - IoHO" /></p>
<h6>Image credit: Manuel Beltrán</h6>
<h3>Institute of Human Obsolescence - Cartographies of Dispossession</h3>
<p>The Institute of Human Obsolescence (IoHO) explores the future of labour and the changing relationship between humans and machine. Our work develops from a scenario in which forms of manual and intellectual labour traditionally performed by humans are increasingly automated by new technologies. In this context we investigate and challenge the socio-political and economic implications of new forms of labour, such as the production of data. The IoHO developed several projects exploring the production of data as a form of labour, as a different paradigm through which to interrogate and challenge dynamics of ownership over the production of data and the economic and governance objects emerging through it. Previous lines of inquiry around the framework of Data Labour Rights include Data Basic Income, Data Cooperative, Data Production Labour series, Investigative Discussion Sessions and Data Workers Union.</p>
<p>In this talk founder of the IoHO Manuel Beltrán, will introduce the work of the IoHO and discuss their current project Cartographies of Dispossession (CoD). CoD explores the forms of systematic data dispossession that different humans are subject to, and investigates how data becomes both the means of production as much as the means of governance. The project looks at the implications of how the dispossession of data unequally occurs in different contexts, through different means and for different purposes.</p>
<p>Instruments such as the Right Of Access provided by GDPR emerge from a European context but the flows of data operate in a transnational scale. We are exploring the potential and limits of this instrument in combination with others such as the Right To Information in India as tools to investigate and repossess our production of data across borders. We are particularly interested in feedback and discussing in how to think further about this last part.</p>
<h3>Manuel Beltrán</h3>
<p>Manuel is an artist and activist. He researches and lectures on contemporary art, activism, contemporary social movements, post-digital culture and new media. As an activist, he was involved in the Indignados movement in Spain, the Gezi Park protests in Turkey and several forms of independent activism and cyber-activism in Europe and beyond. In 2012 he co-founded the art collective Plastic Crowds and since 2013 he is head and co-founder of the nomadic school and artistic organization Alternative Learning Tank. In 2015 he founded the Institute of Human Obsolescence, through which he explores the future of labour, the social and political implications regarding our relationship with technology and the economic and governance systems surrounding the production of data.</p>
<h4><a href="http://speculative.capital">http://speculative.capital</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://dataworkers.org">https://dataworkers.org</a></h4>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/raw/manuel-beltran-ioho-cartographies-of-dispossession'>https://cis-india.org/raw/manuel-beltran-ioho-cartographies-of-dispossession</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroPracticeArtRAW EventsDigital LabourResearchers at WorkEvent2019-04-01T08:00:05ZEventCall for Applications: 'Maps for Making Change' - Using Geographical Mapping Techniques to Support Struggles for Social Justice in India
https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change
<b>Deadline: 20 November 2009.
Maps for Making Change is a two-month project specifically designed for activists and supporters of social movements and campaigns in India. It provides participants with an exciting opportunity to explore how a range of digital mapping techniques can be used to support struggles for social justice. It also allows you to immediately develop and implement in practice a concrete mapping project relevant to your campaign or movement, with full technical support. Interested in joining us? Send in your application by 20 November 2009. </b>
<p align="justify"><em><strong>Background</strong> </em></p>
<p align="justify">Most of us think of maps as representations of territory. But have you ever wondered why <em>bastis</em>, slums, unauthorised colonies and monuments of minorities and poor people rarely are given prominence on maps – or at times are even absent altogether? All too often only seats of power, such as big hospitals, the colonies of the rich and diplomatic missions, receive detailed mention. This is because maps simultaneously also function as representations of relations of power and control: which places, communities, historical monuments, townships, colonies and roads are highlighted on a map reflects the power and control that various communities and classes possess or lack. In modern times, this is particularly obvious in planning processes, which incorporate maps as crucial tools in villages and cities alike. To challenge the practice of privileging the powerful on maps, and to create maps from the margins and of margins, therefore has emerged as an important aspect as well as a tool of our fights against injustice in society.</p>
<p align="justify"><em><strong>Maps for Making Change</strong></em></p>
<p align="justify">Today, with the emergence of new technologies such as GPS and the Internet, mapping techniques have advanced beyond the confines of professional cartographers and can be mobilised and used to fight for social justice by anyone with an interest in maps. Are you someone concerned with the state of social justice in the country today? Are you working closely, as an activist or a supporter, with a campaign or social movement? Are you interested in exploring how digital geographical mapping techniques might help facilitate or support your advocacy and awareness raising campaigns and understanding of the power relations in society? Perhaps you already have some ideas on how maps can fit into your work, but you require technical support to put these into practice? Then this is for you.</p>
<p align="justify">Maps for Making Change is a two-month project that will provide you with the opportunity to explore how mapping can be used to support your campaigns, struggles and movements to fight against injustice. It is jointly organised by the Centre for Internet and Society (Bangalore) and the Tactical Technology Collective (Bangalore and London), and brings together activists and technologists. Over the course of the project, participants will:</p>
<ul><li>
<p align="justify">explore and share ideas about the possible uses of geographical maps within the context of campaigns and movements in India;</p>
</li><li>
<p align="justify">try out a range of mapping tools and get training and support in the creation and use of maps;</p>
</li></ul>
<ul><li>
<p align="justify">develop and implement your own mapping project, involving the creation and use as well as dissemination of maps, relevant to your campaign's or movement's advocacy and goals.</p>
</li></ul>
<p align="justify"><em><strong>Format</strong></em></p>
<p align="justify">Maps for Making Change will take the form of three workshops, with time in between each for participants to work on a mapping project of their choice. The first workshop will take place in Delhi on 3 December, and will be an introductory event, where tools and tactics will be explored and discussed and participants can determine the nature of the information they need to collect to implement their own mapping project. The second workshop will take place over 3 days during the first week of January (exact dates and location to be decided), and will involve actual work on mapping projects, using data and other resources collected by participants in the intervening time. The third workshop will be a two-day event during the first week of February (exact dates and location to be decided), and will be the time for participants to provide overall feedback, as well as to do the final touches on the projects and launch them. Not only during the workshops, but throughout the two-month project period, and at every stage of the development of your project plan, technical support will be available to help participants make your ideas a reality.</p>
<p align="justify">The organisers will cover travel and accommodation expenses of those who are selected to participate in the project. There is no participation fee. By applying, applicants commit themselves, however, to devoting the necessary time to this project. Where relevant, an organisational commitment to allow you to do this would also be required.</p>
<p align="justify"><em><strong>Who should apply?</strong></em></p>
<p align="justify">This is an event for activists and supporters of movements and campaigns based in India. Preference will be given to applicants that intend to use the project directly for their work within a campaign or movement. Applications are welcomed from individuals, but also from groups of people who are working within the same campaign or movement and who would like to develop and implement a mapping project together. Those who have been centrally involved in designing and implementing communication strategies of campaigns and movements are particularly encouraged to apply, but such a role is not at all a prerequisite to be part of Maps for Making Change. Participants from appropriate backgrounds who simply want to explore the technology and its uses without immediately implementing it will be welcome in so far as space allows.</p>
<p align="justify">We would like to also encourage applications from students who are involved with campaigns or movements and who would like to learn these skills so as to use them in their advocacy efforts. Students will be provided with special assistance during the programme.</p>
<p align="justify">All participants should have some familiarity with computer use. While more advanced technology skills are useful, they are not essential: technology support will be provided as required for all participants to ensure that everyone completes their own mapping project.</p>
<p align="justify">Regretfully, we will be able to accommodate translation only from Hindi to English and vice versa, so applicants will need to be comfortable with either of these languages.</p>
<p align="justify"><em><strong>How to apply</strong></em></p>
<p align="justify">Please answer the questions below in Hindi or in English. You do not need to write long responses (up to 300 words max), but please provide us with enough information to understand your involvement in and commitment to campaigns or movements for social justice, as well as your skills and interest. We also would like to know why you want to be part of the Maps for Making Change project and what are some of the contributions (of whatever kind) you could make to it.</p>
<p align="justify">You can send your answers by email to <a href="mailto:mapsforchange@cis-india.org">maps4change@cis-india.org</a>, or by post to:</p>
<div align="justify" class="visualClear">Maps for Making Change</div>
<div align="justify" class="visualClear">c/o Centre for Internet and Society</div>
<div align="justify" class="visualClear">No. D2, 3rd Floor, Sheriff Chambers</div>
<div align="justify" class="visualClear">14, Cunningham Road</div>
<div align="justify" class="visualClear">Bangalore 560052</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;" class="visualClear"> </div>
The last day for applications is 20 November 2009. Early applications will make us very happy though! :)<em><strong><br /><br />Application Questions:</strong></em>
<p> </p>
Please provide answers to all the following questions.
<p align="left">1) Basic personal information:</p>
<ul><li>
<p align="left">Name:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Gender:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Date of birth:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Nationality:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Affiliation/organisation:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">E-mail address (if available):</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Telephone and emergency contact number(s):</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Preferred language of communication:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Veg/non veg:</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">Anything else we should know about you (allergies, medical condition, special needs):</p>
</li></ul>
<p align="left">Are you applying individually or as part of a team? If as part of a team, please provide the names of the other team members here;</p>
<p align="left">2) Where are you from, where do you live now, and what is your current movement/organisational affiliation (movement/organisation you work with, its mission, position you have within it, is your organisation a non-profit, etc.)?</p>
<p align="justify">3) What is your wider experience of working with campaigns or movements for social justice? What kinds of initiatives have you been involved in? What kind of responsibilities have you taken up within these?</p>
<p align="justify">4) Have you been involved with any technology projects for non-profit organisations or campaigns or movements for social change? If so please briefly explain your experience (what worked, what didn't, what did you like, what not, etc?) and your role within the project. If you haven't been involved with such a project, please explain why you are interested in exploring the use of technology for social change.</p>
<p align="justify">5) Why are you interested in joining Maps for Making Change in particular? How can you and your movement/organisation benefit from your participation?</p>
<p align="justify">6) Do you already have an idea in mind that involves using maps for social change and that you would like to develop into a project that can support the work of the campaign or movement that you are involved with? If so, please explain.</p>
<p align="justify">7) To help us better understand the kind of technical support we will need to provide during Maps for Making Change, please describe your current technical expertise and ability.</p>
<p align="justify">8) All participants are encouraged to teach as well as to learn. What kind of contribution to the group's learning do you think you could make?</p>
<p align="justify"><strong>If you require more information about the project or about the application process, please email us at <a href="mailto:mapsforchange@cis-india.org">maps4change@cis-india.org</a>, or call us at 080 4092 6283.</strong></p>
<p align="justify">Looking forward to hearing from you!</p>
<p align="justify">The Maps for Making Change Team</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change'>https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change</a>
</p>
No publisheranjaDigital ActivismPracticeWorkshopResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:04:12ZBlog EntryMaps for Making Change Kicks Off, and You Can Get Involved!
https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-kicks-off-and-you-can-get-involved
<b>A first in India, Maps for Making Change explores the use of geographical mapping techniques to support struggles for social justice in India. On 3 December, the project officially kicks off during a one-day workshop in Delhi. But even if you can not be there with us in Delhi, there are ways to get involved. </b>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-kicks-off-and-you-can-get-involved'>https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-kicks-off-and-you-can-get-involved</a>
</p>
No publisheranjaDigital ActivismPracticeWorkshopResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:03:39ZBlog EntryMaps for Making Change Wiki Now Open to the Public
https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-wiki-now-open-to-the-public
<b>Since December 2009, CIS has been coordinating and nurturing the Maps for Making Change project, organised in collaboration with Tactical Tech. During the past four months, participants have been on a challenging yet fertile and inspiring journey that is now slowly coming to an end. Would you like to know more about what has happened in the time that has passed? The Maps for Making Change wiki is a good place to start.</b>
<p>Since December 2009, CIS has been coordinating and nurturing the Maps for Making Change project, organised in collaboration with Tactical Tech. Maps for Making Change provides a select group of activists and supporters of movements and campaigns for progressive social change in India with an opportunity to collectively debate ànd explore in practice the potential of digital mapping as a tool to support their work. </p>
<p>Over the months, the project's wiki has turned into a rich resource that reflects the challenging yet fertile and inspiring journey participants have made in the course of this project. The wiki contains detailed information about the project and individual participants' projects-within-the-project, as well as resource persons' profiles, workshop schedules and links to facilitator's presentations. In a separate section, there are links to a range of resources on mapping for social change more generally - including 'how to' guides, inspiring examples and mapping tools that are available for free. </p>
<p>If you would like to know more about what has happened in Maps for Making Change over the past four months, do therefore go and have a look – the link to the wiki is:</p>
<p><a title="http://maps4change.cis-india.org" class="external text" href="http://maps4change.cis-india.org/" rel="nofollow">maps4change.cis-india.org</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>And if you know of others who might be interested, do of course feel free to pass on the word!</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-wiki-now-open-to-the-public'>https://cis-india.org/advocacy/other-advocacy/maps-for-making-change-wiki-now-open-to-the-public</a>
</p>
No publisheranjaPracticeResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:05:06ZBlog EntryAn Artist's Hunt for Lost Stepwells
https://cis-india.org/news/hunt-for-lost-stepwells
<b>As part of the Maps for Making Change project, Kakoli Sen has brought to light some facts which she stumbled upon while mapping the stepwells in Vadodara. She mapped these and also discovered 14 such architectural heritage structures. The news was covered in the Times of India.</b>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/hunt-for-lost-stepwells'>https://cis-india.org/news/hunt-for-lost-stepwells</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaPracticeResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:05:26ZNews ItemMapping the Things that Affect Us
https://cis-india.org/news/mapping-the-things
<b>'Map for making change' is a project using geographical mapping techniques to support struggles for social justice in India</b>
<p>As we go around living our lives, living in a city that is transforming, it is interesting to know that there are people interested in mapping the changing face of, not just the city, but the changing country.</p>
<p>The invite read ‘Map for making change’, elaborating that the project explored the potential of geographical mapping techniques to support struggles for social justice in India. Stepping inside the CIS workspace in Domlur, the large screens and tiny laptops projected maps of India, with dots that intrigue and piqued the onlooker. Maps that reflected pavement dwellers in Mumbai and problems of their eviction and rehabilitation, of mining areas from Goa to Madhya Pradesh, to the ‘hunted’ Chattisgarh, to maps that pointed heritage sites in Cochin and Ahmedabad you could explore using the GPRS on your mobile or demolished building in Kolkatta.</p>
<p>The idea was mapping the changing face of the country. The 25 participants were a mix of activists, researchers, artists and techies. The brain behind the project, researcher Anja Kovacs, explains the idea behind the project: “The idea took seed two years ago in 2007, when, as a trained sociologist I realised that anthropologists around the world were studying cyber-anthropology and I didn’t even know about social media sites like Facebook or Orkut.”</p>
<p>Hit by an idea, she says, “I realised that as activists, we tend to make a mistake by ignoring the technological changes happening around us, since technology, no doubt is transforming our lives.” More importantly, she made a connect: “I realised that we as activists could use it to our favour.”</p>
<p>Her first thoughts were maps. She explains her choice: “Maps were used in colonial times and maps affect the lives of those who do not use them the most.” She pointed out how “even to this day maps are used for governance and by policy makers. In that sense they can be really important”.</p>
<p>The map is a powerful medium to convey information in an innocent manner, she says. “When the land in a map is hid behind dots, one knows there is a problem,” she says matter-of-factly.</p>
<p>Currently a fellow with Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), she co-coordinated and organised the project and says the last five months the selected participants have had several workshops, one of them she mentions was of them learning the “whole mapping exercise”.</p>
<p>A work-in-progress is what all these projects are, and Kovacs says, after an intense five months, they are also looking at answering the “what next”, for now, however, she is happy, “to have begun tracing the transformation”.</p>
<p>Read the original article in <a class="external-link" href="http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report_mapping-the-things-that-affect-bangalore_1377923">DNA</a></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/mapping-the-things'>https://cis-india.org/news/mapping-the-things</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaPracticeResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:05:45ZNews ItemTheir India has No Borders
https://cis-india.org/news/their-india-has-no-borders
<b>Bangalore felt far for them, they would mark it outside the country. India, for migrant labourers, is different from the India we know</b>
<p>To 30-year-old Shankar, a
migrant worker in Bangalore who came from Jharkhand, Mumbai is near
West Bengal and Bangalore is in the North-East. If someone were to
travel to Mumbai by Shankar’s map of India, he would land up in Kolkata.</p>
<p>Shankar’s map was part of an
installation art show that concluded in the city on Wednesday, showing
the maps of India as seen by migrant workers in Bangalore. The
installation was a 14ft-by-18ft space enclosed with asbestos sheets.
Wires crisscrossed the tiny room, and from the wires hung maps of
India, drawn according to the perceptions of the migrant workers.</p>
<p>Shankar
is only one among thousands of migrant workers in Bangalore who have a
very different perception of where the cities where they work are
located. Their India is a world away from the maps of India that
educated Indians know of. It has none of the directions, orientation or location of places as we know it.</p>
<p><strong>Start Thinking</strong></p>
<p>“We want Bangaloreans to stop
and think about migrant workers, who live amongst us,” says Ekta. Along
with Yashaswini and Paromita, she spoke to 70 migrant workers on Old
Madras Road before tracking their journeys on the maps. While Ekta has
founded Maraa, a collective that looks at art and culture in the public
domain, Yashaswini and Paromita are independent film makers.</p>
<p> “Our
perception of location is meaningless to migrant workers,” says Ekta.
For them, locations, distances and directions are all very different
from the true picture. Their ideas of places are all drawn from their
lives, as they travel from city to city to earn their livelihoods, she
adds.</p>
<p>For instance, if Assam was westwards from his home, a
migrant worker would mark it in West India. And if Bangalore felt far
for him, he would mark it outside the country. Borders hardly came in
the way and distances are measured by the time spent in a journey,
including train delays and stopovers at transit points, they say.</p>
<p>When
the workers say long distances or far way, they mean places such as
Jharkhand, Bihar, Nepal, Punjab, Andhra, and North Karnataka.</p>
<strong>India in a Room</strong>
<p> </p>
<p>While
they work here, their families are in villages back home, even as far
away as Nepal. Many workers live in asbestos shanties that are as small
as 10ft by 10ft. They live huddled within the small space, creating a
mini India right here in Bangalore, says Ekta. Spluttering rai (mustard
seeds) mingle with the smell of Andhra chutneys in a room adorned with
photos of Amritsar’s Golden Temple in the same tiny space.</p>
<p>As
the group spoke to the workers, the latter also shared their stories of
the weather, people, smells, cultures, personal, nostalgic and
fantastical, of places — by their memories of what they saw, felt and
remembered. They go beyond the geo-political maps of India and present
a new, spatial experience of places.</p>
<p>The project is part of a
workshop called Maps for Making Change, which was started by Centre for
Internet and Society, to examine ways of using maps to help social
causes.</p>
<p>Read the original in <a class="external-link" href="http://www.bangaloremirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article&sectname=News%20-%20City&sectid=10&contentid=201004292010042904535369081298296">Bangalore Mirror</a></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/their-india-has-no-borders'>https://cis-india.org/news/their-india-has-no-borders</a>
</p>
No publisheranjaPracticeResearchers at WorkMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:08:36ZNews ItemMaps for Making Change - The First Workshop
https://cis-india.org/events/maps-for-making-change-the-first-workshop
<b>In this first workshop in a series of three, participants will think through the potential of mapping in the context of a project that they have suggested in their application and the preparations they need to make to make these ideas a reality. </b>
<p>On 3 December, 'Maps for Making Change:
Using Geographical Mapping Techniques to Support Struggles for Social
Justice in India' will officially kick off at the India Islamic
Cultural Centre on Delhi's Lodhi Road. In this first workshop in a
series of three, participants will think through the potential of
mapping in the context of a project that they have suggested in their
application and the preparations they need to make to make these
ideas a reality.</p>
<p>A joint initiative by the Centre for Internet and Society
in Bangalore and the Tactical Tech Collective in Bangalore and the
UK, Maps for Making Change is a two month project that seeks to
explore the potential of digital mapping for social change
specifically in the Indian context. For the first time, activists
and supporters of movements and campaigns working for progressive
social change in the country will get the opportunity to collectively
debate and explore in detail the potential of digital mapping as a
tool to support their work. </p>
<p align="left"><strong>The aims of
this first workshop are to: </strong></p>
<ul><li>
<p align="left">introduce
tools and techniques for mapping</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">assist
participants to identify the information they need to collect for
their mapping project</p>
</li></ul>
<p align="left"><strong>By the end
of the workshop, the participants will be able to:</strong></p>
<ul><li>
<p align="left">understand
the socio-political context of mapping and how maps can be used to
maximise advocacy efforts</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">identify
different types of maps (static, interactive, collaborative, etc)</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">identify
some of the tools used for creating, uploading and editing maps (not
covering the technical aspects nor the step-by-step process for
making maps, but focusing on the general web-based mapping
techniques)</p>
</li><li>
<p align="left">understand
data collection for mapping</p>
</li></ul>
<p align="left"><strong><br /></strong></p>
<p align="left"><strong>The preliminary workshop schedule is as follows:</strong></p>
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><br /></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">Welcome
and introductions</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">Why
mapping?</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left"><strong>15 min
break</strong></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">Mapping
and Advocacy Discussion</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">How
do you 'map'? Basic tools and techniques</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">What
can you 'map'?</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left"><strong>Lunch
break</strong><strong> </strong></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">Project
scoping of participants' projects</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<p align="left">Summary</p>
<p align="left"> </p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/events/maps-for-making-change-the-first-workshop'>https://cis-india.org/events/maps-for-making-change-the-first-workshop</a>
</p>
No publisherAnja KovacsRAW EventsPracticeWorkshopResearchers at WorkEventMaps for Making Change2015-10-05T15:09:14ZEventPublic Event: Exploring Maps for Making Change
https://cis-india.org/events/public-event-exploring-maps-for-making-change
<b>The Centre for Internet and Society, in collaboration with Tactical Tech, would like to invite you to 'A Conversation on Maps for Making Change - Using Geographical Mapping Techniques to Support Struggles for Social Justice in India', at the Centre for Internet and Society in Bangalore.</b>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><strong><br /></strong></p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><strong>When
a migrant labourer draws a map of India, what does it look like? Can
maps prove a correlation between corporate investment and Operation
Green Hunt in Chhattisgarh? </strong></p>
<p align="JUSTIFY">For
the past five months, twenty five activists, researchers, artists and
techies have explored together, as part of the Maps for Making Change
project, the potential of geographical mapping techniques to support
struggles for social justice in India. As Maps for Making Change
comes to an end, they would like to share with you their journey,
their thoughts and their work, and to enter into a conversation with
a much wider group of people about the potential and challenges of
mapping for social justice now that new
technologies can in theory be mobilised to fight for social justice
by anyone with an interest in maps, but in practice remain confined
to the hands of a privileged few.</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><strong><br /></strong></p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><strong>Join
us:</strong></p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><em><strong>from
4 pm onwards</strong></em>, for an exhibition that allows you to explore
the work of Maps for Making Change participants through
installations, websites, conversations, information, video, ... and
maps.</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><em><strong>from
5 pm to 5.30 pm</strong></em>, for refreshments.</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><em><strong>from
5.30 pm onwards</strong></em>, for a panel discusion which our panelists
will kick off by sharing some of their own reflections and comments
on mapping for social justice, to open up the conversation to a much
broader discussion with all those present in the audience.</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY">Panelists:</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY">Reuben
Jacob, Inclusive Planet</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"> Shakun
Mohini, Vimochana</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"> Shubhranshu
Choudhary, Knight International Journalism Fellow and Community
Media Activist</p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"> </p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><em>For
more information, please contact Anja Kovacs, Centre for Internet and
Society: 98 11 74 72 12, <a href="mailto:anja@cis-india.orgO">anja@cis-india.org</a>.
Or check out the Maps for Making Change wiki:
maps4change.cis-india.org.</em></p>
<p align="JUSTIFY"><strong>Looking
forward to seeing you at CIS on 28 April!</strong></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/events/public-event-exploring-maps-for-making-change'>https://cis-india.org/events/public-event-exploring-maps-for-making-change</a>
</p>
No publisheranjaRAW EventsPracticeResearchers at WorkEventMaps for Making Change2015-10-24T14:19:32ZEvent