The body of Muslim woman, killed in a German courtroom by a man convicted of insulting her religion, has been taken back to her native Egypt for burial.

Read more here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8136500.stm

Since the founding of TakingITGlobal in 1999, I have been incredibly inspired by my interactions with thousands of young change makers from all around the world. Through my Masters Research on youth-led action in an international context along with exposure to other studies and international conferences examining the role of today's generation of youth as change agents, I have gained an important observation. My observation is that I have seen the emergence of Six Archetypes of Youth Change Makers, which provide a glance at the roles young people are taking on in the process of creating change.


The Dreamer

The Dreamer is the driver behind new ideas. Dreamers are often the first to articulate a long-term vision for the future and think big. It is the sense of aspiration, optimism and imagination of dreamers that drive progress, innovation and change.

The Megaphone

The Megaphone is a vocal advocate for change. Megaphones are very focused on delivering the message and will campaign tirelessly and work hard to lobby for a message to be heard. They inspire action through their words and help to shift priorities on the agenda.

The Spark Plug

The Spark Plug is a catalyst and has a gift for networking and connecting people. The Spark Plug is able to foster collaborations and bring many different organizations and individuals together in dialogue, convincing diverse interest groups to come together for a common goal.

The Task Master

The Task Master is often behind the scenes making things happen and is sometimes the under-rated player within a group or organization. Often, it is the Task Master who literally keeps things together by turning ideas into manageable tasks with actionable timelines. Task Masters are practical, objective-oriented individuals.

The Sherpa

The Sherpa serves as a guide who provides mentorship, insight and training through peer education. Sherpas are natural educators with a strong interest in learning and sharing knowledge. Sherpas value hands on experiences and are able to draw upon the expertise and resources of those they encounter.

The Storyteller

The Storyteller is often the documenter of an organization and its projects, preparing short stories, interviews, blogs, webcasts newsletters and more. Storytellers become a vehicle for spreading inspiration and sharing of best practices through identifying patterns and strengthening movements through recognizing exceptional individuals.

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-----Amira--------
Wed, June 17 -09

"Ah yes, truth. Funny how everyone is always asking for it but when they get it they don't believe it because it's not the truth they want to hear.": Helena Cassadine

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Without seeking, truth cannot be known at all. It can neither be declared from pulpits, nor set down in articles, nor in any wise prepared and sold in packages ready for use. Truth must be ground for every man by itself out of it such, with such help as he can get, indeed, but not without stern labor of his own: John Ruskin

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The truth that makes men free is for the most part the truth which men prefer not to hear: Herbert Sebastien Agar

Never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy: Sir Winston Churchill.

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The jaws of power are always open to devour, and her arm is always stretched out, if possible, to destroy the freedom of thinking, speaking, and writing: John Adams

An elder Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me...It is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, pride and superiority. The other wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside of you and every other person too."

They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?" The old Cherokee simply replied..."The one I feed."

من دعاء النبي (صلى الله عليه وسلم)اللهم إليك أشكو ضعف قوتي وقلة حيلتي وهواني على الناس يا أرحم الراحمين أنت ربُّ المستضعفين وانت ربّي إلى من تكلني، إلى بعيد يتجهَّمني أم إلى عدو ملكته أمري إن لم يكن بك علىِّ غضبُُ فلا أبالي، ولكنَّ عافَيَتَك أوسعُ لي. أعوذ بنور وجهك الذي أشرقت له الظلمات، وصلح عليه أمر الدنيا والآخر ه من أن تُنزل بي غضبك أو يَحِلَّ علىَّ سخطُك لك العتبى حتى ترضى ولا حول ولا قوة إلا بك

دعاء زين العابدين بن علي لتفريج الكرب:

إلهي كيف أدعوك وأنا أنا، وكيف أقطع رجائي منك وأنت أنت؟، إلهي إن لم أدعك فستجب لي فمن ذا الذي أدعوه فيستجيب؟ وإن لم أسألك فتعطيني فمن ذا الذي أسأله فيعطيني؟ وإن لم أتضرع إليك فتنجيني فمن ذا الذي أتضرع إليه فينجيني؟ إلهي وكما فلقت البحر لموسى فنجيته من الغرق فصلّ اللهم على محمد وعلى آل محمد ونجني مما أنا فيه من كرب بفرج عاجل غير آجل وبرحمتك يا أرحم الراحمين. (يقرأ مئة مرة بعد صلاة ركعتين في ثلث الليل الأخير)

دعاء فك الكرب:لا إله إلا الله الحليم الكريم، لا إله إلا الله العلي العطيم، لا إله إلا الله رب السموات السبع رب العرش العطيم

دعاء:اللهم يا مؤنس كلّ غريب ويا صاحب كلّ وحيد ويا ملجأ كل خائف ويا كاشف كلّ كربة أسألك لأن تقذف رجاءك في قلبي حتى لا يكون لي همُ ولا شغلُ غيرك وأسألك أن تجعل لي من أمري فرجاً ومخرجاً إنك على كل شيء قدير.

دعاء: هبني اللّهم الصبر والقدرة لأرضى بما ليس منه بد، وهبني اللّهم الشجاعة والقوة لأغير ما تقوى على تغييره يد، وهبني اللهم السداد والحكمة لأميز بين هذا وذاك.

دعاء:اللهم آت نفسي تقواها , وزكّها, أنت خير من زكّاها , أنت وليّها ومولاها ،اللهم إني أعوذ بك من علم لا ينفع, وقلب لا يخشع , ونفس لا تشبع , ودعوة لا يستجاب لها ،اللهم إني أعوذ بك من شر ما عملت , ومن شر ما لم أعمل , وأعوذ بك من شر ما علمت , ومن شر ما لم أعلم اللهم إني أعوذ بك من زوال نعمتك , وتحول عافيتك , وفجاءة نقمتك , وجميع سخطك ".

دعاء: اللهم من اعتزّ بك فلن يُذل، ومن اهتدى بك فلن يضِلّ، ومن استكثر بك فلن يقلّ، ومن استقوى بك فلن يضعف، ومن استغنى بك فلن يفتقر، ومن استنصر بك فلن يُخذل، ومن استعان بك فلن يُغلب، ومن توكل عليك فلن يخيب، ومن جعلك ملاذه فلن يضيع، ومن اعتصم بك فقد هُدي إلى صراط مستقيم، اللهم فكن لنا وليّاً ونصيرا، وكن لنا معيناً ومجيرا، إنك كنت بنا بصيرا.



دعاء: اللهم إنا نسألك زيادة في الدين ، وبركة في العمر ، وصحة في الجسد ، وسعة في الرزق ،وتوبة قبل الموت ، وشهادة عند الموت ، ومغفرة بعد الموت ، وعفوا عند الحساب ، وأمانا من العذاب ، ونصيبا من الجنة ، وارزقنا النظر إلى وجهك الكريم ، اللهم ارحم موتانا وموتى المسلمين واشفي مرضانا ومرضى المسليمين ، اللهم اغفر للمسلمين والمسلمات والمؤمنين والمؤمنات الاحياء منهم والاموات ، اللهم ارزقني قبل الموت توبة وعند الموت شهادة وبعد الموت جنة ، اللهم ارزقني حسن الخاتمة ، اللهم ارزقني الموت وانا ساجد لك يا ارحم الراحمين ، اللهم ثبتني عند سؤال الملكين ، اللهم اجعل قبري روضة من رياض الجنة ولا تجعله حفرة من حفر النار ، اللهم اني اعوذ بك من فتن الدنيا ،اللهم اني اعوذ بك من فتن الدنيا ، اللهم اني اعوذ بك من فتن الدنيا ، اللهم قوّي ايماننا ووحد كلمتنا وانصرنا على اعدائك اعداء الدين ، اللهم شتت شملهم واجعل الدائرة عليهم ، اللهم انصر اخواننا المسلمين في كل مكان ، اللهم ارحم ابائنا وامهاتنا واغفر لهما وتجاوز عن سيئاتهما وادخلهم فسيح جناتك، والحقنا بهما يا رب العالمين ،وبارك اللهم على سيدنا محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم

دعاء يعين على القيام لصلاة الصبح: اللهم لا تؤمّني مكرك، ولا تكشف سترك، ولا تُنسني ذكرك، ولا تولّني غيرك، ولا تجعلني من الظالمين. يُقرأ ثلاث مرّات وفي المرّة الرابعة يضاف إليه: أيها الملك الموكّل أيقظني في الساعة كذا. على أن ينام الشخص على وضوء (منقول عن الشيخ أحمد الكبيسي)

]دعاء للتسامح فيما بيننا:

سامحتك من غير علمك .. فسامحني حتى لو لم تعرفني .. سامحني حتى لو انك تعتقد بأنه ليس هناك داع للتسامح .. فقط سامحني .. اريد منك الدعاء الخالص من القلب

قـُــــــــــل:

اللهم أيما امرئ شتمني أو آذاني أو نال مني ، اللهم إني عفوت عنه ، اللهم فاعفو. اللهم أنا عفوت عن عبادك فاجعل لي مخرجا أن يعفو عبادك عني. اللهم أنت السميع العليم تعلم ما بي وما علي. اللهم أنا أرجو نجاةً مما أنا فيه وأنت أرحم الراحمين.

نريد لكم الفوز بالجنة... هل ترغب في يوم الحساب بأن لا يأتي أحد ويأخذ من حسناتك أو يرمي عليك سيئاته؟ هل دعوت الله من صميم قلبك وبإخلاص النية بأنك عفوت عن كل من أساء إليك أو ظلمك أو مسك بأي مكروه؟ فكر وجرب وانظر كيف أن الله سوف يرحمك بالدنيا والآخرة. إسأل من الله الاستجابة بإخلاص النية فأنت لن تخسر مع الله أي شيء وهو القادر على كل شيء.فقط جرب.

إرحم لكي تــُـــــــــــرحم

من واقع مجرب في تلك الليلة وعند المسجد النبوي أخلصت النية لرب العالمين ودعوت بأني مسامح كل من أحصاه ربي في كتابه باني غفرت لهم وسامحتهم وصفحت عنهم ولا أريد منهم أن يقضوا لي حقوقي في يوم القيامة.عفوت عن الذي أعرفه والذي أجهله وأخلصت النية لله. فرأيت في منامي بأني أستخرج ثعابين مختلفة الأحجام والأوزان من ظهري وهي تحاول جاهدة البقاء داخل ظهري وكانت كل محاولاتها لا تنجح. وكانت تحاول غرس أنيابها في ظهري لإيذائي حتى اللحظات الأخيرة أثناء استخراجي لها. وكنت أستخرجها بيدي اليمنى وألقيها في سلة المهملات فأراها تبدأ بأكل ما يوجد بشهية لا توصف و كأنها كانت جائعة أو وجدت طعام فتح شهيتها للأكل. إلا كبيرتهم وأسمنهم وآخر واحده خرجت، كانت تنظر إلي بأعين جاحظة وبكبرياء وحقد فسألت الرجل الصالح الذي كان يقف بجانبي ويخرج منه النور عن تلك النظرة فقال لي إنك لا تعلم ماذا أكلت قبل خروجها .

ساهم في نشر هذه التجربة لأنك إذا غفرت للبشر وطهرت قلبك فإن الله لن ينساك وسيفعل لك ما يغنيك في يوم لا ينفع مالا ولا بنون إلا من أتى الله بقلب سليم.

دعاء كفّارة المجالس: قال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: من جلس في مجلس فكثر فيه لغطه فقال قبل أن يقوم من مجلسه ذلك: "سبحانك اللهم وبحمدك أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت أستغفرك وأتوب إليك" إلا غفر له ما كان في مجلسه ذلك. رواه الترمذي وابن حبان والحاكم عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه.

دعاء يكرهه الشيطان:


ورد فى الاثر عن الامام محمد بن واسع انه كان يدعوا الله كل يوم بدعاء خاص -- فجائه شيطان وقال له يا امام أعاهدك انى لن أوسوس لك ابدا ولم آتيك ولن أمرك بمعصيه ولكن بشرط ان لاتدعوا الله بهذا الدعاء ولا تعلمه لاحد فقال له الامام كلا -- ساعلمه لكل من قابلت وافعل ما شئت هل تريد معرفه هذا الدعاء ؟؟؟؟ كان يدعوا فيقول :اللهم انك سلطت علينا عدوا عليما بعيوبنا - يرانا هو وقبيله من حيث لا نراهم -- اللهم آيسه منا كما آيستـه من رحمتك وقنطه منا كما قنطـته من عـفوك -- وباعــد بيننا وبينه كما باعـدت بينه وبين رحمتك وجنتك

Political language. . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind: George Orwell

This is from Yahoo music

http://new.music.yahoo.com/daniel-barenboim/news/israeli-conductor-barenboim-gets-ovation-in-egypt--61987306;_ylt=Ao.ZdkC.Enk9PpaVR8zWcXnasyUv

Israeli conductor Daniel Barenboim stirred a sold out Cairo Opera House Thursday with a performance of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, drawing ovations in his first visit to Egypt.The famed musician's enthusiastic welcome in a major Arab capital reflected his years of advocacy for peace with the Palestinians and Arab world and his efforts to use music to bring people together in a region where conflict otherwise keeps them apart.
Egyptian actor Omar Sharif introduced Barenboim to the crowd filled with Egyptian high society and foreign diplomats, saying, "I love his work and I love his opinions. He is a man who cultivates tolerance."
Barenboim began with a solo piano performance of Beethoven's "Pathetique" sonata before conducting the Cairo Symphony Orchestra.
He is believed to be the first prominent Israeli musician to perform in Cairo, and his visit was not entirely without criticism from some Egyptian intellectuals and artists who felt the time was not right to accept such a visit, especially with anger over Israel's offensive in Gaza still so potent.
In one act of protest, the secretary-general of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, refused an invitation to attend from Egypt's culture minister.
Barenboim himself has referred to the three decades of peace between Israel and Egypt as "ice cold," and many in Egypt prefer to delay closer cultural and other ties until the Jewish state reaches a final peace deal with the Palestinians.
Much of Egypt's intellectual community, however, appeared to look beyond that sentiment for Barenboim, who is well-known for his outspoken support of Palestinian statehood, criticism of the Israeli government and his contention that there is no military solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
In defending his visit, Egypt's Culture Ministry also highlighted the fact that Barenboim has honorary Palestinian citizenship, which he accepted in 2007 despite criticism from fellow Israelis.
It was only Barenboim's second time in an Arab country — his first was a 2003 trip to Morocco, where he led a group of young musicians from Israel and the Arab and Muslim worlds in the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra.
He has also played in the West Bank city of Ramallah, where, he likes to recall, a young Palestinian violinist pleaded for his autograph because, as she said to him, "You are the first thing that comes from Israel that is not a soldier or a tank."
The 66-year-old Barenboim called his first visit to Egypt, at the heart of the Arab world, an important moment in his life.
"This visit of mine to Egypt, though much too short — barely 48 hours — has given me so much pleasure," he told the audience.
The Argentinian-born conductor moved to Israel at age 9 and says he was always curious about the Arab world just beyond his tiny country and saddened that many other Israelis did not share that curiosity.
Through music and discussion, he has tried to break down the "ignorance" that he says exists on both sides.
In Egypt, after his first rehearsal, Barenboim said he had "found an orchestra full of curiosity, full of goodwill." After the performance, he warmly shook hands with each player, as the audience applauded and whistled.
In the crowd, painter Samir Fouad, 64, said the orchestra's performance under Barenboim's direction was the best he had heard.
The one-time child prodigy pianist and Grammy Award winner led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for more than a decade starting in 1991 and has worked closely for many years with the Staatskapelle Berlin and the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra among others.
Responding to his critics among both Arabs and Israelis, Barenboim told the audience that his efforts to bring musicians from both sides together was not a political project, but a human one aimed at encouraging people to express their opinions.
Khaled el-Ghayesh, a 23-year-old Egyptian computer engineer and classical pianist, said at Thursday's concert that Barenboim's music should be appreciated apart from politics.
"He's coming for music and not for political speeches," he said.
Egypt's culture minister, Farouk Hosni, backed the visit, the result of an invitation from the Austrian Embassy.
The minister, who is campaigning to become the next head of UNESCO, also used the occasion to demonstrate a willingness to have dealings with Israel as chief of the U.N. cultural body.
"The maestro is known to be against Israeli aggression and is among the moderates and peace-loving people and is for the Palestinian cause," Hosni said.

Bus 189 from Brent Cross towards Oxford Circus, London.

April 11th 2009, 3:30 a.m.

Sitting with my wife at the bus upper deck, front left seats. A while after Carlton Vale station, a British-accent old long-white-haired man sat behind me, and started murmuring with words. At the first while, my wife whispered at me that the man sitting behind us is "talking to himself". Actually after some time, both of us noticed that he was speaking to us:

What are you Muslim scam bags doing in this Christian country?
Beggars…free food…free accommodation…
Beggars….shit…scam bags…
You're fucking dead nigger…
You're fucking dead…
Islam is the world's scam…
Church Street beggars…
Coming from your country to sit in front of me…
Muslim scam bags…fucking beggars….
Go back to your fucking country…

Quietly, we descended to the lower deck, and reported the incident to the driver. While the driver was asking me about where the man was sitting, I saw the old man leaving the bus, anxiously…

The reason why I'm sharing this story with the public is to address the danger of having such dangerous –minded people wandering in the streets, and not to leave the incident unreported. The old man seemed to be homeless; wearing dirty jeans, with long untidy hair, drunk, and carrying a hand bag. He might have been a madman, or suffering from a psychological disorder, however, he threatened me personally. At least, those people should be policed…

A.
12.04.2009

I don't like to follow trends, because I think trends come and go. I like to make sure that the woman, most importantly, feels really beautiful, really sexy and really radiant.

—Ken Paves, hairstylist

Today people live in a society where transformation of information and knowledge based on the opportunities for individuals and communities to be information producers as well as consumers, where socialization of knowledge exists. As information and communications technologies (ICT) continue to spread into all sectors of social and economic life, it became a vital tool for creating knowledge based society, building and sustaining human development. It has transformed our world from the industrial society into an informational one.

For that reason, knowledge has become an essential key for production, and a basic determination for creativity. The Info-Technological revolution which is led by advances in ICT is restructuring the global social economic equation— moving from income divide to knowledge divide. The revolution is spearheading the growth of knowledge societies in developed countries and raised much interest among civil society, markets and the agents of change.

While more than 850 million people in developing countries are excluded from a wide range of information and knowledge tools, the poors in those developing countries remain much isolated economically, socially and culturally from the burgeoning information and progress in arts, science and technology. In addition the global economy of capital investment is flowing to where the potential opportunities for reward can be found. These opportunities will be located in these places or regions where new values and creative ideas can be realized.

Information and Communication Technologies broadly refer to set of activities that facilitate—by electronic means—the capturing, storage, processing, transmission, and display of information.[1]
Information and Communications Technology is "an umbrella term that includes computer hardware and software; digital broadcast and telecommunications technologies as well as electronic information repositories such as the World Wide Web or those found on CD-ROMs (Selwyn 2002). It represents a broad and continually evolving range of elements that further includes television (TV), radio, mobile phones, and the policies and laws that govern these media and devices"[2]

Information and communication technologies are the tools that underpin the emerging “information society.” While no universally accepted definition for Information Society exists, it can be defined as "society in which the creation, distribution, and manipulation of information has become the most significant economic and cultural activity. An Information Society may be contrasted with societies in which the economic underpinning is primarily Industrial or Agrarian” (TechTarget 1999). "information" exchange between people and through networks of people has always taken place. The ICT enablement of information exchange, however, has radically changed the magnitude of this exchange, and thus, factors such as timeliness of information and information dissemination patterns have become more important than ever"[3].

As "information" is "the data that has been organized and communicated"[4] while "knowledge" has been described as "the set of statements, facts or ideas; presenting a reasoned judgment or an experimental result, which is transmitted to others through some communication medium in some system systematic form"[5]. In addition, both of the "information" and "knowledge" both considered being main pillars in achieving the "socialization of knowledge" in order to build “information society.”

Information Society has been one of the key terms used to describe today’s world, as ICT have brought revolutionary changes impacting every aspect of our society— connecting cultures, creating new opportunities for education, restructuring employment, generating new economies, and changing citizens' relation to government. Recognizing these and other paradigm shifts are typically seen as the natural development of the modern liberal tradition. Information and Communication Technologies/ICTs represent to today’s world what industrial machines represented during the industrial revolution; they have revolutionized ways of working, transformed the economy, had an irreversible impact on the way people live, and have shaped a new “information society".[6]It is about a second industry revolution but this time based in the information and communication arena.


on the other hand, the term of "socialization of knowledge" is used to "express the idea of transforming the private and individual knowledge to public and collective knowledge"[7].

Within the context of ICTs and Information Societies; we should refer to:

"environmental information systems" and "eco-efficiency"


"environmental information systems": The definition of environmental information is very wide and many researchers link between sustainable development and the information society focusing on the potential for information systems to assist decision-makers "to monitor and evaluate the state of the environment" using computer and information management technology to solve environmental problems and improve environmental stewardship. Environmental information system (EIS) programs seek “to increase the quality, efficiency and accountability of decision-making processes through applications that systematically use environmental information. In this regard EIS development seeks to enhance the use of harmonized environmental data sets through improving data availability; facilitating access to data; ensuring that data is internally consistent; and ensuring that different data sets match each other.” .

While the term eco-efficiency was coined by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in its 1992 publication: "Changing Course". It is based on the concept of creating more goods and services while using fewer resources and creating less waste and pollution. The 1992 Earth Summit endorsed eco-efficiency as a means for companies to implement Agenda 21 in the private sector, and the term has become synonymous with a management philosophy geared towards sustainability.

According to the WBCSD definition, eco-efficiency is achieved through the delivery of "competitively priced goods and services that satisfy human needs and bring quality of life while progressively reducing environmental impacts of goods and resource intensity throughout the entire life-cycle to a level at least in line with the Earth's estimated carrying capacity.” This concept describes a vision for the production of economically valuable goods and services while reducing the ecological impacts of production. In other words eco-efficiency means producing more with less.

In 2002, the book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things was published by Michael Braungart and William McDonough about the ideas of eco-efficiency and its practical applications.

"Eco-efficiency in the production and consumption of goods and services-environmentally is benign to alleviate the impact of further economic growth on world ecosystems.”


Another term commonly used to describe the changes produced by information technology is the "digital divide" term which refers to the gap between those who benefit from digital technology and those who do not. While the term digital economy; this expression emphasizes the new opportunities created by transforming information into a binary digital code. The digital economy refers to more than the boom and bust cycle of many new ventures that aim at tapping the potential of the Internet for commercial purposes. The more profound effect of ICT is likely to be in improving the efficiency and reach of the mainstream production of goods and services, in both the public and private sectors of the economy. Based on this we can defined the The "global digital divide" is a term used to describe “great disparities in opportunity to access the Internet and the information and educational/business opportunities tied to this access … between developed and developing countries” [8] (Lu 2001 p. 1). Unlike the traditional notion of the "digital divide" between social classes, the "global digital divide" is essentially a geographical division.

Cleary the development of the Information and Knowledge Society shows outstanding differences between individuals, places, cities, countries, and regions, thus leading to the existence of the so-called digital divide. However, how individuals utilize ICT to access equal opportunities differ from country to another and from person to person due to economic, physical, geographical, and other reasons.

Despite the potential benefits that can be offered by Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) developing countries face significant obstacles to ICT access due to a wide variety of reasons including technical, economic, legal and educational factors.


Different degrees of access to technology and connectivity mirror the social and economic divides within countries and between countries. Increase in access to ICTs will not, by itself, reduce poverty or secure freedoms on a sustainable basis. But there is a real danger that lack of access to ICTs, and to the spaces where decisions are made about information and communications infrastructure, content and services, can deepen existing social exclusion and create new forms of exclusion. Academic studies on ICT and society show that there is a range of issues which make clear that the Information Society like any society will have winners and losers, beneficial consequences of ICT and harmful applications. A review of these academic studies shows that there are no simple and straightforward effects of ICT on society. Mostly effects are multiple and contradictory. New positive developments are accompanied by neutral and negative effects.


To benefit the world community, the successful and continued growth of this new information world of today requires global cooperation and harmonization in different business and social domains.

Since there are still governments that are not able yet to fulfill the basic demands to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), then it is even harder to join the ICT revolution for their nations. Thus, the digital divide will remain and the gap between develop and the developing world will continue to be increasing.

For sustainable development (SD) to be achieved, it is a must, to promote the tools of the information society. And in order to have a sustainable information society; it is a must to consider the socio, economic, and the environmental needs, besides the local content of nations.

Then, Governments are exhorted to make greater use of both new and traditional information and communication technologies as a tool for development, as well as are encouraged to implement strategies references to the UN Millennium Development Goals. ICTs can create unknown opportunities for generating sustainable livelihoods. This could be easily achieved by building strategic partnerships among all parties in societies. As governments alone won't be able to achieve this objective.


There is a role for both of the private and non-profit sectors in helping governments to achieve the MDGs -each is dependent on the cooperation of others to accomplish its goals and further enhance sustainable development processes.

Many developed countries' future and economic and social developments depends to an increasing extent on their innovation performance.

Today, research and development (R&D) – intensive industries in some of these developed countries account for more than half of all industrial production. Here comes the role of the civil society and international agencies in raising awareness of the local communities about the important of such kind of businesses that invest more in research and development.
Youth should be aware that ICT is not about providing technology alone to areas devoid of the modern machines and equipments. Simply, ICT is a way of living. Also, young people should know that using ICT is not that hard. ICT could be simple as using pens and papers. ICT is for all; it could be for young and old, it could be for poor and rich.

ICT is not Luxury…ICT is Life




--Amira--
Aug., 2007
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Refrences:

[1] OECD definition cited by Cynthia Hewitt De Alcántara (2001): The Development Divide in a Digital Age: An Issues Paper, UNRISD, Technology, Business and Society Programme Paper Number 4, August 2001, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, Geneva , p. 3.
[2] Steve Vosloo: Willard, Terri, and Maja Andjelkovic. A Developing Connection: Bridging the Policy Gap between the Information Society and Sustainable Development.. '1st ed'. Canada: IISD , 2005
[3] Steve Vosloo: Willard, Terri, and Maja Andjelkovic. A Developing Connection: Bridging the Policy Gap between the Information Society and Sustainable Development.. '1st ed'. Canada: IISD , 2005
[4] Romer, P., "Endogenous Technological Change", Journal of Political Economy, 98:5 (1990)
[5] Daniell Bell (1973:175)
[6] Sarrocco, "ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE INFORMATION." www.itu.int. 19 Jul 2007
[7] Diogo André de Assumpçăo, Willard, Terri, and Maja Andjelkovic. A Developing Connection: Bridging the Policy Gap between the Information Society and Sustainable Development.. '1st ed'. Canada: IISD , 2005
[8]Lu, Ming-te (2001). Digital divide in developing countries. Journal of Global Information Technology Management (4:3), pp. 1-4.
[9]Willard, Terri , and Michael Halder. The Information Society and Sustainable Development- Exploring the Linkages. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: IISD, 2003.
[10]Information Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. “About EIS.” http://www.grida.no/eisssa/about/eis.htm

Brahmanism: This is the sum of duty: Do naught unto others which would cause you pain if done to you.: Mahabharata 5:1517

Christianity: All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.: Matthew 7:12

Islam: No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself. Sunnah

Buddhism: Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.: Udana Varga 5:18

Judaism: What is hateful to you, do not to your fellowmen. That is the entire Law; all the rest is commentary.: Talmud, Shabbat 31:a

Confucianism: Surely it is the maxim of loving-kindness: Do not unto others that you would not have them do unto you.: Analects 15:23

Taoism: Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your neighbor's loss as your own loss.: T'ai Shag Kan Ying P'ien

Zoroastrianism: That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto another whatsoever is not good: for itself. : Dadistan-i-dinik 94:5