INFOCON Newsletter # 4
Contents:
- Welcome to the about-once-a-month INFOCON newsletter
- INFOCON’s first work progress report
- Preparatory fieldwork in Rwanda
- Visit to Bonn
- Other news
1. Welcome to the about-once-a-month INFOCON newsletter
Dear Colleague,
In this edition of the INFOCON newsletter you will find information on the latest developments of our project!
The INFOCON Management Team thanks all partners for the commitment they have shown!
2. INFOCON’s first work progress report
On the 3rd October 2008, the INFOCON Management Team submitted to the European Commission the project’s first progress report, providing information on the scientific progress of the work (Deliverable 1); an updated summary of the project and its output; and up-date information on management and dissemination activities.
The 1st INFOCON Progress Report can be found at our website (www.infocon-project.org – output section) and contains a compte rendu of the first six months of work, the progress on the internet-platform, the preparation of Deliverable 1, a summary of co-ordination activities and an outlook for the next 6 months.
3. Preparatory fieldwork in Rwanda
Marieke Van Houte, from the Centre for International Development Issues – Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, will be in Rwanda from the 7th until the 26th October for a preparatory visit in order to identify contacts and collect information on the ground for the fieldwork to be carried from January 2009 onwards.
The Management Team wishes Marieke to have a very good and worthy time in Rwanda.
4. Visit to Bonn
At September 29th 2008, the INFOCON’s Project Manager as well as the project’s IT Manager went to Bonn in order to present the advancements on the internet platform to the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC), member of the DIASPEACE Consortium. The idea is to foster cooperation between the two sister projects, so the internet platform could be supported by both consortia, improving its conditions of sustainability.
At the same time, Jana Schildt, the project’s assistant research director, visited NAVEND, member of the INFOCON consortium, to consult them about the case study guidelines (Deliverable 1) which ensure the overall comparability of the selected case studies (Great Lakes region in Africa, Kosovo, Turkey, Brussels, Amsterdam/Randstad, Berlin and London).
NAVEND is a non-profit registered association based in Bonn, Germany, and aims to improve the knowledge and awareness of Kurdish migrants in Europe. Find more at http://www.navend.de/
5. Other news
On the 9th & 10th October 2008, INFOCON representatives attended a conference at the European Commission when research projects involving CSOs were discussed.
The Commission asked projects’ representatives to outline the difficulties experimented in research activities involving CSOs, the success cases as well as suggestions for fostering the participation of the Organized Civil Society in research projects.
INFOCON was represented by its project manager, Felippe Angeli, the IT manager, Thomas Blumenfeld, the assistant research director, Jana Schildt and Marusca Perazzi, from the Minority Rights Group, member of the INFOCON consortium.
The Management Team wishes to thank the Minority Rights Group (http://www.minorityrights.org), and specially Marusca, for accepting the invitation.
On behalf of the INFOCON Management Team,
—
Felippe Angeli