this is short notice, but kentaro toyama (of http://ict4djester.org/ fame) is giving a talk today downtown. kentaro is a great speaker and always has insightful things to say about technology and global development. ------- Session 1: Myths of Technology for International Development Speaker: Kentaro Toyama (University of California, Berkeley) The past decade has seen incredible interest in applying information and communication technologies for international development, an endeavor often abbreviated "ICT4D." Can mobile phones be used to improve rural healthcare? How do you design user interfaces for an illiterate migrant worker? What value is technology to a farmer earning $1 a day? Interventionist ICT4D projects seek to answer these kinds of questions, but the excitement has also generated a lot of hype about the power of technology to solve the deep problems of poverty. In this talk, I will (1) present several myths of ICT4D that persist despite evidence to the contrary, (2) offer a theory of "technology as amplifier" which explains the gap between rhetoric and reality, and (3) provide recommendations for successful ICT4D interventions. My hope is to temper the brash claims of technology with realism about its true potential. When: May 6th, 2011 4:00pm - 5:30pm Where: Global Washington Office 500 Union St., Suite 801 Seattle, WA 98101 Price: FREE for Global Washington members (members, contact admin@globalwa.org for a discount code) $15 for non-members https://app.etapestry.com/cart/GlobalWashington/default/item.php?ref=4143.0....