Post-campaign meetings conclude with LIRNEasia colloquium

We arrived in the Colombo area at the end of the week and took part in a colloquium at the LIRNEasia office on Oct. 3.  We presented preliminary results of the campaigns and had a lengthy and productive discussion about the project overall, with helpful input from a number of perspectives.

Setting up for the LIRNEasia colloquium.

We introduced the notion of "proportionate participation" at the colloquium which is a term we have recently coined to describe the relationships between sponsors, tech stewards, technology, and communities within the scope of a campaign.  

Although it is very much a nascent concept, the idea is that these four elements comprise a system of innovation that requires proportionate participation if it is to be inclusive and sustainable.  We chose the term 'proportionate' to capture the notion that the type and amount of participation of any one of the elements is relative to the other elements.  

So, for example, a robust and easy to use technology, will make it easier for tech stewards and communities to use it, thus reducing the burden of training.  On the other hand, a community that is struggling with literacy challenges may require a greater role for the tech steward or the technology in establishing a useful and sustainable system of innovation within that community.  

The idea is new but we will continue to work on it as we look more closely at the results of the campaigns.