DiploNews – Issue 167 – 23 September 2010

Last Call for Applications: 2011 Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy

Earn an accredited Master’s degree while remaining on the job. Accelerate your career with Diplo’s Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy, offered through the University of Malta. This online programme guides working diplomats and international relations professionals through the theoretical and practical building blocks of diplomacy, with a focus on contemporary issues and challenges. A 10-day residential workshop in Malta builds the skills used in diplomatic practice and extends your professional network, while a 16- to 20-month period of online study provides flexibility and a unique in-depth grasp of contemporary diplomacy. The application deadline is 15 October 2010. For more information and to apply, please visit the course webpage.

Malta hosts International Forum on Diplomatic Training

Next week (27 – 29 September 2010) Diplo and its sister institution, the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies, will co-host the 38th Meeting of Deans and Directors of Diplomatic Academies and Institutes of International Relations in Malta. Some eighty directors of diplomatic academies from all continents are expected to attend. Discussion topics include training for e-diplomacy, capacity development, and regional diplomatic training.

DiploFoundation at the 2010 Internet Governance Forum

DiploFoundation had a dynamic presence at the Internet Governance Forum 2010 in Vilnius, Lithuania during 14 – 17 September. Some twenty fellows, tutors, and staff were involved in panels, remote participation, workshops, the Village Square, social reporting, and other activities. Remote participation this year came from over six hundred individuals, thirty-three remote hubs from all continents, and numerous remote panellists. A social reporting project, coordinated by Tim Davies, resulted in active live coverage of sessions through blog postings, video interviews, and over ten thousand twitter messages, which can be viewed on Diplo’s Social Reporting at IGF2010 page. Diplo’s Internet Governance Capacity Building online course coordinator Ginger Paque spoke for the Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus at the opening session:

The Remote Participation Working Group held a dynamic discussion that brought out new policy and issue developments. The workshop on Net Neutrality was controversial in many ways, and we found that two hours was too short a time to discuss technical aspects, development, and user issues. We invite you to watch Discuss.diplomacy.edu  and join upcoming discussion on remote participation and net neutrality.

Information and Communication Technology to Combat Climate Change

Unless you are part of the DiploFoundation Internet Governance community, the relation between information and communication technology and climate change may not seem obvious. In a guest article for Climate-L.org, Malcolm Johnson, a Director with the International Telecommunication Union, outlines this relation. Some of the most important connections are dematerialisation, remote collaboration, creation of smart buildings and smart electricity meters, creation of energy-efficient products, and reduction of disposed goods. Saving material, building more sustainable products, and using online communication as a replacement for travelling can lower carbon dioxide emissions. With the general attempt at building greener economies, the carbon footprint of foreign services may come under scrutiny and possible ways of reducing carbon dioxide emissions be devised. The consequences to the practice of diplomacy might be far reaching.