DiploNews – Issue 230 – 14 June 2013

Invitation: E-Participation Day

You are cordially invited to participate in Diplo’s E-Participation day next Wednesday, 19th June. You will learn how international organisations are using social media for advocacy, engagement, fundraising and outreach. You will gain insights into open data and open government principles, and see examples of networked technologies that are redefining government / citizen relationships. Most importantly, you can join the conversation and make your voice heard. You can participate in person in Geneva, or remotely via the Internet.

Attend the breakout sessions to learn more about:

• Twitter in international organisations
• Open data and why it is important for international organisations
• E-protocol and immunities (to be broadcasted remotely)

Upcoming study opportunities

Call for applications: New online course on Capacity Development

Capacity development has been emerging as a central approach within development for more than two decades. This approach has gradually shifted the focus of development practice from simple financial aid and technical cooperation towards a complex new paradigm that encourages and demands active involvement and ownership from the people and communities involved in aid programmes. To help you better understand and master this complex paradigm, this course introduces the key concepts, principles, and practical skills for implementing capacity development activities. The course was developed with the support of the SDC, UNDP, LenCD, and Learn4Dev. Visit the course webpage to read more about this unique new course, and apply online. The first session starts on 2 September; please apply by 22 July.

Applications open for 2014 Master in Contemporary Diplomacy

We are now accepting applications for the 2014 Master in Contemporary Diplomacy, and the Master in Contemporary Diplomacy with an Internet Governance specialisation. These unique postgraduate programmes, offered in cooperation with the University of Malta, include a 10-day residential workshop in Malta followed by 16–20 months of online learning. Please visit the Master in Contemporary Diplomacy webpage to read more and to apply. The programme starts at the end of January 2014 and the application deadline is 1 October 2013.

Call for applications: Humanitarian Diplomacy online diploma course

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and DiploFoundation will offer a new session of the Humanitarian Diplomacy online diploma course starting 2 September 2013. This 12-week course, led by Ambassador Christopher Lamb, will extend the knowledge base and develop practical skills of current and future practitioners in humanitarian diplomacy and policy. The application deadline is 22 July 2013. For more details and to apply, please visit the course webpage.

Call for applications: Specialised courses in Internet governance

Diplo invites government officials, diplomats, and professionals working in the various Internet governance and ICT policy fields, who would like to refresh or expand their knowledge of more technical issues, to apply for the upcoming 10-week courses, starting 22 July 2013. The courses are based on a collaborative approach to learning, involving a high level of interaction and discussion. The deadline to apply is 1 July.

• ICT Infrastructure and Critical Internet Resources (CIRS) presents topics and issues related to infrastructure and CIRs, including infrastructure development, connection costs, regulatory frameworks, IP protocols, network neutrality, the domain name system (DNS), and the roles of the main actors. For more details visit the course webpage.
• ICT Policy and Strategic Planning offers in-depth discussion of national ICT policies and strategies, development, implementation and management, e-readiness assessment and benchmarking, including the analysis of case studies. For more details visit the course webpage.
• Privacy and Personal Data Protection delves into the details of many of the global and local discussions surrounding privacy, the main instruments dealing with data protection and information privacy, their effects on national and regional regulations, emerging privacy issues such as anonymous expression, social networks, and cloud computing, the risks and challenges related to cybersecurity concerns, and the roles that companies play in the privacy protection ecosystem. For more details visit the course webpage.

Summer online courses on diplomacy

This summer, starting on 22 July, Diplo offers the following diplomacy courses:

• 21st Century Diplomacy
• Multilateral Diplomacy

Apply by 17 June for Diplo Certificate Courses. For further information or to apply, click on the titles of the courses above, or visit our courses website. Register now to reserve your place. Late applications will be accepted as long as places remain in the course.

Sign up for our courses mailing list to be informed about upcoming courses!

Save the date

We tend to use Wikipedia as a main source of information these days: Wikipedia links appear at the top of most web searches, and it is often the first source we consult. In diplomacy, information has always been a key professional resource. Is Wikipedia an accurate and trustworthy source of information for diplomats? How can we determine the validity of Wikipedia articles? Considering the widespread use of Wikipedia, can it be an effective channel for public diplomacy? If so, how can diplomats contribute to improve Wikipedia articles to increase their public diplomacy value? These questions and more will be addressed during an interactive Diplo webinar on 21 June at 13.00 GMT. Please visit Diplo’s website for more information and to register.

What's happening in Diplo's blogosphere?

Earlier this month we took at a look at how the UN Development Programme is going digital. Open Data is a simple concept. Organisations holding datasets should place them online, in machine-readable formats, and under licenses that let anyone re-use them. Advocates explain that this brings a myriad of benefits as Pete Cranston writes up in his post Open Data, International Organisations and Governance.

Mary Murphy shares an experience in a Hungarian restaurant that has an unusual policy: No laptops after 7pm in the wake of Jovan Kurbalija’s question to the world: Are you e-polite?

Aldo Matteucci looks at Drunk-driving and diplomacy… in the wake of French police stopping the Swiss Ambassador to OECD, on suspicion of driving under the influence.

If you missed our e-participation webinar, you can catch up on what happened at: Webinar digest – E-participation in international discussions and check in with Ginger Paque as she looks at the best of e-participation is …

Remember, you too can have your say by commenting on these or any of our blog posts. And, if you’d like to be a guest blogger, let us know.

Discussing Internet governance

Most of us have become dependent on the Internet, to the extent that if our connection fails us, it affects our daily routines. In Internet dependency, posted on Diplo’s E-tools channel, Mary Murphy shares her recent experience with Internet connection problems, and discovers how this experience triggered one subtle change.

In another blog post, she talks about the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul and the power of blogging. While the media went completely silent, citizen journalists were being mobilised and asked to send in stories and photos to news agencies.

On Diplo’s IG community platform, Valerie Vlasenko says the European Union will be introducing harsher penalties for cybercrimes, after the proposal by German EPP member Monika Hohlmeier received approval. Read more.

Follow IG-related news and discussions on Diplo’s Internet governance channel, and on Diplo’s IG community blog roll.