October 2006
Collaborate, Create, Communicate...
Main News
Jenin Assaf Joins ICT-KM Program
The ICT-KM Program is pleased to announce the appointment of Jenin Assaf as its Program Officer. Jenin brings a diverse set of experiences and skills to this position. Prior to joining the Program in Rome, she was attached to Vital Voices in Washington D.C., where she managed and provided strategic direction for women's leadership initiatives in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Read More
A CIAT Chat Show
CIAT recently held a successful chat show entitled "CIAT's Involvement in the ICT-KM Program: Analysis and Future Perspectives" at its headquarters in Cali, Colombia. The lively session attracted almost 60 staff members, all of whom showed enthusiasm for the new knowledge sharing format.
Read More
Kick-starting a Fakara Metadatabase
For several decades, the Fakara region, located 60 km east of Niger's capital, Niamey, has been the subject of bio-physical and socio-economic studies. Large-scale scientific experiments combined with detailed historical data collections by ICRISAT, ILRI and the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) have resulted in a wealth of trans-disciplinary data relating to this region.
Read More
Temporary Assignment Benefits All
It is common in some large organizations for certain talented individuals to take up temporary assignments outside their own departments, either on a part- or full-time basis. Such assignments, which are often referred to as secondments, are not unheard of in the CGIAR. Indeed, the CIO's office in conjunction with the IT Managers Community of Practice recently hired Tania Jordan, CIAT's software engineer, to help coordinate technical activities on their behalf for one year.
Read More
MapAction Reliant on CSI Data
MapAction, a UK-based international charity that uses maps and geographic information to support aid agencies in their response to natural disasters, depends on reliable access to base-map geographic data to carry out its work. In the event of a deployment, which typically involves the organization working alongside the government of an effected area and UN humanitarian coordination centers, online access to the CGIAR's SRTM data set is proving to be a valuable resource.
Read More
High-Speed Internet Developments in South America
New remote sensing platforms and data programs have dramatically increased the availability of satellite image data for the analysis of climate, agriculture, environment and society. However, substantial problems remain in acquiring and managing large data volumes. Data providers and consumers usually incur significant costs in copying remote sensing data to tapes and disks. Internet transfer of satellite imagery is only possible on broadband networks. Even then, downloads times can be considerable – a situation that is often compounded by unstable Internet connections.
Read More
Free Trial Access to Blackwell, Emerald and Scopus
As the result of a collaborative initiative involving FAO and the CGIAR, free trial access to three important electronic information collections has been granted to the staff of both organizations. The collections cover a broad range of subjects and offer authoritative peer-reviewed information.
Read More
Knowledge Sharing – Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
Over the past few years, knowledge sharing practices have mushroomed in many organizations. Recognizing the importance of knowledge sharing in a large, geographically dispersed organization like the CGIAR, the ICT-KM Program implemented a project in 2004 that encourages the sharing of expertise and experiences among CGIAR staff members and partners. More recently, several Center-specific activities have been undertaken that also help develop a culture of sharing in the CGIAR. If, however, you think knowledge sharing is a trend that has only recently begun making inroads, you might want to think again.
Read More
Reformatted Climate Database Online
The CGIAR-CSI CRU TS 2.1 Climate Data, reformatted for easy use in geospatial analysis and GIS software packages by IWMI, is now available through the CGIAR Geoportal at http://cru.csi.cgiar.org
Read More
Fighting Spam
CGNET has recently noticed an increase in the volume of spam successfully getting through its spam detection system. Although much of this can be attributed to an overall increase of almost 100% in total spam volume, spammers are also sending messages with embedded mechanisms that enable some spam to easily avoid detection. The CGIAR uses state-of-the-art anti-spam systems, but these are not infallible.
Read More
Welcome to another issue of ICT-KM News. This month, we cover a wide range of Program activities and share good news about long-term and new staff members.
We are also happy to announce that Knowledge Sharing is taking a foothold in the CGIAR, the CGIAR-CSI is making its presence felt, and the CGVlibrary is once again making waves.
Many thanks to the numerous people involved in the activities highlighted this month.
Enrica Porcari
Chief Information Officer
CGIAR
Main News
Jenin Assaf Joins ICT-KM Program
The ICT-KM Program is pleased to announce the appointment of Jenin Assaf as its Program Officer. Jenin brings a diverse set of experiences and skills to this position. Prior to joining the Program in Rome, she was attached to Vital Voices in Washington D.C., where she managed and provided strategic direction for women's leadership initiatives in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Read More
A CIAT Chat Show
CIAT recently held a successful chat show entitled "CIAT's Involvement in the ICT-KM Program: Analysis and Future Perspectives" at its headquarters in Cali, Colombia. The lively session attracted almost 60 staff members, all of whom showed enthusiasm for the new knowledge sharing format.
Read More
Kick-starting a Fakara Metadatabase
For several decades, the Fakara region, located 60 km east of Niger's capital, Niamey, has been the subject of bio-physical and socio-economic studies. Large-scale scientific experiments combined with detailed historical data collections by ICRISAT, ILRI and the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) have resulted in a wealth of trans-disciplinary data relating to this region.
Read More
Temporary Assignment Benefits All
It is common in some large organizations for certain talented individuals to take up temporary assignments outside their own departments, either on a part- or full-time basis. Such assignments, which are often referred to as secondments, are not unheard of in the CGIAR. Indeed, the CIO's office in conjunction with the IT Managers Community of Practice recently hired Tania Jordan, CIAT's software engineer, to help coordinate technical activities on their behalf for one year.
Read More
MapAction Reliant on CSI Data
MapAction, a UK-based international charity that uses maps and geographic information to support aid agencies in their response to natural disasters, depends on reliable access to base-map geographic data to carry out its work. In the event of a deployment, which typically involves the organization working alongside the government of an effected area and UN humanitarian coordination centers, online access to the CGIAR's SRTM data set is proving to be a valuable resource.
Read More
High-Speed Internet Developments in South America
New remote sensing platforms and data programs have dramatically increased the availability of satellite image data for the analysis of climate, agriculture, environment and society. However, substantial problems remain in acquiring and managing large data volumes. Data providers and consumers usually incur significant costs in copying remote sensing data to tapes and disks. Internet transfer of satellite imagery is only possible on broadband networks. Even then, downloads times can be considerable – a situation that is often compounded by unstable Internet connections.
Read More
Free Trial Access to Blackwell, Emerald and Scopus
As the result of a collaborative initiative involving FAO and the CGIAR, free trial access to three important electronic information collections has been granted to the staff of both organizations. The collections cover a broad range of subjects and offer authoritative peer-reviewed information.
Read More
Knowledge Sharing – Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
Over the past few years, knowledge sharing practices have mushroomed in many organizations. Recognizing the importance of knowledge sharing in a large, geographically dispersed organization like the CGIAR, the ICT-KM Program implemented a project in 2004 that encourages the sharing of expertise and experiences among CGIAR staff members and partners. More recently, several Center-specific activities have been undertaken that also help develop a culture of sharing in the CGIAR. If, however, you think knowledge sharing is a trend that has only recently begun making inroads, you might want to think again.
Read More
Reformatted Climate Database Online
The CGIAR-CSI CRU TS 2.1 Climate Data, reformatted for easy use in geospatial analysis and GIS software packages by IWMI, is now available through the CGIAR Geoportal at http://cru.csi.cgiar.org
Read More
Fighting Spam
CGNET has recently noticed an increase in the volume of spam successfully getting through its spam detection system. Although much of this can be attributed to an overall increase of almost 100% in total spam volume, spammers are also sending messages with embedded mechanisms that enable some spam to easily avoid detection. The CGIAR uses state-of-the-art anti-spam systems, but these are not infallible.
Read More
We welcome feedback on the ICT-KM News, so please feel free to contact us at ictkm@cgiar.org