"Citizens’ Voice and Accountability (CV&A) work has emerged as a priority in the international development agenda from the 1990s onwards. In their CV&A work, donors recognise the importance of context: it shapes relation to that context. However, context awareness has not proven sufficient to enab
...
le donors to grapple with key challenges posed by the interaction between formal and informal institutions, the prevalence of the latter over the former in many instances, and underlying power relations and dynamics. Some examples of positive impact of CV&A interventions have emerged from the interventions analysed for this study. This is mostly at the level of positive citizen awareness, empowering certain marginalised groups, and encouraging state officials. However, within the sample analysed, such impact/effects have remained limited and isolated, and have so far proven difficult to scale up. A critical factor leading to the observed limited nature of results is related to the fact that donor expectations as to what such work can achieve are too high, and are based on misguided assumptions around the nature of voice and accountability, and the linkages between the two. There is a tension between the long-term processes of transforming state-society relations and donors’ needs/desires to produce quick results. Scaling up sustainability are also issues not currently sufficiently addressed within intervention design and implementation." (Executive summary, page v)
more
"In order to promote and bolster linguistic and cultural diversity in cyberspace, the most underprivileged languages need help to gain access to it. If it is possible to do this with a small, oral, unwritten, endangered language, there is all the more reason why this should be possible with all poor
...
ly endowed languages which are in somewhat better circumstances. The first stage consists in undertaking the necessary studies in order to develop the linguistic resources that are indispensable: a list of phonemes, an alphabet, a spelling system, a grammar, a dictionary and a collection of texts. The second stage involves work on computerization of the language in order to identify or develop compatible IT resources: a character set in at least one font, a virtual keyboard and corpus processing programmes, which may also be used to fine-tool linguistic analysis of the language and enhance its linguistic resources. The third stage consists in developing and adapting cultural resources so that they may be shared in cyberspace. This means recording and digitizing as many text, sound and graphic records as possible and making them ready for posting on websites. It is also necessary to design the various ingredients of a website, such as menus, navigation bars, titles and other texts for human-machine communication. In some cases, it will be necessary to localize programmes in order to develop the language as a working tool and endow it with supplementary IT resources. Finally, it is useful to learn to develop websites in the poorly endowed language, possibly in tandem with a more widely used language. All tools necessary for such training and tools for creating forums and localizing freeware may be found on the Internet. Once it has a website, a forum, a mailing list, IP telephony, music, still photographs and video, the lesser-used language can now be well ensconced in cyberspace, but to survive there, a community capable of using it intensively must be developed. Assistance to local associations in developing such communities will contribute to the promotion and enhancement of the diversity of languages and cultures in cyberspace." (Conclusion, page 45-46)
more
"This book is for people who are interested in creating their own computer games for the Windows platform. Using the easy but powerful The Games Factory 2 software, you will be able to make games quicker and easier than ever before, without any programming knowledge. Game creation is a lot of fun an
...
d easier than you might have previously imagined; it really is simple to start making your own games. The Games Factory 2 software that we use in this book allows you to make many different types of games, such as card games, board games, puzzles, platform games, side-scrolling games, shoot ‘em ups, adventure games, and more. If you have always dreamed of making your own games, now is your chance." (Introduction)
more
"Viele Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler üben im Umgang mit den Medien Zurückhaltung, sei es, weil sie unsicher sind oder weil sie die Chancen erfolgreicher Medienarbeit unterschätzen. Ihnen vermittelt dieses Buch das »Handwerk« des Umgangs mit Presse, Radio, Fernsehen und Internet. Zur
...
Vorbereitung auf Interviews werden alle Schritte, vom ersten Kontakt mit dem Journalisten bis zur Evaluation, vorgestellt. Praktische Übungen zu Atmung, Stimme und Haltung ergänzen diese Tipps; Checklisten helfen bei der Vor- und Nachbereitung. Die Berichte von Redakteuren über ihre Erfahrungen und Wünsche bei der Zusammenarbeit mit Wissenschaftlern runden diese Informationen ab. Das Autorenteam wendet sich an Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler aller Disziplinen, die ihren Kontakt mit den Medien aktiv und zielgerichtet gestalten möchten." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
more
"Este libro es una selección de imágenes del Concurso Nacional de Fotografía sobre Desaparición Forzada 'Sin Rastro." (Página 1)
"Aims to explore the nature and the reasons behind the self-publishing of academic textbooks in the higher education environment of South Africa. Through the collection of secondary data the authors describe the academic publishing landscape in relation to current trends in higher education in South
...
Africa and explain what constitutes self-publishing as an alternative publishing model. Primary data obtained through surveys proves many of the myths associated with self-publishing false and establishes that academic authors have valid and just reasons for opting to self-publish. Some final conclusive findings are offered by the authors that could assist the commercial academic publishing sector in acting accordingly on this increasing trend in the higher education environment." (Hans M. Zell, Publishing, Books & Reading in Sub-Saharan Africa, 3d ed. 2008, nr. 2547)
more
"El precio del silencio' revela una tendencia creciente en varios países de América Latina: la interferencia “tras bambalinas” que ejercen los gobiernos sobre los medios de comunicación y la independencia editorial. Esta “censura sutil” y sus continuos efectos inhibitorios aún no han rec
...
ibido la atención que merecen. Por medio del monitoreo sistemático de tales prácticas en Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras, Perú y Uruguay, este informe procura llenar el vacío de información existente y revelar los peligros que entraña la censura indirecta para la libertad y la independencia de la tarea periodística. El presente informe examina cómo los gobiernos de los países analizados abusan de sus facultades regulatorias y de fondos públicos para controlar a los medios, con muy poca vigilancia: utilizan la publicidad oficial para castigar a los medios críticos y recompensar a los que se muestran amigables; deniegan el acceso y la información a los periodistas que consideran “críticos”; presionan secretamente a dueños y editores de medios para que cambien sus líneas editoriales; y otorgan licencias de radiodifusión de modo tal de beneficiar a los aliados políticos y acallar a las voces independientes." (Cubierta del libro)
more
"South Africa offers a rich context for the study of the interrelationship between the media and identity. The essays collected here explore the many diverse elements of this interconnection, and give fresh focus to topics that scholarship has tended to overlook, such as the pervasive impact of tabl
...
oid newspapers. Interrogating contemporary theory, the authors shed new light on how identities are constructed through the media, and provide case studies that illustrate the complex process of identity renegotiation taking place currently in post-apartheid South Africa. The contributors include established scholars as well as many new voices. Collectively, they represent some of South Africas finest media analysts pooling skills to grapple with one of the countrys most vexing issues: who are we?" (Publisher description)
more
"Das Filmschaffen aus Lateinamerika, Afrika und Asien hat in den letzten Jahren viel von sich reden gemacht. Aus den Kontinenten des Südens und Ostens gelangten bei uns einige der innovativsten, persönlichsten und anregendsten Filme in die Kinos. Einen massgeblichen Anteil an ihrer Vermittlung hat
...
trigon-film, eine Schweizer Institution, die sich seit 1988 um die sorgfältige Edition herausragender Werke kümmert. Im reich bebilderten Lese- und Schaubuch WELT IN SICHT betrachtet der Filmpublizist Walter Ruggle ausgewählte Perlen aus zwanzig Jahren trigon-film und lädt uns ein zu einer Reise durch die unterschiedlichsten Filmkulturen der Welt. Zu den betrachteten Filmen gehören: El viaje, Historias minimas, Whisky, Madeinusa, La vida es silbar, Daratt, TGV, Congo River, Yeelen, Les silences du palais, Bab’Aziz, Intervention divine, Yi Yi, Nobody Knows, Bodhi Dharma, Be With Me, Russian Ark, Grbavica oder Lagaan. Aufgelockert sind die Texte zu einzelnen Filmen mit aussagekräftigen Bildern, exquisiten Zitaten und vertiefenden Gesprächen mit Filmschaffenden wie Nacer Khemir (Tunesien), Fernando Solanas (Argentinien), Chen Kaige (China), Buddhadeb Dasgupta (Indien), Yasmila Zbanic (Bosnien und Herzegowina), Abderrahmane Sissako (Mauretaninen), Imunga Ivanga (Gabun), Clara Law (Hongkong), Rithy Panh (Kambodscha) und Nikita Michalkow (Russland). Sie alle stehen für andere Dimensionen des Kinos und für Filme, die es in sich haben." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
more
"Les Rwandais et les Burundais ont une culture cinématographique et audiovisuelle captivante et centenaire. Elle a été introduite pendant l’époque coloniale allemande et est ensuite tombée dans les mains des Belges qui l’ont développée après. Au Rwanda/Burundi, ils produisaient des films
...
marqués par le discours colonial. Au même moment, l’imaginaire des autochtones était imprégné par le cinéma du monde (la France, l’Italie, les Etats-unis, l’Inde, le Pakistan, l’Egypte…) qui n’était guère contrôlé. Cette liberté culturelle a perduré après l’indépendance. Ainsi, la population a été confrontée au cinéma comme une expression artistique mais aussi comme un instrument de propagande. Au début, la production de cinéma et de télévision servait aux différents régimes et présidents. Après le tournant du siècle et sous l’influence du processus de Paix, les médias se sont libéralisés, favorisant ainsi, avec la révolution numérique, la production audiovisuelle. Au Rwanda, le génocide a eu une influence particulière dans le foisonnement d’initiatives privées de productions audiovisuelles et cinématographiques. Dans ce livre, Guido Convents nous invite à découvrir différents aspects de la culture audiovisuelle burundaise et rwandaise: des réalisateurs, des distributeurs, des exploitants, des comédiens, mais aussi des spectateurs, le pouvoir politique, la société civile, et tant d’autres pions. Il jette un regard, non seulement sur les images produites par les Rwandais et les Burundais mais surtout sur le rôle qu’ils attribuent au cinéma et à l’audiovisuel en général, et en particulier dans le domaine de la Paix." (Description de la maison d'édition)
more
"The first seven chapters in Talking theWalk look in detail at the realities of communicating in partnership. As well as narrative, each chapter contains a number of boxes and tables giving examples or “Practitioner Tips”. Near the start of chapter 7 (pages 58-59), you will find a diagram outlin
...
ing the communication aspects of the Partnering Cycle. Chapter 8 comprises nine tools that you can use or adapt for your own purposes. Since the manual is about communication, we invited as many contributors as possible to participate in this project, to demonstrate the collaboration that we saw as a vital ingredient of partnering communication. Woven throughout the manual are think pieces that some of these contributors have written. In addition, chapter 9 contains communication stories and communication case studies reflecting the experience of a range of practitioners in the field." (Page 1)
more