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The CPSR Compiler - February 2008
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The CPSR Compiler - February 2008 - 1.3
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COMPUTER PROFESSIONALS for SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Turning Thoughts to Actions
- Input required by March 1st, 2008 regarding CPSR's UN ECOSOC consultative status
- CPSR material in storage - call for help
- NOTICE: Change of main contact address for CPSR
- Watch CPSR'S annual conference on video
- Board meeting minutes
- 2008 Predictions Survey invitation
- Countdown to Contamination
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Input required by March 1st, 2008 regarding CPSR's UN ECOSOC consultative status
From boardmember Bill McIver:
Dear CPSR Members,
*** We require your input. ***
CPSR was assigned Special Consultative Status to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in 2004
(cf. http://www.un.org/esa/coordination/desc.htm and
http://www.un.org/esa/coordination/ngo/pdf/INF_List.pdf).
CPSR is required to submit a Quadrennial Report by 1 April 2008.*
For guidelines to the Quadrennial Report please go to http://cpsr.org/news/compiler/2008/gfq.pdf
*** CPSR Member Contributions to the Report ***
Please send me (Bill dot McIver at nrc.ca) information about any CPSR-related contributions to UN work made during the period 2004 to 2007 (inclusive). This should include attendance at ECOSOC sessions and work related to UN Millennium Development Goals. Please see pages 4 and 5 of the guidelines for examples.
It would be helpful if WSIS delegates report their individual contributions.
*** I would like to receive contributions by March 1st, 2008. ***
Sincerely,
Bill McIver
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CPSR material in storage - call for help
CPSR is currently paying about $50 per month to store old boxes at a facility in the East Bay, and the Board is considering disposing of them. If you know about this material and can advise the Board regarding the contents and value of these boxes, please get in touch with Board member Todd Davies (davies at stanford dot edu). We would really appreciate your input.
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NOTICE: Change of main contact address for CPSR
Due to excessive spam, CPSR's main e-mail address is changing effective April 1, 2008 from
cpsr(at)cpsr.org
to
office(at)cpsr.org
Please update your records accordingly.
Board of Directors, CPSR
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Watch CPSR'S annual conference on video
Thanks to our excellent speakers and the many people who attended, CPSR's annual conference was a great success. If you missed it, you can now view the complete conference proceedings on video. Links to the video, hosted by archive.org, are here:
<http://technologyinwartime.org/node/19>. The topic was "Technology in Wartime," and we had a chance to see a lot of cutting-edge research, as well as some very spirited debate about how computer scientists should deal with military funding and the ethical implications of working with weapons technology.
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Board meeting minutes
Minutes of the CPSR’s board meeting have been posted at http://cpsr.org/membership/members/minutes/27jan08
This page is in the members-only area of the web site so please log in first before proceeding to the page.
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2008 Predictions Survey invitation
A letter from Lee Rainie, Director of Pew Internet & American Life Project
Subject: survey on the future of the internet and participation by CPSR
We at the Pew Internet & American Life Project are conducting a survey of elites in technology, telecommunications, and universities about the future of the internet and we would LOVE to have CPSR members participate. I know CPSR leaders sent out a similar invitation at our request in 2005 and several key members responded to the survey and were cited in our report on the findings --http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Future_of_Internet_2006.pdf
2008 Predictions Survey invitation
The Pew Internet Project and Elon University are conducting an ongoing survey of stakeholders about the future of the internet, and we would like to include your views in our research.
This web-based survey about international concerns and the internet follows two previous surveys of thousands of internet stakeholders that measured the expected impact of the internet over the next decade (to see the results, please go to
www.elon.edu/e-web/predictions/expertsurveys/default.xhtml). This year, we are soliciting predictions from thoughtful analysts in regard to a number of additional issues tied to the future of information and communications technologies (ICTs).
We hope you'll take 10 to 15 minutes to fill out our survey (to participate, you must use Firefox, Internet Explorer or Safari as your browser). You will find the survey at:
http://websurveyor.net/wsb.dll/WSGateway?surveyid=195410
The survey asks you to assess several potential scenarios tied to the future of the internet and to contribute your own thoughts about what you believe should or will happen by the year 2020. This is a confidential survey, however, we encourage you to take credit for your thoughts. After each question, you are invited to explain or expand on your views. Each elaboration you provide will remain anonymous unless you put your name at the start of it.
When you begin the survey, please use this personal identification number (PIN): 500
The Pew Internet Project will issue a report based on this survey in the spring; we expect the results to be useful to policy makers, scholars and those in the information technology industry. Material from this survey will be added to the Elon University/Pew Internet site, Imagining the Internet (www.imaginingtheinternet.org). We will not use your name or email address for any purpose other than this research project, and we will not share your information with outside solicitors.
We are certain we have not identified all individuals whose views would be helpful to this research, so I invite you to send an invitation to participate in this survey to any friends or colleagues whose insights would be of value. Please ask them to use PIN 000 when taking the survey.
I hope you enjoy taking the survey and sharing your views about the future of the internet. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at lrainie(at)pewinternet.org.
Thank you,
Lee Rainie
Director, Pew Internet & American Life Project
1615 L Street NW
Suite 700
Washington, D.C. 20036
202.419-4500
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Countdown to Contamination
A letter from Ted Smith, Chair of Electronics TakeBack Coalition
Dear Friends,
February 17, 2009.
Many people have no idea why that date is important, but 21 million American households could wake up on February 17, 2009 to find that there's literally nothing on TV.
That's because in just over a year, TV stations will stop broadcasting analog signals over the airways and switch over to digital signals. This means that many older TVs will be obsolete and consumers must either buy a digital set-top converter box or a brand new TV in order to get over the airways reception.
Some companies, like SONY, are stepping up and taking responsibility for their old TVs by implementing responsible recycling programs. But most companies are not following suit and Panasonic, Philips, and Sharp are the worst offenders.
Not only have these companies NOT established take back programs, but they actively lobby against state legislation that would require them to do so, and have been slackers when it comes to substituting environmentally responsible materials in their products.
Click here to tell the CEOs of Panasonic, Sharp and Philips it's time to clean up their act:
http://takebackmytv.com/cleanup
These companies like to tout their "environmentally responsible" policies on their websites and in TV ads, but nothing could be further from the truth.
While they are making billions of dollars selling us millions of new TVs every year, their older products end up in huge dumpsites in Africa or Asia where workers will strip out any useful materials, then set large piles of discarded TVs on fire. "Recycling" centers like these cause major environmental and public health crises.
Next year's digital changeover will only make the problem worse, so now is the time for Panasonic, Philips, and Sharp to act.
Click here to tell the TV companies' CEOs to take back their old TVs:
http://takebackmytv.com/cleanup
Thanks for your help!
Sincerely,
Barbara Kyle, Coordinator Ted Smith, Chair
Electronics TakeBack Coalition Electronics TakeBack Coalition
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(c) Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility 2008
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