Community technology centers are hubs of opportunity. This past month, Washington State became the hub of opportunity for the international community technology movement as we hosted the 13th Annual CTCNet Conference: "Building Connected Communities: the Power of People & Technology." The conference was an incredible success, thanks to CTCNet and local partners PSACT, Microsoft, the City of Seattle and dozens of volunteers from Washington State and beyond.

Our local coordinator, Meredith Blache, conducted the show. Derrick Hall and crew had the lab operating in a record 90 minutes and kept it whizzing throughout the conference. Meredith, Sandra Mears, Pat Collins and Delia Burke led the staging of a beautiful reception at Seattle Center. The teens from Seattle Parks and Recreation "RecTech" greeted reception goers at Seattle Center, where we heard remarks by King County Councilman Larry Gossett, Seattle Councilman Jim Compton, and Seattle Community Technology Program Manager David Keyes. They brought home the community development theme of this year’s conference, thanking CTC members for building a just community and new opportunities moving forward with the announcement of an effort by the City to foster wall to wall wireless and not leave people behind.

Senator Maria Cantwell affirmed her strong support for our work and charged us to join her in fostering greater deployment and use of broadband for effective education and economic development. Akhtar Badsha of Microsoft lent strong support for the community development theme with their vision and financial support of ctc’s through their Unlimited Potential campaign. A number of Washingtonians were represented at the Share Fair, as vendors, on panels and in attendance. With such enthusiastic participation, it’s easy to see why community technology is already strong and growing in Seattle, Washington State and across borders.

"Know that what you are doing is not only important here, but it's spreading across the globe." -CTCNet conference keynote speaker Dr. Roland Anglin, NJ Public Policy Research Institute

On June 28, 2004, the City Council unanimously passed Resolution 30684 creating the Task Force on Telecommunications Innovation. Introduced by Councilmember Jim Compton and supported by Mayor Greg Nickels, the resolution will create a task force to explore the feasibility of using municipal resources in a network that is available to the public using broadband technologies, broadband over power lines, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, and other wireless applications, end-user fiber build out, and other telecommunications technologies.

According to Councilmember Compton, the City of Seattle has a lot of capacity in terms of pipes and rights-of-way that is not being utilized. “The City is not going into business but is inviting people to use its platforms,” said Compton. “We want to hear from the private sector about what might work.”

Citizens Telecommunications and Technology Advisory Board (CTTAB) members Bill Baron and Pwint Htun appeared before an earlier session of the Utilities and Technology Committee to discuss the resolution. Htun said, “We (CTTAB) have started taking a look at various technologies that could help the City in their long-term potential projects, such as broadband over power lines, doing power readings, and Wi-Fi and Wi-Max. This project makes sense to us.”

The task force will be appointed by the Utilities and Technology Committee and will be composed of the City’s Chief Technology Officer, at least one member of CTTAB, and others representing such sectors as business, technology and telecommunications communities; community technology; technology and telecommunications law and regulation; and people with an interest in technology, telecommunications and service delivery.

A preliminary report from the task force is due to the City Council on October 15, 2004.

You can see the entire resolution, including scope of work, here. Type in the resolution number, 30684, to find the resolution.

You also can view the City Council session where this resolution was discussed here. Click on "Watch Video," then click on Council – Utilities and Technology Committee. Next, click on the June 8, 2004, meeting. On the agenda you will see City WiFi Network. You will need Real Player version 6.0 or higher installed on your computer to watch a live or archived video on the Seattle Channel; a free download of the player is available.

In three years with the city, D.H. "Cass" Magnuski has been the newbie VISTA volunteer, queen of the camera giveaway, the feisty brainstorming editor, curriculum writer and the techmap technician. Cass started with Seattle's Community Technology Program in 2001 as a VISTA volunteer, bringing her skills as a journalist, artist and webmaster.

Cass way outlasted her one year VISTA volunteer position and we're thankful for that. Recently, Cass' temporary position with the city expired and we weren't able to retain her on the full-time community tech team. We're very sorry to lose her, but glad that Cass will be able to continue to contribute as the Brainstorm editor.

Cass has been a transplanted Chicagoan for a while, but was new to the CTCs when she started her VISTA position at the city. After sorting out what community technology is, she ran with the job. Cass helped us through the major rewrite and updating of the CTC directory (techmap) and web redesign. Cass guided the completion of our Information Age curriculum. She's maintained and enhanced our web presence. Cass' strongest and greatest impact to the community technology field is the creation of Brainstorm, our monthly e-zine.

In addition to her work with our team, Cass had the opportunity to be the web master for Mayor Nickel's web site for almost a year. She delivered press releases, plans, announcements and new pics day in and day out.

Cass plans to stay connected to community technology; she already is in her role as a board member for Seattle Community Network (SCN). She will continue as editor of Brainstorm and Cass plans to provide more ezine services to other organizations and companies. Watch for a new publication from PSACT with Cass' mark.

Need an ezine? Cass is looking to take on other ezine, writing and editing projects. She can be reached at magnus@drizzle.com. Thanks Cass, best of luck and keep up the good works!

Jack Straw Productions will showcase their new Blind Technology Access Initiative equipment with a public open house on Thursday, August 5, from 6:00-7:30 p.m., at 4261 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle. Students from the blind youth program and blind adults who have participated in past Jack Straw programs will be in attendance.

This year, Jack Straw Productions, through the Blind Technology Access Initiative, acquired audio production equipment and software that makes it possible for visually impaired musicians, composers, radio producers, and audio engineers to independently record and produce their own work. It is the only blind accessible audio production equipment and software workstation available for public use in the Pacific Northwest, and was purchased with generous support from the City of Seattle Department of Information Technology's Community Technology Program. A partnership between Jack Straw Productions, AVIA (Arts and Visually Impaired Audiences), and the WA State Department of Services for the Blind has brought dozens of blind youth to the Jack Straw studios over the past eight years to expose them to the arts-sound installation, radio features, theater, music, and audio recording. This year, the students will be introduced to the blind accessible audio equipment, exposing them to possible careers in sound and audio technology.

For information about the equipment and the program, call (206) 634-0919.

Six cameras left over from last year's camera giveaway are in the possession of Klaus Stoll, who will take them to Quito, Ecuador, where they will be used to bring together Ecuadoran youth and elders in an effort to document native culture and rainforest plants. The cameras were donated by PSACT at the recent CTCNet conference.

In Quito, according to Stoll, "It is necessary to bend technology to fit the culture. Traditionally, knowledge there is handed down by elders, who tend to frown upon the use of technology. These cameras represent a means for getting the elders involved in teaching the youth, and constitutes an approval of the use of technology."

Klaus Stoll co-founded Fundacion Chasquinet in Quito, Ecuador, in order to promote the strategic use and development of the Internet in the social sectors of developing countries through research, education and enhanced communication . Stoll is now general manager of Chasquinet.

Chasquinet is undertaking the creation and coordination of Somos@Telecentros, the regional network of Telecentres in Latin America and the Caribbean, in conjunction with BarrioNet and Street Children projects, among others. Chasquinet is fully committed to the promotion of non-commercial use of the Internet and is very much involved in the policy discussions regarding information technologies worldwide.

The Northeast Branch reopened June 26 with many improvements to this heavily used branch. The $4.7 million addition more than doubled the building's size to 15,000 square feet. The Northeast Branch has more seating, new computer work stations and instructional areas, a meeting room, better lighting, upgraded technology services and equipment, new carpeting, better seismic safety, more parking, energy-efficient windows and an updated collection of books and materials.

The beautiful new Beacon Hill Branch at 2821 Beacon Avenue South opened on July 10. The $5,358,990 branch has an expanded collection capacity of 40,200 books and materials, including collections in Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish and Tagalog. The branch has more seating, special areas for young adults, 24 public computers, a meeting room, adult reference and reading areas, and parking for 24 vehicles. The site is co-located with a neighborhood service center and has two study and activity rooms.

Next up for re-opening is the Columbia Branch Library. You're invited to join in the opening festivities on August 22 from 12-4. For more info on all these libraries, visit www.spl.org

Ford Foundation

Deadline: Letters of Inquiry Accepted Year-Round

The goals of the Foundation are to strengthen democratic values; reduce poverty and injustice; promote international cooperation; and advance human achievement. Three major funding priorities of the Foundation are asset building and community development, including economic development and community and resource development; peace and social justice, including human rights, reproductive health, and civil society; and education and media, arts and culture.

7-Eleven

Deadline: Ongoing

The company supports programs and projects in the area of education, with emphasis on workforce development, language education, and programs to assist at-risk and economically disadvantaged individuals. Other areas of interest include multicultural understanding, crime prevention, and hunger.