Month: December 2019

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ICT and Inclusive Sustainable Development: The Digital Divide

ICT is an amazing revolution that enables information to be shared across communication technology platforms. Thus, the telecommunications are when technologies will provide the access to information. This is a good method for improving accessibility and inclusivity for transmitting, distributing, delivering and receiving information. ICT has played a huge role in ICT for sustainable development and the integration of technology has been important for many different platforms. For example, in the development of energy power grids, ICT has become important for recording energy consumption levels and recording the data through ICT. ICT includes the integration of telecommunications like wireless computers, enterprise software, middleware, storage, etc. The WSIS+10 is the process marking the ten-year milestone since the 2005 summit. Therefore in 2015, the WSIS+10 was sponsored by the UN to understand and discuss the implications of ICT and emerging technologies in this integrated society.

WSIS discussed a lot of components on ICTs, development and bridging the global digital divide. The digital divide origin seems to have derived from the inequality and unequal distribution of technological development. Therefore, WSIS+10 was a 10-year review of the World Summit on the Information Society in December 2015. The impact for this summit was to initiative a follow-on activity in support of the MDGs. The following were the key issues: internet governance; the role of ICTs in development; and privacy, security and human rights.

The role of ICTs in development encourages many stakeholders who are looking to see the benefits of ICTs that play a role in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as adopted by the summit. This goes to tell us how important these summits are in initiating the goals and development related WSIS goals over the past couple of years and over decades. By having WSIS+10, it establishes a milestone for measuring the key metrics that started from these summits. In this way, ICTs are integrated into the SDGs because we start to see how they play a role and how ICTs are shaped to reach the goals of SDGs. Furthermore, the “Transnational Advocacy Networks in the Information Society” helps us see the changes of information society and how necessary it is for us to have governance practices. There are many case studies and qualitative and quantitative data incorporated in the study along with the international global governance conferences and policy procedures. There is a continued argument for the importance and resilience of international regime theory and how significant these conceptual frameworks are for understanding our evolving information society. Although ICTs are great and all, we see that there is a start to this “digital divide”. Moreover, we need to address the gaps in internet access that there is with various groups. This also links back to intersectionality where we need to incorporate all sorts of inclusivity.

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Inclusive Education in an Urban Environment

Urban schools are one of the best places to promote inclusive education. Children with disabilities are among the most marginalized groups across all countries, and they are most likely to be excluded from education. When these children do attend school, an inaccessible learning environment and a lack of support from their peers and teachers hinders their education.

Given that cities host such a wide variety and range of people, more children with disabilities are likely to live and go to school in urban centers. Ensuring that schools are disability-friendly and accessible for all keeps certain marginalized groups from falling behind. Addressing accessibility and inclusion in the class room will also have far-reaching effects on urban issues like poverty.

Special education teachers are often underpaid and under-appreciated in schools, but the work that they do is vital to including all children into the education curriculum. Ensuring that these teachers continue to get trained and have access to the resources and support they need is vital to extend the reach of education.

ICTs can also play an important role in bridging the education gap between PWD and other urban dwellers. Cities are often hubs of innovation and development, making them the perfect place for new technologies to be introduced into the classroom.

Although cities provide many opportunities for the extension of inclusive education such as a wide variety of resources, a diverse student population, and greater access to things like museums, musical events and other forms of the arts, urban schools also bring their fair share of challenges. These include things like low academic standards, poorly trained teaching staff, low graduation rates, high suspension rates, and schools that feed the school-to-prison pipeline.

These challenges need to be addressed at the state and municipal levels so that urban education can improve on all levels. Funding and proper pay is especially important when considering that childhood schooling sets the foundation for students to be active citizens that want to be involved in the community and in the wider economy. Ensuring that children with disabilities are included from the beginning sets the precedent that they deserve the same opportunities as the rest of their peers and that they have important skills and abilities that can make a difference.

https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/socialdevelopment/brief/inclusive-education-initiative-transforming-education-for-children-with-disabilities

https://www.urbancollaborative.org/who-we-are-1

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Role of ICTs in Inclusive Urban Development

ICTs have uses in nearly every aspect of development, but they are especially important in urban development. Modern technology not only enables the implementation of the SDGs, but they also serve as a poverty reduction mechanism and a tool accessibility. ICTs can reduce the digital divide in urban settings and ensure that PWD and other vulnerable groups have avenues for participation and equity.

Click to access Role%20of%20ICT.pdf

In terms of transportation and accessibility, ICTs are vital sources of effective and efficient communication. For instance, the Internet of Things, or machine-to-machine communication can be used to keep metros and buses running smoothly and in a timely manner. Apps for smartphones can be equipped with audio technology so that users can be alerted when their bus or train has arrived or of changes in schedules. ICTs can be used in emergent situations to notify people of hazards and evacuation routes so that they can get themselves to safety. These technologies have a multitude of other uses, but in every role, ICTs enhance the lives of users and enable them to live more independently.

Sustainability-wise, ICTs can be used to make cities more energy efficient and less dependent on dirty sources of fuel. ICTs can help create self-driving cars that are usable by anyone and everyone; they can create water sanitation services that effectively utilize wastewater; and they can help facilitate waste management systems that keep all areas of the city clean.

Developing cities to use smart ICTs in an inclusive manner requires intentional planning and development. A wide variety of stakeholders need to be involved at all stages of the planning process and there needs to be feedback mechanisms so that these technologies can be updated to meet the ever-changing needs of urban dwellers.

Click to access Trends%20in%20Smart%20City%20Development.pdf