EU makes Presentations on Addressing e-Inclusion Issues

'An Information Society that is inclusive provides high quality public services and promotes quality of life', says the European Union as part of its "i2010 - A European Information Society for growth and employment" initiative.

i2010 is intended to foster growth and jobs in the information society and media industries. It's a 'comprehensive strategy for modernising and deploying all EU policy instruments to encourage the development of the digital economy'. As part of this, accessibility and bridging the digital divide has been given a high profile.

One goal is 'to promote an inclusive European information society'. To close the gap between the information society “haves and have nots”, the Commission will propose: an Action Plan on e-Government for citizen-centred services (2006); three “quality of life” ICT flagship initiatives (technologies for an ageing society, intelligent vehicles that are smarter, safer and cleaner, and digital libraries making multimedia and multilingual European culture available to all (2007); and actions to overcome the geographic and social “digital divide”, culminating in a European Initiative on e-Inclusion (2008).

Presentations on e-inclusion on the site now include:

* e-Inclusion in the International Socio-economic Context, Alfonso Molina - Professor of Technology Strategy, University of Edinburgh

* e-Europe Advisory Group e-Inclusion: New Challenges and Policy Recommendations - the Report, Daniel Kaplan

* The e-Inclusion Action Plan for Belgium, Gary Cige, Cabinet of the Minister for Social Integration

* eAccessibility, eInclusion and usability where policy meets research, Immaculada Placencia Porrero, European Commission

* 2006 e-inclusion conference in Riga, Latvia, Ina Gudele, Head of Secretariat of Special Assignments Minister for Electronic Government Affairs

* Digital Literacy and ICT for learning, Joe Cullen, Tavistock Institute

* e-Inclusion vs. Inclusion; relevant variables and groups for ICT use, Lidia Pola, European Commission

* Focus on Accessibility, Juan Bossicard, Microsoft Corporation

* Stakeholders’ feedback on e-Inclusion, Miguel Gonzalez-Sancho, European Commission

Associated Link: Presentations

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