International students and professionals from different countries and various areas of expertise gathered in Como Italy for Information and Communication Technology for Development International School (ICT4DEVIS). The international school has evolved into a community dedicated to foster the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to achieve sustainable development.

The first edition of ICT4DEVIS, which took place from 3 – 7 September 2012, was a collaborative effort of Fondazione Rosselli Americas (USA), Università dell’Insubria (Italy), and Universidade de São Paulo (Brazil). ICT4DEVIS aimed to be a bridge between core academic and actual practice in deploying ICT as means for development (ICT4D).

ICT4D implies facilitating developing countries with the necessary ICT system or tool to improve their lives. One of the challenges is different characteristic of developing countries that requires different approach and context in achieving sustainable development. “We want to give the students the ability to understand the context and build a solution well-tailored for that context” said Professor Walter Castelnovo from Università dell’Insubria.

The school addressed the issue through three pillars of technology, socio-cultural, and ICT4D project management. Moreover, students of ICT4DEVIS got the chance to be linked to international organizations operating in area of development, such as Global Knowledge Partnership Foundation and Inter-American Development Banks. The on-site lectures of ICT4DEVIS were followed by remote video lectures and assessment completed at the end of September 2012. The second edition of ICT4DEVIS will be held next year in Sao Paolo Brazil.

For more information, visit ICT4DEVIS.