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Call for gender-related training materials for the Women's On-line Resource Center
Women'sNet
January 23, 2002

Women’sNet is developing a Women’s Online Resource Centre (WORC) as part of an Association for Progressive Communication’s (APC) Online Resource Centre.

The WORC aims to develop a "one-stop-shop" for gender-related training materials relevant to individuals and organisations active in the struggle for gender justice. It is intended to serve as a clearinghouse for gender-aware training materials in the area of ICT training, as well as a range of other fields for which there is an expressed need.

In the Online consultation for the ORC, APC members identified the following areas for future resource development:

• Strategic use of the Internet as a collaborative workspace;
• Communication strategies;
• Tools for collaborative workspaces and campaigning;
• Internet basics; and
• Training of trainers or materials for trainers

The purpose of this call is to provide organisations with an opportunity to contribute their gender-aware, women-focused training materials either in the form of a link, or in full on the WORC. Organisations will also have an opportunity to inform how the WORC is organised. The deadline for materials collection has been set at February 22, 2002.

Basically the WORC will:

• focus on materials with a specific gender focus. It will incorporate and build on gender-aware training materials already developed;
• focus on ICT as well as other non-ICT related materials as may have already been developed.

The materials can be targeted at the end-user or at trainers themselves.

The WORC will be a pilot project developed in English only. The site will be branded as an APC-WNSP site (powered by Itrainonline)

The number of organisations offering gender related training (ICT and otherwise) is increasing. Across the intersecting gender networks, individuals and organisations active within the field have different capacities to develop materials and stay abreast of new theories, training methodologies and training tools.

The unevenness of capacity and access to support is continually reinforced since this community of trainers operate in isolation from each other and are generally not able to able to learn from each others’ experiences and ideas.

The proposal is that the WORC include materials that are specifically targeted at two sets of users:

• trainers whose use of the materials will centre around finding appropriate materials and methodologies to use during a training workshop, and
• end-users who could use the materials to deepen their own understanding of the gender dimension to a range of issues that are covered in the online resource centre.

The WORC will maximise the value of existing resources by making these resources shareable online and available for customisation to suit local context, needs, and language where required.

This project seeks to promote the inclusion of gender analysis in ICT and other areas of training, with a view towards enhancing the quality of training in support of gender justice that are available at a global, regional, and local level.

1. To develop a online clearinghouse though which organisations and individuals working towards gender justice can share their own – and freely access others’ - training and other relevant materials to add their social justice and development campaigns and training activities. Access to these materials will provide interested organisations and individuals with tried and tested materials that can be adapted to suit the local context and needs. The online resource centre will cater for the needs of trainers, and trainees alike.
2. Through research, facilitate access to online resources that will raise awareness about, and capacity for, the inclusion of gender-based analyses in a range of fields of interest to the intended users of the resource.
3. To develop, with the support and collaboration of trainers, an online platform where gender-aware trainers can seek advice about and share approaches, methodologies and tools, as they relate to the various fields of users’ interests.

Women'sNet is a national project set up to provide South African women's organisations with the necessary skills and expertise to use Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) to network and find people, resources and information relevant to women's empowerment. The project seeks to meet the information needs (and especially gender content) of women and women’s organisations across different sectors, as well as to provide training in web publishing and the use of e-mail as a networking and communication tool. Women’sNet was born out of a desire to develop a network that would facilitate the promotion of gender equality in South Africa through the use of ICTs.

Questions for Contributors:

• Your Name:
• Your Organisation:
• Your Email address:
• Who are the main beneficiaries of your organisation?
• Does your organisation produce gender aware training materials, or training materials for use by women, or targeted at women?
• Are you prepared to share those materials on the WORC?
• If yes, under what conditions?
• If no, why?
• If you make use of other organisations’ gender aware training materials, or training materials by women or targeted at women, please give us the name and contact details for the organisation:
• What would you say is the greatest resource need of gender or women’s organisations (or organisations with gender or women as a strong focus)?

The deadline for materials collection has been set at February 22, 2002.

Please send you answers to: ansuyah@womensnet.org.za

Warm regards

Ansuyah Maharaj
Women'sNet Information Co-ordinator

Website: http://womensnet.org.za

tel. +27 11 838 6943
fax. +27 11 492 1058
mobile. +27 83 236 9464
SANGONeT
187 Bree Street
13th Floor, Longsbank Building
Johannesburg,
2000
South Africa

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Women'sNet is a joint project of SANGONeT and the Commission on Gender Equality. The project is also part of the Association for Progressive Communications' Africa Regional Programme (APC-Africa-Women), an international programme of similar women's networking support initiatives working together to ensure a productive online workspace for the international women's movement.

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

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