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Development Information Resource (DIR)

In all, but especially in developing communities everywhere, community organizations and individuals need the most direct possible access to pragmatic and appropriate technical and operational information and knowledge of immediate importance for their daily functioning and for the socio-economic advancement within their community and environment.

The vast majority of this information and knowledge is available for free, however rarely ever where it is most needed, and rarely in a directly applicable form and language for those who need it the most.

The Development Information Resource (DIR) is a collectively constructed open knowledge sharing database promoted and guided by Solertia, utilizing globally distributed institutional and individual resources and collaborative creation in order to collect, adapt, develop, test, structure, predigest and package applicable project and process development oriented information, know-how and other knowledge.

Solertia is positioned to assist in the development of the technological infrastructure for the system, the collaborative knowledge activities, and the establishing of the interest groups needed for the knowledge networking across the globe as a whole. This basic system includes a central database housed by Solertia, one central installation with mirror sites throughout the world where through a DIR portal people can access and use or contribute. Solertia also provides the methodology for collecting and assessing this material, as well as the presentation form to be applied to the material.

Around the globe, people would be invited to form a network of volunteer groups, to submit, collect, acquire material to be tested and approved, filtered analyzed and categorized, such as best technologies, brief drawings and description, blueprints etc. Whether solving same issues, producing a new innovation or collaborating around general subject matter topics or best practices, formally or informally, fair credit would be given for contributions made. Solertia verifies the validity, value of the material and ensures local relevance through characterizing and qualifying the material for user ease into categories such as environment, ecological conditions, social context, etc.

The synthesized information as well as other channels of information from many sources is circulated through a DIR portal that ensures local relevance to the recipients of the information, wherever they may be. The DIR portal will be integrated with the Community Development Gateway enabled Community Development Portals to provide community context to the local users of this practical knowledge and information. Appropriate and successful local experience and innovation would contribute to the DIR database.

Training and demonstration programs will help community extension services instruct local trainers, facilitators and community members in applying the material and services of DIR.

The areas of knowledge covered by the synthesized information of DIR include:

Last updated on 2005-12-21