It is amazing that I’ve come to the point where I have exactly one week until I make the 20hour flight from warm Oz to the frozen tundra of NJ. Crazy. One final standing between me and relaxing, but who’s to say I haven’t had my fair share already?! 1 final, 4 days in OZ, 3 days in NZ, winter break in NJ. Bring it on.

Spending my last evening in New Zealand in the city of Christchurch, then it’s back to the Oz mid-afternoon. I’ll be sad to leave..

It is hard to imagine that a small, localised film and photography business could create an impact on a global issue such as the digital divide. However it is not the type of work that is important, it is the technology and resources that I possess that could change the outlook for communities without computers or a connection to the Internet. Instead of creating a film that documents a wedding day or a sports team’s season, I could easily volunteer with an organisation such as the Community Networking Initiative (CNI) or One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) movement to create a documentary on the process of connecting communities to the Internet and why it is important. There are local and global programmes, thus making volunteering easy. CNI targets low-income communities in Illinois while OLPC is a worldwide movement to enable every child to own a personal laptop (Mehra, Merkel, & Bishop, 2004).
  I feel as if these programmes could be more welcoming to private businesses and individuals due to the fact many large businesses would not take the time to cover the programme for free. As I plan to give back to my immediate community, the global community could benefit greatly from shooting a short film for a week in a developing country, even if I volunteer at my own expense. The Internet and other IT sources were presumed to create a “world of limitless opportunity”, yet is actually limited by specific circumstances and is not as automatic or universally applicable as we once had hoped (Gunkel, 2003). Directors and cinematographers have the rare ability to portray this inequality of technology through an inspiring and visually engaging film that can help bridge the gap.

A personalised, in-depth look into how the Internet and computers can change a community is something that would be far more effective if presented in a visual context. Movements for clean water, solving world hunger, etcetera, are other programmes that strive for funding and support, therefore creating competition for awareness. Reading articles on these various programmes, OLPC included, can get tiresome and possibly tedious. Yet the use of the Internet, whether through promotional short videos, documentaries or daily photo updates can be more attractive and interesting. Charity: Water for instance, has daily photo updates on Twitter of the villages and people who have been affected by the donations the organisation has put to use. Something as simple photo can inspire individuals to donate to the cause. I would propose daily photo updates, a monthly video update and an e-mail pen pal to support the digitisation movement. The e-mails would act as a way to not only assure donators that their funds are going directly towards connecting less fortunate people to the Internet, but to also help those individuals learn how to operate and use computers and its programmes in an authentic real-life situation (Mehra, Merkel, & Bishop, 2004).

A broader approach to bridging the gap of the digital divide would be through the use of photos and video in computer software. Instead of focusing on documenting the process of bringing the Internet to remote countries, I could help build video programmes that aid learning in those countries, both for literacy and computer use. As with the perception of quality and credibility of online content when audio and video are used, video programmes can also help with spreading knowledge (Nguyen, & Western, 2007). Providing video clips for an instructional video on how to a component of a computer, an e-mail account for example, would be far more effective than having a first time user read directions. On the same note, many of these first time users may not be literate, therefore making it impossible for them to learn using any other strategy. Again, this approach would probably be on a volunteer basis, yet at a much lower personal expense. The amount of technology and resources in the film and photography industry has enabled video recording and snapshots to be saved and sent digitally, therefore having no direct expense to the owner. The only sacrifice would be time, a commodity that would be worth forfeiting for a better and more connected world.

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Gunkel, D. J. (2003). Second thoughts: toward a critique of the digital divide. New Media & Society, 5(4), Retrieved from http://nms.sagepub.com.ezproxy.bond.edu.au/content/5/4/499.full.pdf+html doi: 10.1177/146144480354003

Mehra, B., Merkel, C., & Bishop, A. P. (2004). The internet for empowerment of minority and marginalized users. New Media & Society, 6(6), Retrieved from http://nms.sagepub.com.ezproxy.bond.edu.au/content/6/6/781.full.pdf+html doi: 10.1177/146144804047513

Nguyen, A., & Western, M. (2007). Socio-structural correlates of online news and information adoption/use: implications for the digital divide. Journal of Sociology, 43(2), Retrieved from http://jos.sagepub.com.ezproxy.bond.edu.au/content/43/2/167.full.pdf+html doi: 10.1177/1440783307076894

‘World.jpg’. ICTP Digital Divide Simulator. http://wireless.ictp.it/simulator/

Even with the Gold Coast excitement, sunshine and waves, nothing beats a morning with the boys- even if there are computer screens and half the world between us.  Three hours of catching up, updates and some questionable jokes is exactly what I needed to prepare myself for the last week of regular classes.  It might seem depressing to leave this amazing place, but I know for sure I’ll be ready to get it going with the bro’s again!