On Culture in a Worldwide Information Society: issues and policies

“The global information society is evolving at breakneck speed. The accelerating convergence between telecommunications, broadcasting multimedia and information and communication technologies (ICTs) is driving new products and services, as well as ways of conducting business and commerce. At the same time, commercial, social and professional opportunities are exploding as new markets open to competition and foreign investment and participation. The modern world is undergoing a fundamental transformation as the industrial society that marked the 20th century rapidly gives way to the information society of the 21st century. This dynamic process promises a fundamental change in all aspects of our lives, including knowledge dissemination, social interaction, economic and business practices, political engagement, media, education, health, leisure and entertainment. We are indeed in the midst of a revolution, perhaps the greatest that humanity has ever experienced. To benefit the world community, the successful and continued growth of this new dynamic requires global discussion.” Information and communication technology (ICT) is an engine of growth and change for the world economy. If this technology is to be harnessed to enhance democratic principles, it must contribute to the creation and enrichment of an educated, informed citizenry; it must incorporate the accumulated knowledge and creativity of the past; and it must anticipate and enhance creativity for the future. In this context, it is essential that ICT embrace a cultural agenda. Development effectiveness depends to a great extent on “solutions” that resonate with a community’s sense of identity and culture creates that sense of identity. Culture encompasses human knowledge, values, beliefs, behavior, customs, language, ideas, codes, institutions, heritage, rituals, and creative expression all of which constitute essential signposts for understanding who we are and what we do. If advances in health, commerce, education, and economic growth are to be implemented and sustained, understanding culture is critical.” Discussion Topic Rapid changes in technology make preservation of digital content a challenge. Taking into account the huge amount of data to be filed, the amount of time to accomplish with this task and more over the period of time we need to store such information, we have to value objectively a problem up till now widely underestimated and that is the conservation for long periods of time of digital information. This subject takes us to consider two aspects, the first is technological obsolescence and the second the 'temporary instinct' of the so-called 'permanent supports'. The biological clock of ICT beats smaller time slices compared to those considered worldwide in the field of cultural heritage. Digital formats becomes suddenly obsolete and disappear. An extraordinarily long-lived solution, such as the PC/DOS in great favour for over twenty years, represents a short-lived apparition if compared to the time spent in state owned archives. Computer systems are aging, media on which information is stored are disintegrating, the magnetic technology diskette survives without problems for thousands of hours but not enough to be considered 'permanent' for those aims. What are the long-term implications if we rely on current digital technology to preserve our cultural memory? [ ] Long term preservation of digital archives is a issue not only for cultural content but even for e-government and social services. Background At the G7 Conference on the Information Society in February 1995 Ministers approved 11 pilot projects to show the potential offered by the Information Technologies. The implementation of the pilot projects was encouraged by the G7 Heads of State at their Summit in Halifax in June 1995. The Pilot Project N° 5 named “Multimedia Access to World Cultural Heritage” had its first demonstration of work in progress at the ISAD (Information Society and Developing Countries) Conference in Midrand (May 1996). The official progress report dated April 1996 reported that the third area that can be defined as application and testing, “will be made up of projects that are market-oriented and based on the fruition of cultural heritage. This area will include projects aiming at producing advanced cultural applications by using the present technological resources in key sectors (education, entertainment, cultural tourism, disadvantaged users etc.).” In this area an assessment of museums initiatives outlines that the World Wide Web assumed a leading position within the “Multimedia Access to World Cultural Heritage” project. Following such a trend, after the interesting experience carried out on the occasion of WWW7 in Brisbane (April 1998) and the 9th World Wide Web Conference (Amsterdam May 2000), a complete set of session called "Culture Track" was devoted to draw a comprehensive scenario on emerging technologies and trends on "networked arts". With specific reference to virtual museums WWW9 Culture Track explored how multimedia technology could re-engineer the way visitors presently perceive their visiting a museum or art gallery. Added value associated to ICT applications. Real issues of Museums & Archives. E-Society, E-Commerce and E-Services as part of the whole scenario were considered too. On the occasion of the tenth WWW (Hong Kong) a similar panel was held and as a follow up an official final report was submitted to the G8 on the occasion of the G8 held in Genoa (Italy). A number of suggestion and remarks was gathered and similar / converging publications were issued (eg. Vital Links for a knowledge culture). On the occasion of WWW11 held in Honolulu a successful session mainly devoted to a comparative evaluation of European and Asian issues in the field of Culture and Traditions took place. On the occasion of the World Wide Web Conference 2003, held in Budapest, we had the opportunity to enjoy a fruitful panel outlining different issues and achievements in the field of access, policies and IPR protection fo on line cultural applications and services. This year (2003) on December, the World Summit on the Information Society will provide a unique opportunity for all key stakeholders to assemble at a high-level gathering and to develop a better understanding of this revolution and its impact on the international community. It aims to bring together Heads of State, Executive Heads of United Nations agencies, industry leaders, non-governmental organizations, media representatives and civil society in a single high-level event. The roles of the various partners (Member States, UN specialized agencies, private sector and civil society) in ensuring smooth coordination of the practical establishment of the information society around the globe will also be at the heart of the Summit and its preparation. Some of the contributors to the proposed panel will contribute even to the WSIS event reporting major findings and achievements on the occasion of WWW panel. Thanks to this scenario, following the WSIS 2003 and anticipating the WSIS 2005, it seems to be the right moment to collect the efforts and promote a debate on “Culture in a world-wide information society” with specific reference to digital archives and related issues.