[Chapter-delegates] Solidarity with the Haitian Internet community

[Zaid Ali]

Thank you Lynn. This is a much needed effort and having an effective communication system is absolutely vital. It is great to see ISOC's initiative in this area. Some of the SF-Bay ISOC chapter members have been involved in Crisis Camp Silicon Valley (I believe there is a DC chapter as well) and a number of engineers have been involved in a meeting since the Haiti disaster. 

SF-Bay ISOC chapter welcomes this initiative.

Ref: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=262044242406&ref=ts (Crisis Camp Silicon Valley)

Zaid Ali
President, Internet Society San Francisco Bay chapter
www.sfbayisoc.org
zaid at sfbayisoc.org

----- "Lynn St.Amour" <st.amour at isoc.org> wrote:

> Dear Colleagues,
> 
> We are all deeply shocked and saddened by the recent earthquake in  
> Haiti, and the terrible toll it has extracted from the Haitian people 
> 
> and the nation.
> 
> In these first days, the major priority, of course, is the  
> humanitarian relief effort, and to this end, we encourage all ISOC  
> members and friends to donate what they can to the relief effort.
> 
> Our thoughts go out immediately to the people of Haiti, especially to 
> 
> our friends, colleagues, and fellow members in all affected areas.
> 
> In the chaos of the destruction, we have heard many stories of the  
> vital role of communications technology in search and rescue, in  
> reuniting families, and in guiding the relief efforts. Despite the  
> damage done, many aspects of Haiti’s Internet and telecommunications 
> 
> infrastructure have continued to operate and have proven invaluable to
>  
> the crisis response.
> 
> More than anything, this affirms the importance of the Internet  
> Society’s mission, and it guides us in how we can apply our efforts to
>  
> helping the people and the nation of Haiti recover.
> 
> Restoring damaged communications infrastructure will be crucial to the
>  
> humanitarian and disaster relief efforts underway. In the longer term,
>  
> providing the help Haiti needs to further develop and improve its  
> Internet infrastructure will support the institutions of governance, 
> 
> business, and education necessary for rebuilding Haiti’s social and  
> economic recovery.
> 
> The Internet Society had already planned to dedicate significant  
> efforts towards education and capacity building in the Caribbean  
> region in 2010. In light of this recent tragedy, much of this effort 
> 
> will be refocused and intensified around Haiti. Together with our  
> regional partners, we will in the coming days, weeks, and months  
> communicate more about our plans, and how we can best meet the needs 
> 
> expressed to us by the Haitian Internet community.
> 
> These efforts will be lead by Karen Rose, ISOC’s Director of Access  
> and Development Initiatives, with the close support of our Latin  
> America and Caribbean Bureau, and the Chapters and members in the  
> region. For now, the ISOC homepage links to the Red Cross humanitarian
>  
> appeal. Soon, we will begin providing links on how we can all  
> contribute to the longer term Internet-related projects that will  
> support Haiti’s recovery.
> 
> We especially wish to draw attention to the immediate response of  
> organizations such as Inveneo, NetHope, the Network Startup Resource 
> 
> Center (NSRC), Packet Clearing House (PCH), LACNIC, the IEEE, and many
>  
> others, all mobilizing for much-needed, practical, on-the-ground  
> assistance.
> 
> Finally, on behalf of the ISOC community, we send a message of  
> solidarity to leading members of the Haitian Internet community, such 
> 
> as Max Larson Henry, Reynold Guerrier, and Stephane Bruno, who are  
> working tirelessly to restore and rebuild.
> 
> In these distressing times, there is at least some comfort from  
> knowing that we can call on the unstinting support of a global,  
> dedicated, community.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Lynn St.Amour
> President & CEO, Internet Society
> 
> Raúl Echeberría
> Chair, ISOC Board of Trustees
> 
> Technical organizations
> =======================
> Inveneo
> http://www.inveneo.org
> 
> NetHope
> http://www.nethope.org
> 
> Network Startup Resource Center (NSRC)
> http://nsrc.org
> 
> Packet Clearing House (PCH)
> http://pch.net
> 
> LACNIC
> http://lacnic.net
> 
> IEEE
> http://www.ieee.org
> 
> Humanitarian relief
> =======================
> International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
> http://www.ifrc.org
> 
> UNICEF
> http://www.unicef.org
> 
> Médecins Sans Frontières
> http://www.msf.org
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