[Chapter-delegates] Application to form the Internet Society Chapter on Internet of Food

[Evan Leibovitch]

​
On 3 April 2015 at 10:18, Jacek Gajewski <jacek.ceenet at gmail.com> wrote:


> *"The proposed chapter on Internet of Food aims at leading the discussion
> regarding this new field and to engage a wide audience in building better
> solutions for how to feed the planet in a healthy and sustainable way."*
>
> In this context, Internet just serves as a tool of discussion, in the same
> manner as telephone, newspapers and other media. The very topic of the
> discussion (food) cannot be easily linked to Internet.
>

​I think I will humbly disagree with Jacek on this. But I will suggest a
counter-proposal.

Discussing the many possible uses of the Internet to address​ nutritional
health, production efficiency and hunger eradication is IMO wholly
appropriate within ISOC for whose who are interested, I can think of
multiple linkages. Yes, these are all about Internet *use* rather than
*infrastructure*, but ISOC has never only been about infrastructure. And if
there are enough people interested in the topic within ISOC and a
sufficiently flexible system of SIGs were in place, why *shouldn't* this
happen? If you're not interested don't join; such a group would succeed or
fail based on its members.

I myself would probably not be interested; personally I think that the IoF
scope is too limiting for it to be of maximum value within an ISOC context.
Extending the scope to "Human Health and the Internet" gets into deeper
infrastructure issues such as the confidentiality and security of digital
health records, abuse of the .DOCTOR, .HOSPITAL and similar new Top-Level
Domains, and seeking objective means of using the 'Net to separate medical
fact from myth (which would be useful, for instance, in the current US
debate over vaccinations).

So -- to add to what I said earlier about Chapters and Special Interest
Groups -- I would suggest to the proponents to (a) change the proposal from
that of a Chapter to a SIG and (b) expand its scope to health rather than
just food. And if you still really want to extend the metaphor, perhaps
consider the "Internet of People" as a counterbalance to the "Internet of
Things".

Having said that, IMO if proposed as a SIG it should not be up to me or
other Chapter leaders to accept or reject; if enough people want it I would
not get in the way. My concern is for the sustainability of the group, its
potential dependence on just a small number of activists. Broadening the
scope increases the community attraction and may reduce that risk.

- Evan
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