Report on
8th APNG Camp, 18-20 July 2006
NUS, Singapore

Introduction

The 8th Asia Pacific Next Generation Camp was organized from 18th to 20th July, 2006 at National University of Singapore. The APNG Camp is a regular event of the Asia Pacific Networking Group (APNG), which is the mother organization of numerous Internet related organizations in the Asia Pacific region. The APNG Camp consists of presentations from many different countries of the Asia Pacific region. The presentations are related with various technical and non-technical aspects of the Internet.

APNG also provides fellowships for people from developing countries enabling them to attend the camp. The fellowships provided include airfare, local accommodation and transportation as well as event registration charges. I was one of the lucky people to receive a fellowship to attend this camp.

It must be noted that APNG is not only about making paper presentations but also about interaction between the people of this region. All the people are encouraged to interact with each other through the organization of parties and dinners and various cultural events like singing and dancing. APNG camp is an opportunity for everyone to learn not only about the Internet, but also about the culture and customs of other countries and a place to form lasting friendships.

In this camp there were participants from the following countries: Japan, Korea, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and the USA.

Welcome Day (17 July, 2006)

Most of the presenters arrived on this day at the YMCA International House on Orchard Road. A Welcome Dinner was organized for everyone in the night where all participants could meet each other and introduce themselves. It was not surprising that many participants knew each other from previous camps. The APNG Camp being so enjoyable it seems everyone wants to attend again and again.

Day 1 (18 July, 2006)

The camp started in earnest on the 18th. The venue was the Engineering Faculty Building of the National University of Singapore. The camp was opened by Mr. Abdul Awal, the Camp Chair and Prof. Okhwa Lee, APNG Chair. There was self-introduction by all in the beginning.

There were four sessions with intervals of three breaks in between. Each session was started by a Keynote or Invited Speech after which the fellows from different countries gave their presentations. The first Keynote Speech was by Prof. Kilnam Chon, who spoke about Digital Archive. I found this speech very interesting and thought provoking. Prof. Chon talked about archiving the whole human history of a country in digital archives. This would include al printed material including manuscripts, books and newspapers, then all audio and video material including songs and movies. Various art forms like paintings and sculpture can also be stored in some digital form. While previously this task was difficult due to the requirement of large and expensive storage spaces, it has become more and more feasible now with each passing year. The famous ‘Moore’s Law’ which envisions processing speeds increasing and storage capabilities multiplying with prices going down at the same time. It will slowly be possible for countries to store thousands of PetaBytes of data of their history and culture. If all this data can be brought on to the Internet it will surely make human knowledge a lot richer.

There were two Sponsor Speeches from APNIC and NICT, Japan by Mr. Paul Wilson and Mr. Kiyoshi Iqarashi respectively. A report on ICANN was also presented by Mr. Izumi Aizu about the endeavors of Internet Governance. There was another Keynote Speech by Byeong Gook Lee on ‘International Network Collaboration on Global Medical Education Era’. A presentation on Live-E and Asia Broadband Project was given by Mr. Tommy Matsumoto, former APNG Chair. I found the Live-E project particularly interesting because of its use of weather sensors connected to the Internet. There were four Fellowship presentations on this day from Mr. Abdur Rahman from Bangladesh, Mr. Dai Hanbo from China, Ms. Archana Bhattarai from Nepal and Mr. Goo Dong Eon from Korea.

Introductory presentations from various Working Groups of APNG were also held on this day. People were divided into different groups according to their topics and discussions were held, and reflections made about the conditions in their own countries and around Asia Pacific. The day ended with the Reception Dinner organized by APAN.

Day 2 (19 July 2006)

The second day was just as lively as the first. There were three keynote speeches on this day. The speech on Open Courseware by Mr. Lucifer Chu from Taiwan was very inspiring. I believe such initiatives should be undertaken in all countries. The second keynote speech was by Mr. Surat Lertlum from Thailand who spoke about ‘Geo-Informatics Applications for Cultural Studies in South-east Asia’. The third keynote speech of the day was from Ms. SO Hyo Jeong of Korea who spoke about ‘Instructional Strategies for Designing Interactive and Collaborative e-Learning Environments.’ All the presentations highlighted different aspect of the application of Internet.

Fellowship presentations on this day were given by Ms. Shyama Sagarika, Mr. Ravindra De Silva and Mr. Sumith Gamage from Sri Lanka, Mr. Kashif Adeel from Pakistan, Xiaohui Shi from China and Ms. Hnin Wut Yee from Myanmar. My own fellowship presentation was also on this day. Camp supporting presentations were given by Mr. Atsushi Hikita , Mr. Yuki Higiri and Mr. Tohru Kondo from Japan. Similarly presentations about the Local Camps held in different countries were also made. APNG Local Camps during the past year had been held in Philippines, Sri Lanka and Japan. Mr. Goo Dong Eon also gave a presentation about DARAK: The First Online Indie Animation. The Working Group Discussions were also continued on this day.

At the end of this day we had one of the most interesting events of APNG, the regular national costume party. Most of the people wore their national costume to the dinner and also spoke briefly about the significance and meaning of their costumes. Then they also performed either a song or a dance from their respective countries. This event was the cultural highlight of APNG.

Day 3 (20 July 2006)

This was the concluding day of APNG Camp. There were two keynote speeches on this day – Mr. Curtis Jay Bonk spoke about Blended Learning: Situations and Solutions and Prof. Okhwa Lee spoke about Online Cello Clinique. There were three fellowship presentations made on this day. Mr. Prabal Khanal from Nepal, Ms. Sana Gul from Pakistan and Ms. Joan Vicente from The Philippines gave presentations related to their Working Group topics.

The conclusions derived from the various Working Group discussions were presented by the respective Chairs. In the end there was a General Meeting and Committees for the next camp were also decided. All participants were also given certificates.

Another highlight of this day was the sightseeing tour to Sentosa Island. The island designed like an amusement was enjoyable and everyone had fun going around the various places. At the end of the day, there was a farewell dinner of seafood. Everyone enjoyed eating, drinking and taking group photographs.

Concluding Remarks and Suggestions

The APNG Camp was very enjoyable and interesting as always. It was a good platform for people of AP region to share information among each other and also an opportunity for young people to learn from more experienced presenters. This camp was very much a success. A live video streaming of the whole camp was also available on the Internet for interested people to view.

It should be noted that Mr. Abdul Awal, the Camp Chair and Ms. Tsering Dolker from APNG Secretariat worked very hard to make this camp a success. They deserve warm appreciations from all the participants.

APNG Camp makes me realize that there is a Digital Divide not only between people but also between countries. Some countries of the AP are much more advanced on Internet Technology than others. I hope this gap can be reduced slowly through efforts of all. I have noticed a lack of participation from island countries of the Pacific Ocean. If participants can be encouraged to come from these places then the Camp would be truly ‘Asia-Pacific’. I believe one way to achieve this would be to increase the number of fellowships, which in turn also means reaching out for more sponsorships and making sponsors realize how truly a worthwhile endeavor the APNG Camp is.

Submitted by:
Aadit Shrestha
Nepal