GIS Trainings!

Exciting events are coming in the next few weeks! In cooperation with MEss (Monitoring & Evaluation Student Society), we are going to have trainings and a brownbag lunch on GIS, which was the most requested training topic. The trainings are tailored those who want a basic or more intermediate understanding of GIS, and the brownbag will help you understand how GIS is being used in the field. Hopefully, these events will give you a leg up on the competition as you apply for summer internship. Looking forward to see you!

NMTF/MEss Brown bag: GIS in field (Megan will talk about how she uses GIS in her work with the Earth Institute)

Wednesday, 4/17, 1-2pm, IAB Room 405A

Speaker: Megan Cassidy (Program Associate, Center on Globalization and Sustainable Development, Earth Institute)

 *Lunch provided

NMTF/MEss Workshop 1: GIS Basic Skills

Friday, 4/26, 11am-1pm, DSSC Data Services (Digital Social Science Center), Lehman level 2, below the computer lab

Speaker: Jeremiah Trinidad-Christensen (DSSC)

NMTF/MEss Workshop 2: GIS  Intermediate-basic skills

Friday, 5/3, 11am-1pm, DSSC Data Services, Lehman level 2, below the computer lab

Speaker: Dara Mendeloff (CIESIN)          

Other events:  

The World-Wide Human Geography Data Working Group: Sustainable Development for Human Security

Thursday, 4/18, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm

Columbia University, Lamont Campus, Monell Building Auditorium

Speaker: Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, The The Earth Institute, Columbia University; Lee Schwartz , Director, Office of the Geographer and Global Issues, U.S. Department of State; Cynthia Rosenzweig, Senior Research Scientist, NASA/Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), The The Earth Institute, Columbia University; Ayako Kagawa,Chief Geographic Information Officer, United Nations Disengagement and Observer Force and Geographic Information Officer, United Nations Cartographic Section; Deborah Balk, Associate Director, CUNY Institute for Demographic Research; Marc Levy, Deputy Director, CIESIN, The Earth Institute, Columbia University.

Register and details:

Crai Bower “From Pitch to Paycheck”

Monday, April 15, 5pm – 6pm, Stabile Student Center (map)

Speaker: Crai Bower

SPJ presents Crai Bower “From Pitch to Paycheck – The Reality of Living the Dream as a Travel Writer. Crai Bower contributes scores of articles and photographs annually to more than 30 publications and online outlets including Alaska Airlines, Journey, and Inspirato magazines, The Toronto Star, Travel + Leisure Digital, and MSN Travel, where he is also the lead travel blogger. He frequently speaks throughout North America at travel-related conferences. His book of humor, “Farts: A Spotter´s Guide,” has sold over 250,000 copies and been translated into five languages. He contributed four chapters to Fodor´s “Vancouver-Victoria” (2010) and is profiled in the bestselling photography book, “Seattle 100: Portrait of a City – Voices that Matter.” He is the television travel commentator for KCPQ-13 and is widely syndicated on Tribune Broadcasting.

www.FlowingStreamWriting.net  @craisbower

Delacorte Lecture: Keisha Minor, Editor-in-Chief, Brides Magazine

Thursday, April 18, 7:00pm – 8:30pm, World Room (map)

The Delacorte Lectures, presented each week in the spring semester, examine aspects of magazine journalism by a leader in the field of magazine publishing. The series is headed by Victor Navasky, the George T. Delacorte Professor in Magazine Journalism and director of the Delacorte Center.

A Whole Day of Events with NMTF

Dear NMTFers,

We hope to see everyone tomorrow! NMTF is going to have a kickoff meeting, WordPress training and HAPPY HOUR – all in one day! Free food and drinks will be served. Come to the Kickoff Meeting to discuss new trends in media for development and public policy, then join us in the evening to learn the ins-and-outs of WordPress, a blogging and website management platform. And don’t miss a happy hour after the WordPress training! Scroll down for more info.

-New Media Task Force Kickoff Meeting

Thursday, Feb. 21st, 1:00PM-2:00PM

Room 402B, School of International and Public Affairs

This semester’s event/training schedule will be discussed. We want your input! This will also be a good chance to network with SIPA students who have similar tech/new media interests.

More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/420889821332117/

-Wordpress Training: Create A Website for Your Sweetheart

Thursday, Feb. 21st, 6:00PM-8:00PM

Room 405A, School of International and Public Affairs

Missed Valentines Day? Make up for it by making your valentine a website! WordPress is a free and open-source blogging tool and a content management system (CMS). WordPress is used by over 16.7% of Alexa Internet’s “top 1 million” websites and as of August 2011 manages 22% of all new websites. WordPress is currently the most popular blogging system in use on the Web. Come with your laptop charged up and we’ll walk you how to create your own website!!!

-HAPPY HOUR for NMTF will be held after the training! 

More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/543909255631064/permalink/546153975406592/?notif_t=like

 

-Brownbag with Susan Crawford

Tuesday, 1-2pm, February 26th, 2013

IAB Room 1302

Pizza and refreshments will be served!

Susan Crawford will present her fascinating book Captive Audience;  the story of how consumers, let down by deregulatory government policies, are losing the fight for affordable, high-speed Internet access in America.

-Non-Digital Copyright in the Digital Millennium

Russell Jacobs, Corporate Counsel, Starbucks Coffee Company

Thursday, February 21 at 12:10PM, William and June Warren Hall 103

Lunch will be provided

Columbia’s Science and Technology Law Review

Attendees are encouraged to RSVP to John Atallah at john.atallah@law.columbia.edu

-Online Social Media and Political Awareness in Authoritarian Regimes

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2013


12:15 pm to 1:30 pm
International Affairs Building Marshall D. Shulman Seminar Room (1219)
 


Harriman Working Papers Seminar with David Szakonyi, PhD candidate, Political Science Department, Columbia University. 
 


Sponsor: Harriman Institute

-Social Media Week in New York

FEBRUARY 18-22, 2013

20+speakers will attend the Social Media Week. Topics will cover Google, Ford, Social Customer Service, Hurricane Sandy, etc.

More info: http://socialmediaweek.org/newyork/blog/

-Open Data Day Happy Hour

Saturday, February 23rd, 5-7pm


@ The Exchange 
1719 G Street NW
 Washington, DC 20006

International Open Data Day is February 23rd, and the World Bank will be hosting a massive Open Data Day 2013 Hackathon.

ICT4Drinks and the OpenGov Hub are celebrating with a combined happy hour afterwards at The Exchange that will be another blow-out event with 100+ of your friends and peers having a drink (or two) after a job well done.

We will be drawing big Open Data ideas on flimsy napkins as we meet other great people working and interested in ICT4D. 

 

NMTF Kickoff & Happy Valentine’s day!

Dear NMTFers,

We really want to get together with you. Finally, the chance has arrived! We are going to have a kickoff meeting to chat with our new and old friends next Thursday. Free food and drinks will be served. We we want to hear YOUR input and feedback for the Spring semester. Meanwhile, our first training (a training on WordPress) will also be organized for later on the same day. Scroll down for more info.

Thanks to those of you who participated in the Facebookpoll about NMTF trainings. Here are the final results:

NMTF Training Poll Result:

 

• GIS & Remote Sensing: 21 votes
• Crowdmapping Training: 13 votes
• WordPress Training: 12 votes, which is also our first training next Thursday.
• Social Media Training: 3 votes

Upcoming events

TEDxColumbiaSIPA

Friday, February 15th, School of International and Public Affairs,

Topics include health, global safety, happiness, and equality.

24+ famous speakers will attend.

LIVE FEED of the event all day, from 9am to 5pm, this Friday, February 15th. That means you can watch all the talks, as they happen, via Livestream: http://new.livestream.com/tedx/tedxcolumbiasipa  

TEDxSIPA will also be live-streammed at the 6th floor cafe. Go there for great TED talks, snacks, drinks, and more. It’s all FREE!

More info: http://www.tedxcolumbiasipa.com/speakers/ 

New Media Task Force Kickoff Meeting

Thursday, Feb. 21st, 1:00PM-2:00PM

Room 402B, School of International and Public Affairs

This semester’s event/training schedule will be discussed. We want your input! This will also be a good chance to network with SIPA students who have similar tech/new media interests.

PLEASE RSVP

WordPress Training: Create A Website for Your Sweetheart

Thursday, Feb. 21st, 6:00PM-8:00PM

Room 405A, School of International and Public Affairs

Missed Valentines Day? Make up for it by making your valentine a website. WordPress is a free and open source blogging tool and a content management system (CMS). WordPress is used by over 16.7% of Alexa Internet’s “top 1 million” websites and as of August 2011 manages 22% of all new websites. WordPress is currently the most popular blogging system in use on the Web. Come with your laptop charged up and we’ll walk you how to create your own website!!!

PLEASE RSVP

 

OTHER INTERESTING EVENTS

Mandiant Security Talk

Wednesday, 02/13, 08:00 PM – 09:00 PM at Hamilton 517

Secure your web apps and learn about forensic security with Willi Balenthin of security firm Mandiant.

Email and VOIP Hacking Workshop

Monday, 02/18, 09:00 PM – 10:00 PM at 304 Hamilton

Gundeep Bindra presents a workshop on email hacking and VOIP hacking techniques so that you can be better prepared to protect yourself from these vulnerabilities. 

Hope we can hear more ideas and feedback in our Kickoff time!!

 

New Media and ICT Classes at SIPA for Spring 2013

Dear NMTFers,

 

We hope you all had great new years and break from the fall semester! The new NMTF board is looking forward to building on the great work of the previous board. 

To help you kick off the new semester in style we have collected some information about upcoming events and spring classes related to new media and ICT.

 

1. Event recommendation: 

New Media in Education 2013 Conference 
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. 
Faculty House 
 
This free, one-day event sponsored by the Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and Learning will bring together the Columbia community and colleagues in higher education technology for dialogue around technology in education and academic life.

 Speakers from Columbia and beyond will address critical issues affecting education and technology today, such as online learning, digital publishing, and social media. Subtitled “Bits to Breakthroughs,”  the 2013 conference will focus on how new media can enhance educational initiatives for meaningful local and global impact.



To register, visit nme2013.eventbrite.com


 


Sponsor: Center for New Media Teaching and Learning

2. Classes related to new media and ICT:

 

INAF U6209y – E-Government & Digital Diplomacy (3 pts)
This course will examine changes across various computer-mediated communication platforms, including social media, web applications, and mobile devices. Students will develop a theoretical understanding of government and citizen communication dynamics with readings in political communication and public administration, as well as a basic understanding of the technical capabilities of various digital media platforms. SIPA: IMAC.

INAF U6229y – Controlling the Internet (1.5 pts)
How did the Internet come to be? What is its future? To what extent does government policy affect its future? This class focuses on live-fire debates in Internet policy to engender a broader understanding of this area. SIPA: IMAC.

INAF U8912y – Technology, Innovation and Sustainable Goals (1.5 pts)
It has become vital (because of mass poverty,climate change,biodiversity rapid erosion,water and food crisis,…), to shift to a more sustainable form of development. This will require effectively mobilizing all resources of human societies:scientific and technical resources,as well as behavioral and institutional moving forces. None may be neglected,and the way they are articulated will be decisive. SIPA: Applied Science. SIPA: EPD. SIPA: E&E- Environment Policy. SIPA: Short Courses.

INAF U6120x or y Tools and Craft of Multi-Platform Storytelling (3 pts)
The web opens up exciting possibilities for interaction and new ways to tell stories. We’ll introduce students to the world of multimedia storytelling and how it can be applied to organizations working in International Affairs and Development. SIPA: IMAC.

 

Hope you have a wonderful semester!

 

So Long 2012, Hello 2013!

Updated on 1/22/13 to reflect a change in leadership.

Happy New Year everyone! In case you have not seen it elsewhere, there is a new board in place for 2013, made up of talented and passionate students. They are:

Jesper Frant: President

Rachana Kumar: Vice President

Le Chen : Communications

Dhwani Bafna: Treasurer

Camille Francois: Policy Director

Janice Dean: Trainings / Events head

They can properly introduce themselves and their plans once the spring semester begins; for now, I just wanted to say it has been a lot of fun writing up these posts the last few months! And on behalf of the “retiring” board, we’d like to say it has been a great experience planning events, organizing trainings, and sharing ideas with you all. Thanks for the opportunity! We know the group is in great hands for 2013, and we look forward to seeing the new board’s plans!

With that, I turn over the blog, twitter, and other duties to Le Chen! Thanks again,

-Chris Planicka

 

The mWater Approach

One NMTF member, 2nd year MPA-DP student Catilin Rackish, wrote up a summary of a digital brownbag we did with mWater early in the semester. We are sharing it here and are always open to sharing your reactions/posts on our site! Thanks Caitlin, take it away…

NMTF Digital Brownbag: mWater

The mWater App running on an inexpensive Android mobile phone.
http://mwater.co/android-app/

Developing countries often find it difficult to regularly monitor and collect reliable data on water quality because of barriers such as lack of basic infrastructure, poor access to both analytical facilities and sampling locations, limited availability of technical staff, and a shortage of time and finances. Traditional laboratory methods for water quality monitoring usually require expensive equipment like incubators and reliable electricity for refrigeration of reagents, and some tests can run hundreds of dollars per sample. Countries need simple, reliable, low-cost approaches to water-quality monitoring that are widely applicable and globally scalable. The mWater approach, which enables local communities and municipalities to test their own water quality using test kits that cost $3.00 per sample and a mobile phone application that tracks, records, and shares test results, is one potential solution and a prime example of how technology is shaping international development work.

The New Media Task Force launched their fall Digital Brownbag Series with a lecture given by mWater co-founders John and Annie Feighery. John, a former NASA engineer who specializes in water and sanitation, and his wife Annie, a behavioral scientist and technologist, combined their expertise to create mWater with the goal to improve water and sanitation in low resource communities.  The Feighery’s took an hour over lunch to explain the mWater approach to interested students.

3M Petrifilm http://mwater.co/3m-petrifilms/

The test mWater uses for E. Coli and fecal coliforms has been used in the food industry for decades, but no one considered it applicable for water until recently.  To take a sample, a drop of water is put on a piece of petrifilm paper.  The sample is sealed in a clear bag for 18-24 hours, and incubated in a pouch worn under clothes.  If dots and/or bubbles appear on the petrifilm it means E. Coli or coloriforms exists.  After the incubation period is when the technology comes into play.  The application takes a picture of the petrifilm is taken with the phone’s camera and then conducts a bacterial count to determine whether a threat exists.  Users receive instant feedback and results are automatically uploaded to the cloud for remote monitoring and management.  Each monitored water point with a unique identifier and a geo-point that can be viewed on a map online.  Water points within a certain geographical radius can be by seen by users on their phone.  If 3G or Wifi are not available, data is saved until services are available.

mWater recently completed a pilot in Mwanza, Tanzania funded by UN Habitat, and will soon begin a country-wide pilot in Rwanda in collaboration with the Ministry of Health.  If mWater can demonstrate that its approach is a scientifically valid and cost-effective way to water quality, the Feighery’s believe that there will be no shortage of potential consumers.  These include local utility companies, water organizations, development agencies, and both national and local governments.  The United States is an untested market, but homes with private wells and travelers are also potential consumers.

mWater is still in the “bootstrapping phase,” the start-up term for the period when a firm has little money, but lots of ideas, and they use whatever resources they have to get their idea out.  The Feigherys, however, are optimistic.  Feighery said the free beta version of the app, released in August, already has 500 downloads even though test kits have yet to be made available.

Customizing and Sharing Google Maps

Now that the semester has finished, you may have some “free” time to play with your mapping and web-design skills. While we have discussed the 2012 Election maps and held trainings for TileMill and Crowdmap in the past, the best-known internet mapping platform continues to be Google Maps. These maps are not only really useful for directions or to play Fantasy Job Search, they are also highly customizable and easy-to-share. Here are two ways to share your Google Map with friends:

1. Customize and share your map via Google. The easiest way to share your custom maps is via Google itself. First, on the main screen, click on My Places. Then “Create Map.” Add your title and description, and Click “Done.” Now click the “Edit” button, where you can draw lines, polygons, and mark places.

Now you can share with your friends, who can add their own markers / lines / polygons. Just click Collaborate after you’re done editing, and enter the emails of your collaborators (remember to turn on “Allow anyone to edit this map”). So now when you are planning your birthday pub crawl, you can ask for input from your friends! Or you can take suggestions for good restaurants along a certain route. All sorts of possibilities for this easy-to-use platform.

Finally, while we are discussing the features of Google Maps, if you are not already familiar with the cool Maps Labs, check them out (see map below to find the link on the main page):

2. Embed your map in a website. This one is a bit more complex, but it can also be a lot more useful to have an embedded map in your personal website. For our purposes, we will use the Columbia webspace we created for free. First, you should open this link in a separate tab/window to follow along. You will need a Google Map API; this can be done by following the first instructions in the above link. Got your API yet? Great! Now you need to do some HTML / javascript editing. For this you can use any text editor, but I would recommend either Sublime Text or Notepad Plus Plus. You can basically copy the text from the Google Developers site, making sure to include your API key and “True” or “False” in this statement: src=”https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/js?key=YOUR_API_KEY&sensor=SET_TO_TRUE_OR_FALSE“>

Now, how far do you want to take your map? You can use custom layers, have users mark locations or create polygons, whatever you like! Here are some samples [check their code using your browser's Developer Tools or Firebug for Firefox]. Before you know it, you will have a fancy bit of code you can display on your website! Here is one example with the ability to draw polygons, and this one is made from a Formhub output and a Google Fusion Table!

And remember, CodeAcademy and other resources are great for learning Java and HTML languages!