I started life as an archaeologist before retraining in IT and have wide experience of work in the voluntary / not for profit and continuing education sectors in Scotland where I am usually based. This has included database design, hardware support, software support, website design and tuition.
From 2009 - 2010 I was in Nairobi, Kenya as Assistive Technology Tutor with the Kenyan Society for the Blind. Then came two years in Ethiopia, working with the Addis Ababa HIV / AIDS Prevention and Control Office and the Ethiopian Midwives Association. My most recent stint abroad was another two years in Papua New Guinea as Provincial Capacity Building ICT Advisor on a United Nations Development Program / Ministry of Finance project. For now I am back in Scotland and a part time Open University tutor.
You can visit my website at http://tinyurl.com/visimpscot .
Authored Comments
Thanks for the article Mick.
When working in Kenya I did my best to promote open source software but it was uphill work. The three commonest obstacles that I came across were lack of knowledge, the 'if it is any good why is it free?' argument and the ready availability of bootleg commercial software.
This initiative sounds great, it makes a good start at tackling the first two obstacles and Kibera kids deserve a chance.
Thanks for this Heidi, you are right policies on lateness can be a problem. I have worked as an Assistant Lecturer with The Open University in the UK for the mandatory assignments I was bound by the strict university policy on late submissions but had some discretion over internal coursework assignments. It is a shame that I never thought of this approach.