KM4Dev Workshop - Lisbon (Almada), June 2008: information for participants

KM4Dev 2008 Workshop

The annual KM4Dev meeting will be held this year from 18-21 June at the Pousada de Juventude Hostel in Almada, Portugal (just outside Lisbon). Further details on the venue can be found here

As with previous KM4Dev meetings, we want to use the opportunity of KM4Dev participants - new and old - getting together to discuss real issues with which we are dealing in our ongoing work. In other words, KM4Dev 2008 is meant to bring us together for collective thinking about a range of key challenges, solutions, experiments, and ideas with a view to helping each of us go back to our individual work contexts with renewed energy and new thoughts about how to do what we do - and how to help others with whom we work do what they do - better!

We would like to thank the SDC - Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation for its financial support of the KM4Dev2008 event.

Other Related Gathering Pages

• [Open Space Planning]

• [Day 0]

• [11th Planning Meeting Notes]
• [Workshop Blog]

Agenda

The agenda will be built both before and during the event by participants, and discussions will take place using the Open Space methodology. The overall structure of the workshop is like this:

18 June - Introduction to KM4Dev

1. various sessions run by KM4Dev members to help newer participants get a better idea of key concepts in KM4Dev and of the KM4Dev community
2. networking time for members of KM4Dev and other communities with overlapping interests

19-21 June - Open Space for Topics of Current Interest This 'core' part of KM4Dev 2008 (lasting two and a half days) will cover a number of topics, identified and led by various KM4Dev members. Some initial topics already identified for consideration include:

• KM and Measuring Impact
• Role of Social Networking Technology in KM
• The Future of the KM4Dev Community
• Complexity in KM for Dev
• Knowledge production as a process and the roles of practitioners, academics and policy makers

The final set of topics will be determined in the initial Open Space session on 19 June.

The 21st of June will be a half day only, allowing us to wrap up KM4Dev 2008, and to hold a meeting of the KM4Dev Core Group, which consists of a small group of volunteers who contribute in various ways to provide continuity as the community evolves.

Venue

Pousada de Juventude (Youth Hostel) Quinta do Bucelinho - Pragal 2805-358 Almada Portugal

Tel: (+ 351) 21 294 34 91/ 2; Fax: (+ 351) 21 294 34 97

The Youth Hostel in Almada has one of the most spectacular views in the country. Situated on the south shore of the River Tagus, next to the 25 de Abril bridge, it gives you a unique opportunity to gaze at a panoramic view of Lisbon. Going into Lisbon is as quick as a flash – except in rush hour. By train, bus, ferryboat or car, you can go and check out Lisbon by night, wandering along the docks in Alcântara and Avenida 24 de Julho or around Bairro Alto.

The building is bright, pleasant, well laid out around a central lobby/café/restaurant with stunning views of Lisbon. Common rooms and meeting rooms are perfect for the activities of this year's KM4Dev workshop. Lots of verandas, some gardens and a football pitch are available for coffee breaks and networking. Accommodation is simple, but rooms are pleasant, clean and bright.

• see here for a Google map of the location: Google Map Almada Pousada de Juventude(zoom in and out and fly around!)

• see here for a small presentation of the Youth Hostel: presentation venue

• see here for a beautiful photoset of Almada/Lisbon surroundings: photoset Almada (by Portuguese Eyes under CC on flickr)

How to reach the venue (see also the google map)

By air:

A taxi from Lisbon airport to the hostel should cost about 30-35 Euro, depending on traffic. Taxis are all metered and apply an extra supplement of about 1.5 Euros for baggage and will give a receipt on request. At night there is a more expensive rate. Depending on arrival times and dates, you could share a Taxi with someone else to reduce costs.

Another option might be to take a taxi from the airport to the Entre Campos train station (around 4-8 Euro) and then take the train to Almada.

By train from Lisbon:

Take a train from Entre Campos Train Station in Lisbon to Pragal Train Station. Your train will pass Tagus River underneath the red suspended bridge. (Youth hostel is now walking distance)

By car:

See the Google map. Click on hostel (first place mark mentioned in the menu on the left) and click on "direction to here". Now fill in <your location of departure>.

Internet access

There is wireless access to the Internet in the building which can be used for free.

Weather

Lisbon is one of the mildest European capitals. Summer months are mostly sunny, dry and hot with temperatures between 16 °C to 38 °C. The average temperature in June is 20°C. It is important to consider that the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean insures some cooling breezes, especially at night.

Registration

If you would like to attend, please register as soon as possible, as space is limited. There is no fee to attend, but most participants will need to fund their own expenses. If you are based in the South and require funding, please note the following:

Although the registration form includes a section to apply for funding support, all of the available funds have been allocated and the funding application process is now CLOSED.

To register, please click on the following link:

KM4Dev2008 Registration

Getting Involved

There are a number of ways that you can get involved in the workshop. Self-organised committees have formed around the following three planning areas:

1. Pre-workshop (called so far "day 0", name still to be determined) sub-committee
2. Open Space sub-committee
3. Online interactions sub-committee

If you are interested in getting involved, add your name, contact info and how you would like to contribute here or send an email to the workshop planning team (km4dwkshop2008 AT dgroups.org) with the same information.

• Kris Berse <krisberse@yahoo.com>: "I can help in the documentation, for instance (ex. live blogging, preparation of proceedings)"
• Vijay <vijayavee at gmail.com>: contributing by holding sessions, facilitate discussions
• Karel Novotny <karel@apc.org>: Is willing to help online and/or face-to-face, in whatever ways are useful

Participants' impressions

Magnificent panorama of Lisbon through floor length windows. Varied humorous events, well planned. I resisted the temptation to describe my efforts to teach ravens to fly under water (they dont like scuba gear), Catherine wanted to describe her efforts to share with goats the need to be quiet early in the morning. Many techniques were discussed, including the KM4dairy, a collaborative bovine effort at rotating peer group approaches to demolishing silos.

KM4Dev2008 workshop documentation

KM4Dev2008 Blog

You can comment any post on the blog. If you would like to post something yourself, contact Josien.

Day 0 Notes

Find the raw notes from the discovery day.

Open Space Discussion Reports

Convenors have the responsibility to ensure that the discussions are documented. Follow the instruction on the Open Space Discussion Reports page of this wiki.

Participants List

Experiences, impressions and initiatives

Find the experiences and action points shared in the closing session.

Core Team Meeting

On Saturday morning, 30+ KM4Dev members met (again in open space) to discuss a number of topics...

• Tech issues in relation to Dgroups / Re-structuring Tech Infrastructure (Maarten/Luca)
• Criteria & quality standards joint projects (Camilo)
• Incubator proposal (Simone)
• KM4Dev Regional chapter (Kemly)
• Expectations from sponsored participants (Vijaya)
• Financing (Meetings) (Marc)
• Community Action Day (Carl)
• Network of Networks (Nancy)

• Notes from reporting back: ACTION points