Welcome

The Observatory for Cultural and Audiovisual Communication in the Mediterranean and in the World (OCCAM) was created by UNESCO in 1996. Since 2003 has been formally associated to the UN Department of Public Information and since 2005 it enjoys Special Consultative Status with the ECOSOC.

OCCAM’s activities are articulated as follows:

Observatory for the analysis and understanding of ICT for Development trends and strategies, it prepares researches and special issues on technologies and best practices able to contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals

Acting agency of the Infopoverty Programme, its main aim is that of duplicating the successful ICT Village Model (certified on the occasion of the Tunis Phase of the World Summit on the Information Society held in November 2005 and adopted since 2006 by the UN Public-Private Alliance for Rural Development in Madagascar and the Dominican Republic, its pilot countries.. The ICT Village model is intended to provide to remote and disadvantaged communities broadband satellite connectivity as well as e-services for development, such as telemedicine, e-learning, e-governance, etc. In order to make the ICT Village sustainable, renewable energy (solar, biomasses, compound, hydrogen, etc.) as well as water sanitation systems are put into place, and are matched with continuous training and support aimed at the empowerment of the members of the community and the full exploitation of the natural and human potentials.

In order to individuate best practices and to favour networking among main stakeholders in the field, since 2001 OCCAM has organised the Infopoverty World Conference, which is held on a yearly basis at the UN Headquarters in New York and simultaneously in prestigious seats connected by videoconference. Since 2001 more than 1000 institutions and leaders have participated in the event, making possible a very fruitful exchange of best practices and converging activities. Moreover, implementing the Final Declaration endorsed by the Infopoverty World Conference 2006, OCCAM has organised the first Infopoverty Exhibition, held in February 2006 at the Milan fairground, where the most interesting innovations in the field of ICT4D, safe water and renewable energies to be used in the ICT Villages and in development projects of the UN System were presented. Finally, OCCAM every year exploits the important framework of the Venice Film Festival to organise the Euromediterranean Conference on Cinema, intended as an occasion where to present to the wide audience present at the festival some of the results of its activities and individuate possible partners.
2006 OCCAM is leading the activities of the Infopoverty Community of Expertise “E-services for Development” within the UN Global Alliance for ICT and Development, whose participants include some of the most important stakeholders of the information society. The Infopoverty Community of Expertise works in close relationship with the OCCAM-LAB, aimed at testing and individuating special tools that can be used in disadvantaged communities.

	UNITED NATIONS Mirroring site in collaboration with RUNIC Brussels
	CICT- UNESCO Conseil International du Cinema, de la Television et de la Communication Audiovisuelle