NEST forum unites aspirations for education and connectivity
(Thomson Reuters ONE) -
* Access to broadband can bring learning to more people
* Broadband enables new ways of teaching and learning
* Collaboration essential across public and private sectors
The Networked Society Forum, NEST, hosted by Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), has
wrapped up in Hong Kong, having sparked new inspiration among representatives
from the public and private sectors to lift education on the global agenda.
NEST forum participants prioritized target areas for further collaboration to
create the conditions to make learning available to everyone, everywhere. Topics
covered during the two-day event included the way we teach and learn in a
connected society, and how Information and Communications Technology (ICT) can
support that.
Sharing across geographical and cultural boundaries is one concrete way ICT can
contribute. Sir Harold Kroto, a Nobel laureate in Chemistry and NEST discussion
leader, said: "We should inject the ideas of every brilliant teacher into every
school if we can."
Access, broadband and collaboration were common themes. Jeffrey Sachs, Director
of the Earth Institute at Columbia University and another discussion leader,
described his experience in seeing mobility change people's lives in Africa. But
he says the challenges in education are universal. He said: "At Columbia
University, every week we turn on the screen and 20 campuses are on live
simultaneous video conference and we now have a worldwide classroom."
Industry leaders were equally energized about discussing the future use of
communications technology. Jon Eddy Abdullah, CEO of Total Access Communication
in Thailand, said: "We have worked for years to get mobile handsets into the
hands of people. We're pretty much there with 100% penetration in some
countries. Some people think it's 'Game Over' for telecoms. But it's not. We
have a great opportunity to help other industries use this technology for good."
Hans Vestberg, President and CEO of Ericsson, said there are immediate results
to this gathering. "One major accomplishment of our time together is that we
have lowered the barriers. After this weekend I think we have come closer to
experts in academia, the public sector and our industry colleagues to understand
the challenges and opportunities before us."
"And we know that we have to start sharing now. There is a great need for us to
compile and share the already-existing examples of how broadband is changing
education in the world. We will set about gathering those examples right away,"
said Vestberg.
"We all need to have better metrics to describe the powerful relationship
between education and ICT. In the past we have measured connectivity's impact on
GDP and jobs. Together with Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute at
Columbia University, we will start the work to develop the methods and metrics
to show this. This will help bring the opportunities of utilizing technology in
extending the reach of education to the attention of policymakers", Vestberg
said.
Ericsson intends to extend the reach of this conversation by initiating further
public private conversations on this topic also on a regional level.
For a complete list of the NEST discussion leaders and key contributors, as well
as photos and videos, or to learn more about the issues that were discussed at
the forum, please visit www.nestforum.org
Notes to editors:
Our multimedia content is available at the broadcast room:
www.ericsson.com/broadcast_room
Ericsson is the world's leading provider of technology and services to telecom
operators. Ericsson is the leader in 2G, 3G and 4G mobile technologies, and
provides support for networks with over 2 billion subscribers and has the
leading position in managed services. The company's portfolio comprises mobile
and fixed network infrastructure, telecom services, software, broadband and
multimedia solutions for operators, enterprises and the media industry. The Sony
Ericsson and ST-Ericsson joint ventures provide consumers with feature-rich
personal mobile devices.
Ericsson is advancing its vision of being the "prime driver in an all-
communicating world" through innovation, technology, and sustainable business
solutions. Working in 180 countries, more than 90,000 employees generated
revenue of SEK 203.3 billion (USD 28.2 billion) in 2010. Founded in 1876 with
the headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX,
Stockholm and NASDAQ New York.
www.ericsson.com
www.twitter.com/ericssonpress
www.facebook.com/technologyforgood
www.youtube.com/ericssonpress
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT
Ericsson Corporate Public & Media Relations
Phone: +46 10 719 69 92
E-mail:media.relations(at)ericsson.com
Press release in PDF:
http://hugin.info/1061/R/1563359/484614.pdf
This announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of
Thomson Reuters clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that:
(i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and
other applicable laws; and
(ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and
originality of the information contained therein.
Source: Ericsson via Thomson Reuters ONE
[HUG#1563359]
Unternehmensinformation / Kurzprofil:
Datum: 13.11.2011 - 08:00 Uhr
Sprache: Deutsch
News-ID 87134
Anzahl Zeichen: 5906
contact information:
Town:
STOCKHOLM
Kategorie:
Business News
Diese Pressemitteilung wurde bisher 213 mal aufgerufen.
Die Pressemitteilung mit dem Titel:
"NEST forum unites aspirations for education and connectivity"
steht unter der journalistisch-redaktionellen Verantwortung von
Ericsson (Nachricht senden)
Beachten Sie bitte die weiteren Informationen zum Haftungsauschluß (gemäß TMG - TeleMedianGesetz) und dem Datenschutz (gemäß der DSGVO).
