G7 ministerial meeting launches information society pilot projects

The European Commission, in conjunction with the G7 members, took the opportunity offered by the ministerial meeting on the information society, which took place in Brussels on 25-26 February 1995, to identify 11 theme areas for international cooperation. Under each of the th...

The European Commission, in conjunction with the G7 members, took the opportunity offered by the ministerial meeting on the information society, which took place in Brussels on 25-26 February 1995, to identify 11 theme areas for international cooperation.

Under each of the themes a number of projects will be selected. While the projects will be initially undertaken by the G7 members, the participation of other partners, including international organizations, will be encouraged.

It is expected that the consequences of joint actions will provide a concrete contribution to the requirements of the global information society and will demonstrate the potential improvements to the quality of life for all citizens.

The key objectives of the information society pilot projects are to:

- Support the goal of international consensus on common principles governing the necessity of access to networks and their applications as well as their interoperability;
- Establish the groundwork for productive forms of cooperation amongst the G7 partners in order to address the global issues attendant on the information society;
- Create an opportunity for information exchange leading to the further development of the information society;
- Identify and select projects which demonstrate tangible and understandable social, economic and cultural benefits;
- Identify obstacles related to the implementation of practical applications serving the creation of a global information society;
- Help to create markets for new products and services where appropriate.

Projects will be selected under the following eleven theme areas:

- Theme 1: Global inventory.
Objective: To create and provide an electronically accessible multimedia inventory of information regarding major national and international projects and studies relevant to the promotion and development of the global information society. An assessment of social, economic and cultural factors impacting on its development will also be undertaken.

Contact:
European Commission
Mr. J. Metthey
200 rue de la Loi
B-1049 Brussels
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 2: Global interoperability for broadband networks.
Objective: To facilitate the establishment of international links between the various high-speed networks and testbeds supporting advanced applications.

Contact:
Mr. K. Chang
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

or

Mr. K. Ullman
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 3: Cross-cultural education and training.
Objective: To provide innovative approaches to language learning, in particular for students and for SMEs.

Contact:
Mr. A. Elie
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]

- Theme 4: Electronic libraries.
Objective: To constitute from existing digitization programmes a large distributed virtual collection of the knowledge of mankind, available to the public via networks. This includes a clear perspective towards the establishment of the global electronic library networks which interconnect local electronic libraries.

Contact:
Mr. A. Arot
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]

- Theme 5: Electronic museums and galleries.
Objective: To accelerate the multimedia digitization of art collections and to ensure their accessibility to the public, as well as providing learning sources for schools and universities.

Contact:
Mr. A. Puri-Purini
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]

- Theme 6: Environment and natural resources management.
Objective: To increase the electronic linkage and integration of distributed databases of information relevant to the environment.

Contact:
Mr. M. Schaffer
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 7: Global emergency management.
Objective: To encourage the development of a global management information network to enhance management of emergency response situations, risks and knowledge.

Contact:
Mr. A. Simard
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 8: Global healthcare applications.
Objective: To demonstrate the potential of telematic technologies in the field of telemedicine in the fight against major scourges; to promote joint approaches to issues such as the use of data cards, standard and other enabling mechanisms.

Contact:
European Commission
Mr. M. Richonnier
DG XIII
200 rue de la Loi
B-1049 Brussels
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 9: Government on line.
Objective: To exchange experience and best practice on the use of on-line information technology by administrations for the establishment of procedures for conducting electronic administrative business between governments, companies and citizens.

Contact:
Mr. R. Kerry
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 10: A global market place for SMEs.
Objective: To contribute to the development of an environment for open and non-discriminatory exchange of information and to demonstrate the interoperability of electronic and information cooperation and trading services on a global scale for the benefit of SMEs.

Contact:
Mr. Y. Sumi
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]

- Theme 11: Maritime information society.
Objective: To integrate and enhance environmental protection and industrial competitiveness for all maritime activities by means of information and communication technologies including application in the area of safety and the environment, intelligent manufacturing and logistics networks.

Contact:
European Commission
Mr. H. Von Bose
DG III
200 rue de la Loi
B-1049 Brussels
Tel. [phone]; Fax [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]