Computer Communications

& the
1992 United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development
Alternative Technology
for Communication & Participation by
Non-government Organizations

A Concise Guide

Prepared by:
Langston James Goree VI, IPHAE, Porto Velho, Rondonia, Brazil (ax:kimo)
Robert Pollard, Information Habitat, Baltimore, Maryland, USA (cdp:rpollard)
Funding for the preparation of this guide has been
provided by a grant to the Canadian Council for International
Cooperation by the Canadian International Development Agency
(CIDA).
August, 1990
Introduction
In the coming twenty-two months there will be a flurry of activity in preparation for the UNCED to be
held in Brazil during June of 1992. Many of these preparations will necessitate the exchange of
documents, letters, faxes and phone calls between groups scattered throughout the planet, creating a
massive communications problem. In order to facilitate the rapid exchange of information and reduce
costs a large number of NGOs have begun using an alternate form of technology; computer networking.
This guide has been prepared for distribution at the Preparatory Committee Meetings scheduled for
August 6-31 1990 in Nairobi, Kenya for the United Nations Conference on the Environment and
Development. It is intended as an orientation for participants in the uses of computer networking as a
communications tool. Please feel free to copy this guide, and share it with friends and colleagues in your
country and region.
A Little Bit of History
The world has become a much smaller place with the advent of modern telecommunications. Recent
advances in computer mediated data transmission have made it possible for individuals in various places
in the world to carry on multi-party conferences and exchange information quickly and at very low cost.
Both the Secretary General of the UNCED and NGOs internationally have recognized the possible uses of
computer networks to facilitate the exchange of information around the 1992 Conference. The Canadian
Council for International Development with assistance from the Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA) has begun efforts to stimulate these activities. Of particular interest to CIDA, and to
agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme, is the potential for strengthened dialogue,
coordination and sharing of information, knowledge and skills between non-government organizations in
developing nations and their counterparts in industrialized countries.
What is computer networking?
Computer networking is simply the exchange of information -- correspondence, policy papers, ideas and
strategies, or quantitative data -- from one computer to another. These computers can be as close as
across the room or as far apart as across the planet. Computers can be hooked together by telephone lines,
satellite links, radio waves or infrared beams. In the case of NGO networking, most users connect their
home or office personal computers by telephone to central computers (called "host" computers) where
they receive and send information.
How do NGOs network?
Several non-profit independent NGO networks sprouted up throughout the world during the last decade.
Only in the last three years have these independent networks formed together for the exchange of mail
and shared electronic conferences. The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) was
formed in 1988 to coordinate this world-wide NGO effort. The networks that make up the members of
APC, and the areas they serve, are:
Alternex . . . . . . . Latin America Nicarao . . . . . . . . Central America
Econet/Peacenet U.S.A. FredsNaetet . . . . Sweden
The Web . . . . . . . Canada Pegasus . . . . . . . . Australia, New Zealand, Asia
GreenNet . . . . . . United Kingdom, Europe & & the South Pacific
Africa

Each network is actually a powerful host computer that acts as a central storage facility for information.
The individual users connect their personal computers to the host where they can pick up and deliver their
electronic mail (e-mail) as well as read entries in public conferences.
What do the APC networks offer?
The APC networks provide a reliable way to communicate at high speed and low cost with thousands of
NGOs in over 70 countries worldwide. Each network has electronic mail that allows individuals to send
private messages to other users and electronic "conferencing" that permits shared messages. To send a
message to a user on another system or post a message to be read on a conference, the user needs only to
connect to his "home" network host. Each host on the APC system connects to each of the other hosts --
some as often as every hour, but at least once a day -- for the exchange of mail and additions to shared
conferences.
Several of the networks offer other services. On most of the nodes it is possible to send and receive Telex
messages, send fax messages, and exchange e-mail with users at universities throughout the world on the
academic networks such as BITNET and the Internet.
What is electronic mail?
Electronic mail is the use of the computer network to send messages or files to other users. Each user has
a unique user name that makes up part of his mail address. The other part of the address is the
abbreviation for the system or host where the user collects his or her mail. Each user has a private
electronic mailbox on the host computer where his incoming mail arrives. In order to collect the mail the
user simply gives commands to the host computer and the messages appear on his or her home computer
screen.
In order to send a computer message most users prepare their messages with their personal computer
before logging in. When they are connected to the host computer they "address" the electronic envelope
with the e-mail address of the recipient and then command their personal computer to send or "upload"
the completed message. The host computer takes care of the rest.
As an example, presented with an unexpected funding opportunity, a Canadian NGO based in British
Columbia might need a proposal from an NGO project in New Guinea it wants to support. The NGO in
Papua connects by phone link to the Pegasus network in Australia and sends the proposal addressed to the
e-mail address of the Canadian NGO on The Web. In a matter of hours the proposal has been transferred
to The Web host computer in Toronto. When a staff member at the Canadian NGO in B.C. logs in to
check the daily mail the project update has already arrived in their electronic mail box. The staff member
"down-loads" the report onto his personal computer and typesets it on her PC based laser printer when she
finishes her log-in session. A professionally produced clean copy of the proposal The printed project
update is delivered to the funding source in less than twenty-four hours at a total cost of approximately
US$0.50.
What is an electronic conference?
Conferences are not unlike a large community bulletin board. Each conference is organized on specific
subjects such as global warming, women's issues, tropical rainforests, or around a common problem such
as the elaboration of a large project. Within each conference the users post messages in the form of new
topics or responses to existing topics. Conferences can be private, where only a designated list of users
can read, or public. Some public conferences are limited to who can read or post messages while others
use a moderator to control inappropriate postings.
Because the APC host computers connect to one another by high speed telephone links there is a constant
flow of information to and from each host. This data consists of electronic mail and additions to the
conferences. Due to a special software developed for this type of conferencing, the conferences on the
host computers around the world are continually updated with new messages posted on other networks.
What that means is that a user in Brazil can respond with a message to a topic on the Alternex system that
was posted by a user in Sweden. The Swedish system would have that message from Brazil as an update
to their conference in less than twenty-four hours.
What does this have to do with UNCED?
The preparations for the upcoming United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in June
1992 in Brazil offer a unique opportunity for effective and creative use of electronic conferencing. It is
envisioned that the networks can serve as a vehicle through which a broad based coalition of independent
organizations and people can communicate in preparation for these and parallel meetings.
Maurice Strong, Secretary General of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED), has expressed a clear interest in making use of electronic conferencing systems
such as those of the APC system for the dissemination of information in preparation for UNCED, and for
providing a vehicle for participation by NGOs and other interested parties in the proceedings and
preparations leading into the conference.
A group of individuals on each of the APC hosts have begun preparations for the electronic discussions
surrounding UNCED. The following computer conferences have been created:
EN.UNCED, EN.UNCED.UPDATES, & EN.UNCED.SCHEDULE
These conferences are "official" conferences of the Secretariat of the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development. It is here that the most important documents in preparation for UNCED
will be posted for reading and downloading. These conferences are read-only conferences. The
Secretariat is responsible for the posting and maintenance of these conferences.
EN.UNCED.GENERAL
The purpose of this conference is to create a public forum for the sharing of ideas, plans, activities, and
other relevant matters that organizations are involved in before, during, and after the UNCED 1992
Conference. EN.UNCED.GENERAL is a public conference, and thus provides a unique opportunity for
open access to participate in the most significant international conference addressing the survival of
people and the earth
Because the 1992 Conference spans a broad range of distinct, though related topics, and is an
unprecedented opportunity to participate in international dialogue between non-government
organizations, the EN.UNCED.GENERAL conference is being designed in a way that will allow it to be
structured into a number of sub-conferences. As and when the restructuring occurs, participants will be
able to focus their attention in those areas where they can be most effective, and develop close-knit
"electronic working groups" with their counterparts in substantive areas, in their region, or around the
world.
What do you need to participate?
You need five things to "log-in" to the UNCED conferences:
1) A personal computer. Any type will do; Mac, PC, Atari, or even an inexpensive laptop.
2) A modem. This is a device that connects your computer to a telephone line. Modems can
be bought for as little as US$80 or as much as several hundred dollars. Shop around!
3) A communications software package. This can be bought commercially or obtained
from your APC network host. Some thoughtful programmers have even provided "share-
ware" programs for free or for a small voluntary donation.
4) Access to a telephone line. If you are in the local calling area of a major metropolitan
area, this will frequently only involve a local telephone call,
5) An account with one of the APC networks. These systems are non-profit and have a
large number of volunteers so the costs are very low. Here is who you contact for
information on connecting up:

Alternex Nicarao
IBASE Proyecto de Telecommunicacion/Nicarao
Rue Vincente de Souza 29 CRIES
2251 Rio de Janeiro Apartado 3516
BRAZIL Managua
+55 (21) 286 0348 NICARAGUA
+505 (2) 26228
Fredsnaetet (PeaceNet Sweden)
Timmermansgraend 4 Pegasus Networks (EarthNet)
S-116 27 Stockholm PO Box 424
SWEDEN The Epicentre, Border Street
+46 (8) 720 0001 Byron Bay 2481 NSW
AUSTRALIA
GreenNet +66 (8) 56789 (support)
25 Downham Rd
London N1 5AA The Web
GREAT BRITAIN 456 Spadina Avenue, 2nd floor
+44 (071) 923 2624 Toronto, Ontario M5T 2G8
CANADA
Institute for Global Communications +1 (416) 929-0634
Networks (IGC)
(PeaceNet, EcoNet, HomeoNet, ConflictNet)
3228 Sacramento Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
U.S.A.
+1 (415) 923-0900
How do I log-in if I don't live close to a host computer?
Most countries in the world (either by private or government initiative) have developed special data
transmission networks. These systems, called Public Switching Networks or Packet-Switching Networks
(PSN) are special high quality telephone lines that allow hundreds of computer-to-computer
"conversations" at the same time. These PSNs drastically reduce the cost of sending data in comparison
to conventional telephone calls.

Most of the national PSNs are connected to the PSNs of other countries, allowing international data
transfer. In this way it is possible for a user in Buenos Aires to make a local telephone call and connect
directly into the Alternex system in Rio de Janeiro, without paying for a long-distance telephone call.

In some countries you have to set up an account with your country's PSN network. Your APC host can
assist you in doing this. In other countries the charges for using the PSN are charged on your monthly bill
from the host.

How do I learn how to use the network once I get an account?

Each of the APC hosts publishes a user manual. In addition to this manual there are hundreds of users
who volunteer to help out new users. If you should have any problems there are many of us out there
more than willing to help you out. Remember: computer networking is so new that even the most
experienced user of today was a novice only a few years ago.

It will make a difference!

It was not so long ago that many of us began to make use of computers for word processing -- or writing,
as it used to be called. As we overcame what was often an initial resistance, we discovered a dramatic
increase in our ability to develop, fine-tune, and present written communication.

Those who have taken the next step with a computer, into electronic conferencing and electronic mail, are
increasingly discovering that as we learn to make effective use of this process, the transition from using
conventional mail, or even fax machines, to electronic networking is as powerful an advance in effective
communication, planning and participatory decision-making as was the transition from writing to word
processing.

The Canadian Council for International Cooperation and the all of the
individuals involved in electronic networking in preparation for the 1992 United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development look forward to meeting
you on-line.

Please share this guide with others who might have an interest in electronic conferencing.
The text of this guide is posted on the EN.UNCED.GENERAL conference, so that if you
are already on-line, you can obtain an electronic copy of the text, so that you can
reprint all or part of it in a format of your choice.