The Foreign Service Journal, October 2008

C Y B E R N O T E S u 10 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / O C T O B E R 2 0 0 8 But lawmakers like Rep. Jim Lan- gevin, D-R.I., a member of the House Intelligence Committee and chair- man of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, who sees cybersecurity as “a real and growing threat that the federal gov- ernment has been slow in addressing,” expect debate over the initiative to extend into the next administration. — Susan Brady Maitra, Senior Editor Unsafe Airlines: Check Out the E.U. Blacklist In 2006, after a series of fatal air crashes, the European Union estab- lished a “blacklist” of airlines whose safety records do not meet the stan- dards necessary for operation in European skies. The list, which is updated regularly, most recently on July 24, can be found online at http:// ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/ list_en.htm . The E.U. list is based on the bans imposed by individual E.U. member states. These national lists are then vetted by the E.U. Commission, with the help of experts on its Aviation Safety Committee and in consultation with the European Aviation Safety Agency, to determine whether a Europe-wide ban is justified. The evaluation is done airline-by-airline, and is thus more specific than the U.S.-compiled list of states with inad- equate aviation safety records. For more information on this extremely useful reference for inter- national travelers, see http://ec.euro pa.eu/transport/air-ban/further info_en.htm#2 . — Susan Brady Maitra, Senior Editor The Next Internet: What’s It All About? Just when you thought you were ahead of the technology curve (no such thing!) the Internet is changing, upgrading and overhauling its current system. Maybe the news isn’t quite that dramatic, but in 2005 the Office of Management and Budget mandat- ed that all federal agencies make their systems ready for Internet Protocol Version 6 by June 30, 2008 ( www. whitehouse.gov/omb/memorada/ fy2005/m05-22.pdf ). Why? The short answer: to relieve conjestion and improve the efficiency of electronic communications. For the long answer, including the move’s problems and implications, see the May issue of Government Executive Site of the Month: www.globalvoicesonline.org Conceptualized at an international bloggers’ meeting held at Harvard University in December 2004, Global Voices “seeks to aggregate, curate and amplify the global conversation online — shining light on places and people other media often ignore.” It is a nonprofit project based at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, a research think-tank focused on the Internet’s impact on society. International volunteer authors, regional blogger/editors and translators col- laborate via the site to provide a venue for the many voices around the world and act as “your guides to the global blogosphere.” Each regional editor selects the most influential or credible bloggers in their region (and, when necessary, has their work translated into English). According to the site’s comprehensive FAQ, Global Voices “collects, sum- marizes and gives context to some of the best self-published content found on blogs, podcasts, photo sharing sites and videoblogs from around the world, with a particular emphasis on countries outside of Europe and North America.” Users can search by region, subject or blogger. Readers can delve into 20- something Egyptian Marwa Rakha’s questioning of traditional Muslim tenets, Roy Rojas’s musings on the political situation in Costa Rica or Malawian Steve Sharra’s exploration of Pan-Africanism and social justice issues. Or they can subscribe to a daily “digest” containing an overview of the latest features, an e- mail notification of updates or RSS feeds. As part of its advocacy and outreach efforts, Global Voices offers training and online tutorials on how to use open-source and free tools to express oneself and campaigns against censorship. With authors spanning the globe, discussing everything from agriculture to humor and translated from 15 languages, the site highlights those many, often unheard, global voices. As the site asks, “The world is talking. Are you listen- ing?” — Ariana Austin, Editorial Intern 50 Years Ago... E verywhere the State Department’s first African Seminar trav- eled in Ghana during the first three weeks of June, [the coun- try’s] new spirit was abundantly evident. ... The seminar, com- posed of 21 Foreign Service and departmental officers concerned with African affairs, studied at first hand this newest African nation, the first British colonial territory south of the Sahara to achieve complete independence. — “A Letter from Ghana” by Edward W. Holmes, October 1958 FSJ.