Interdoc is a loose international network of non-government organizations (NGOs) and advocacy groups who are monitoring recent information and communications technologies (ICT) for their social impact on ordinary citizens and developing countries. The Interdoc coordinator is Roberto Verzola from the Philippines. Interdoc members keep in touch by email and meet every few years or so to discuss issues face-to-face, do training, and conduct planning.
Interdoc-Y2K is a list that continues the Y2K discussions on the Global Knowledge for Development (GKD) list, which were held Nov. 5-30, 1998. Roberto Verzola, Interdoc-Y2K facilitator, was part of the panel of three experts who led the GKD discussions.
One major thread of the discussions raised concerns about the Y2K problem aggravating the global financial crisis and therefore causing more serious disruptions than originally expected. To avoid a cascade of problems, the "modularization" approach was proposed, whose prescriptions ran against the present paradigm of "globalization". This led to a discussion about a paradigm shift that may be initiated by the crisis triggered by the Millennium Bomb.
Thus, a debate about two approaches to the Y2K problem emerged:
The Interdoc-Y2K list was created to continue discussion on the second approach. If you are interested in the details of the "business as usual" approach, please note that this will be a secondary issue on this list, which will concentrate on the "systemic reform" approach to the Y2K issue.
Please address your questions about this list to Roberto Verzola <rverzola@phil.gn.apc.org> (moderator of this mailing list).