In this issue...
Note from the Chair
Our newsletter this month brings SIGHT perspectives on three conferences around the world: TenSymp in Indonesia, OSCON in the USA and IST-Africa in South Africa.

Through these glimpses we see that SIGHT is having an important effect on the broader IEEE community. And we'd like to underscore Alfredo Herrera's call from OSCON to contribute to the IEEE humanitarian repository of open source software.

Read on for highlights from your fellow SIGHTs. And, as always, thank you for everything that you do!

Kartik Kulkarni, Chair, IEEE SIGHT Steering Committee
Find SIGHT Membership Resources at the Online SIGHT Toolkit

Learn about the new requirements of SIGHT membership and find resources to help accomplish your goals with the online SIGHT Toolkit.  
SIGHT Project Funding Deadlines
The Steering Committee continues accepting proposals for SIGHT project funding. The committee will award grants of US$500 to nearly $20,000. The activities that we fund must be completed by the end of 2016 to be considered.
 
Final deadline of 2016:
  • February 15
  • May 15
  • August 15

Good luck! 

Connect With Us
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IEEE Open Source for Development Projects: Are You In?
Herrera mug shot
Alfredo Herrera

I was fortunate to attend this year's Open Source Convention (OSCON) on behalf of the IEEE community of individuals and groups desiring to address "global issues" in a tangible manner. OSCON is an annual convention for the discussion of free and open source software. Keynotes are freely available, and there are some that talk about topics of particular interest to our SIGHT community, for example:
Inspired in part by these presentations, I call on each one to join me in creating an open source community, by:
  1. Creating a free GitHub account if you don't have one
  2. Learning how to contribute to a GitHub open-source project
  3. Helping build our IEEE Humanitarian repository
We plan to manage the quality of the Humanitarian Open Source projects on this new repository using IEEE's peer-review process. IEEE volunteers can host their personal project on-line and share with peers. 
 
Alfredo Herrera, HAC Communications, HIC Chair, SIGHT-Ottawa Chair

Full report: SIGHT Open Source Projects
SIGHT Earned Attention at IST Africa

SIGHT's event at IST-Africa may have attracted new volunteers, says Jineet Doshi, SIGHT Events Subcommittee Co-Chair. The IST-Africa conference was held last month in Durban, South Africa, and brought together government, industry and research institutions from around the world.

Members from 14 countries attended the SIGHT event at the conference. Miriam Cunningham, who founded the IST-Africa SIGHT, began the presentations with case studies. Paul Cunningham, a member of the Humanitarian Activities Committee and chief organizer of the IST-Africa conference, and Lwanga Herbert at Uganda SIGHT followed up with keynotes on their SIGHTs' activities. Then the participants spoke about their experiences in volunteering for the community.

"The feedback from the participants was very promising," Doshi says.

Ninety percent of the participants said they had not heard about SIGHT before attending the event, and afterward the same percentage said they are interested in forming a SIGHT group.

"Hopefully this is the catalyst for something promising for SIGHT in Africa," Doshi says.

Full report: SIGHT at IST-Africa
Win $500 at the IEEE Maker Project  
If you've been tinkering with a tech project that solves complex problems and has real-world applications, here's your chance to showcase your work. The IEEE Maker Project offers recognition and a $500 prize.  Apply by September 17.

Learn more at IEEE Maker Project.
TenSym SIGHT event group photo
Attendees of the Region 10 Symposium in Bali, Indonesia, became problem solvers of issues facing Indonesian communities. In a special event at the annual conference, Dr. Linawati at Udayana University presented three problems that Indonesian communities face, including waste management obstacles, poverty and dengue fever outbreaks. The audience then brainstormed solutions.

"The feedback received from participants was fantastic. Eighty-three percent of the participants rated the event 4/5 and above, and 88 percent of them said they would like to get involved in humanitarian activities by forming a SIGHT group," says Jineet Doshi, SIGHT Events Subcommittee Co-Chair.

The event was the first time in which SIGHT and IEEE Young Professionals co-invested in a separate track.

Full report: SIGHT at TenSymp
ADSF community training event
"I'm happy to report that this term rapid progress has been made in establishing first-aid projects and awareness programs," says Geethu Sree, Editor of the ADSF SIGHT newsletter.

See the second edition of their newsletter here: Deep Sea Voyage 2.
ICT4D at the E4C Solutions Library: Compare Products That Can Improve Your Projects 
Screen shot of E4C_s Solutions Library
The Solutions Library at Engineering for Change can make decisions easier when it comes to choosing which ICT4D hardware to use in your development projects. See specifications and compare products such as water flow sensors and smart electrical meters. The tool is free to use and it is constantly evolving, so your input can make a difference. For more, please see the Information Systems category at E4C's Solutions Library.
Deadlines for SIGHT Newsletter Submissions
Share news about your events, innovations and successes with the worldwide SIGHT community. Submit announcements or story ideas by the first of each month for a chance to see it in the next month's edition.
 
Submission guidelines:
  • 150 words or less
  • Include photos! (with captions)
  • Include Web links! (Interested people will want more information)
Please send correspondence to Rob Goodier at r.goodier@ieee.org. Thank you!