Using Web 2.0 to Foster Peace

When violence erupted following the December 2007 elections in Kenya, the government restricted the national media from reporting on the outbursts. But citizen reporters across the country came together to collaboratively give their “testimonies” — or “ushahidi” in Kiswahili, on a website of the same name, sponsored by the ICT4PEACE Foundation.

The Foundation aims at pooling together such technologies and ideas from around the world for effective intervention and peace-keeping efforts. Ushahidi is just one the examples of how Web 2.0 is helping to overcome a major hurdle conflict management faces: restricted access to reliable information. Since 2008, it has also been used to map outbreaks of swine flu and the Indian Elections.

At the Global Media Forum, Daniel Stauffacher, chairman of the ICT4PEACE, spoke to the Deutsche Welle about the initiative.