Project Title:
Unsung Among Us

Recipient Institution:
Grammena Patna Kendram

Karakulam Post, Thiruvantapuram, Kerala 695564
INDIA

Tel/Fax: 91 471 2371463
Email:info@iitcgpk.org

Project Leader:
Suhruth Kumar

Amount and Duration: US$ 20,211 / 11 months

Commencement Date:
1 January 2004

Project Proposal
1. Project Background and Justification.

We are living in the period of globalization of economy. Not only economy, culture is also becoming globalize through global media and ICT. It is good in a way that world becomes small and people come closer, bringing the concept of global village a reality. But this has got a darker side also, which is destruction of marginal communities and their cultures. Local culture becomes shadow of the dominant one, which is mostly based on modern technology and science, and is aggressive in nature.

Each local culture evolved through thousands of years and through interaction of people them selves, with others and with nature as a whole. Each culture becomes so diverse because of the innumerable parameters and vastness of human imagination. So each culture and subculture becomes great wealth of knowledge and practice. But now due to intense interaction with dominant culture, culture diversity is disappearing. With them goes part of our common heritage, great wealth of humanity. These dying cultures and communities form the Unsung among us.

As United Nations understood the gravity of the problem, they have set preserving of our common heritage as one of the Millennium Development Goal.

It is not only about preserving the heritage but also about making voices of marginalized communities heard. To ensure that their needs are addressed. Their way of doing things are mostly sustainable in nature and is very relevant at a time of global warming and other man made `natural hazards'.

Looking at Kerala:

Kerala is a state situated in southern tip of Indian subcontinent. It is a narrow strip of land having Arabian Sea at the west and `Sahya' range at east. Due to this geographical isolation people of this land developed a culture which is significantly different from other parts of India. This project aims to document and preserve a sample, cross section of the cultural diversity, which are unknown even to the majority of people in Kerala.

Some of cultural heritages of Kerala like Kalaripayatu (Martial art form of Kerala), Ayurveda, Kadakali etc are well known around the world. There are several not so well known and slowly disappearing cultures, skills, crafts,etc living inside the state. One example is traditional architecture of Kerala, `science` of it lives with few masters. As people are moving towards modern energy intensive constructions, the tradition systems are dying.

Aboriginal systems of medicines is another wealth of Kerala, as people moving towards modern medicine and not showing interest in traditional systems, those who practiced traditional systems are moving toward other jobs. With them goes a foot prints of our development.

ICT and the Unsung:

ICT and New Media can play and important role in achieving the millennium development goal of preserving our common heritage.

Development in ICT particularly digital media brings us a lot of new possibilities in information gathering and dissemination. It makes recording of visuals and sound a more economical proposition than it was only a few years ago. It is also now a growing art form and testimony.

The digital camera and sound recorders will help us document the `Unsung among us', their dying skills, their arts, thoughts and philosophies. Because of the dexterity that digital imaging provides, it will also serve as a source for multi media CDs or Net based interactive or new media applications. Through new technologies like streaming videos we can make the voice of Unsung be heard, even globally.

2. Project Objectives:

2.2 General Objective:

• Addressing Goals set in United Nation's Millennium declaration with respect to cultural diversity.
• Protection of indigenous knowledge and cultural heritage, through capacity building in digital content development locally.
• Promote diversity of digital content available, particularly in World Wide Web.
• Show case the economic and social value of local content. Local indigenous knowledge base is very important in creation of sustainable development models.

2.2 Specific Objectives:

• To study and develop participatory model for archiving indigenous knowledge and culture, particularly through New Media and ICT
• Short research into indigenous cultures in Kerala, and identifying interesting and important components.
• Recording their culture, knowledge etc and creating information infrastructure for dissemination of the same.
• Demonstrate social and economic value of local content.

3. Project Benefits/Beneficiaries.

Cultural heritage and indigenous knowledge base are valuable resource of humanity. And through the preservation of the same humanity as a whole benefits. One of the direct benefit of this project will be showcasing of rich culture and knowledge of indigenous peoples, the unknown masters of Kerala culture. Their contributions will be available to global community though ICT. Some of these marginalized cultures will even benefit economically as global society which may like to avail their services shall reach them. Eg, some master craftman in Kerala will be known to a global market through this effort.

4. Project Sustainability

Capacity building of local organizations in content development is major component in this project. These organisations will continue the development of digital content based on people and culture in the locality. With the application of modern ICT tools cost of building content comes down dramatically. Government initiatives like IT@School and Akshya have made increased demand for local content in Kerala. Goverment has started showing interest in addressing the demand. Government's policy of supporting development of local content, demand for local content and very low cost involved will support sustainment of the project.

Grameena Patana Kendram (GPK) is committed towards development of local content and its promotion. It is undertaking several initiatives based on local content aiming at global market. IITC (Integrated Information Technology Center) is a social enterprise under GPK, one of the key areas of its work is production of Animation films based on local culture, targeting international audience. GPK is also committed to provide most of the content developed by them into Public Domain.

5. Project Methodology

Documentation of Unsung communities, cultures and philosophies are vital because as they are powerless people and whose contributions and experiences are otherwise taken for granted and neglected. It will also be a way of documenting ordinary lives and chores which are part of our tradition. But collective approach will help us to mirror ourselves, our tradition and lost values. Once documented and digitised suitably for various media, it will be made available to local as well as global audience.

5.1 Research and Content building

• Networking and capacity building with local organizations for identification and recoding of local knowledge. Kerala's network of Grameen Grandasala (rural library and community centers) can be effectively made use here.
• Accordingly a few distinct ordinary people and community whose values and experiences have affixed moulding our heritage will be selected for documentation. It will be a representative sample which will involve art, craft, traditional medicine, agriculture etc.
• A brief evaluation will be made on the selection by a distinguished panel.
• The selected persons, communities, their crafts, skills, experiences as in happiness or woes will be recorded in digital media. Local groups will be trained for creation of these contents. Primarily to ensure sustainability of the project and further development of local content.

5.2 Design and implementation

• Once recorded, using expertise in New Media and animation a solution for its presentation will be made.
• Multimedia CD-ROMs exploiting the possibilities of audio, video and animation will be developed.
• A website which can cater as a permanent showcase will be made; also an area which can trigger continuous submission and archiving of such materials will be conceived.
• Site will promote people behind the works showcased which can lead to new economic opportunities for them.
• Organizations which act as the local content providers will be trained for submitting content through Internet. High penetration of Internet in the state makes this job easy.

5.3 Dissemination

• Portal and Multi Media CD forms main system for content dissemination.
• Association with local as well as global print and visual media to be made for proper dissemination of this content. The presentaion will be suitably refashioned for broadcasting.
• A format that is easily affordable will be selected for broadcasting, may be Documentaries of seven-minute duration. They will be made in digital format, with digital sound and of a resolution that can support broadcast. Seven minutes because it becomes the apt duration for an Internet based stream video.
• Using the possibilities of Film as well as Video festivals, It will be made available to global audience.
• Networking with institutions like NFDC (National Film Development Corporation), Film institutes, NID (National Institute of Design), Kerala State Chalachitra Academy ,UNESCO etc for spreading the values and importance of such content to be made in other traditions and cultures.

5.4 Evaluation

• The output will be evaluated in terms of quality and technical expertise
• It will also be evaluated using website and user feedback forms
• Experts from organizations like NID will be working with the project for monitoring and giving directions.

6. Time line

Activity 1: Detailed project planning and networking with local organizations and people (1-2 month)

Activity 2: Research on persons, communities, life, experiences, tradition and livelihood (1-3 months)

Activity 3: 1 Capacity building of local organizations
3: 2 Recording, documenting and archiving. (3-6 months and ongoing)

Activity 4: 1 Script writing and organization of data
4: 2 Multi Media Document of knowledge base (5-9 months and ongoing)

Activity 5: Web Portal/streaming video (7-9 months and ongoing)

Activity 6: Initial presentation, networking with other organization for dissemination. (8-10 months)

Activity 7: Detailed project report publication, CD-ROM presentations, website (9-11 months)

7. Output

• A project report will be published which will be worthy as a collection of such experiences.
• Multimedia CD ROMs containing audio, video and animation.
• A website with the same content and a space for the project to be taken as a continuous process.
• A network of organizations and people with interest in bringing up similar projects all around India. And a local network for continuous creation of content.

8. Project Monitoring

Project monitoring will be based on the targets specified in the time line. Monthly report of the activity will be made.

Each of the activities comes with clearly defined outputs. The quality and quantity of the output associated with each activity is clear indicator of effectiveness.

Online project management and reporting system will be implemented as part of the project. It will enable all the stakeholders to continuously keep updated about the developments in the project. This will enable in taking corrective action as soon as any problem is identified.

Annexure 1:

Project applicant: Gramena Patana Kentram (GPK).

Grameena Patana Kendram (GPK), is an autonomous society established by Karakulam Grama Panchayat. The developmental activities of a region stand upon precise and scientifically collected statistics and expert inputs. The revelation that this is possible only through collective participation of local human strength and domain knowledge of various experts has been the founding stone for GPK. With the agenda of holistic development of local community GPK undertakes various research and intervention programs in the field of Micro Business, ICT, Culture, public health, environment etc. These activities are dispersed among three auxiliary units, namely Integrated Information Technology Center (IITC), Participatory Research Center (PARC), Art village (Kalagramam).

This project will be coordinated by IITC, which is a Forth Sector enterprise working in the field of ICT and New Media. IITC has linkages with national centers of excellence like, Nation Institute of Design (NID), Electronic Research and Development Corporation of India (ER&DCI), Center for Development of Imaging Technology(C-dit), Free Software Foundation of India (FSF-India) etc. Some of the efforts going on under the center include,

• New Media application in primary education
• Animation production based on local content.
• Design support for Self help groups
• New Media for ecological awareness.
• Free software development for Watershed management