I had written about the availability of academic research and data for developing nations in my former guise as an information professional years ago; after revisiting that post, I thought it might be worthwhile to update that information here to demonstrate that while much of this research is still behind paywalls, much exists out there that many don’t know about.

The recent move by the network provider Cell C (one of the largest network providers) in South Africa to provide free access (no data charges) to social media platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook was not only a well thought marketing plan but also meant more connectivity for students across the country.

Picking up on a post by Panoply Digital Co-Director Ronda Zelezny-Green on the South Korean government mandating monitoring apps for youth in Android-based mobile technology, I wanted to extend that discussion a bit to demonstrate how pervasive this monitoring can be and particularly how it can be justified, or conceptualized, under appeals to public safety.

Tim Cook, chief executive officer of Apple has been at the center of media in recent weeks on issues of mobile privacy as well as women in technology. In an exclusive interview with Mashable he asserted the important role of women in technology, citing the prominence of diversity in moving forward as a company.

Every so often at Panoply Digital, I would like to throw out ideas related to the areas I mostly focus on, namely education and mobile learning.

I regularly receive newsletters on the sterling work that the friends of IBBA school for girls have done in building a school for young girls in Sudan. Following conflict and subsequent country instability, the school was built by a community of international and local people who wanted to empower young girls post this conflict.