To kick off the ICT Pulse Podcast, we spent some time chatting with Shernon Osepa, of the Internet Society, on how the Caribbean can develop its Internet economy, and strengthen its Internet infrastructure, especially in the face of the natural disasters that are regularly experienced.
Late last year, we featured the internet Society (ISOC), an international organisation headquartered in Virginia, United States of America, which may not be as well-known as others, such as the International Telecommunications Union, the Caribbean Telecommunications Union, or the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), but which, over the past five or so years, has been steadily growing its presence and influence the Caribbean region. For our first full episode, we spoke with Shernon Osepa, ISOC’s Manager, Regional Affairs for the Latin America and the Caribbean Bureau, to learn more about ISOC and get Shernon’s views on how the Internet is developing in the Caribbean.
Truth be told, it was an article Shernon had written in February 2018, which we were able to discuss with him, that spurred us to stop thinking about launching a podcast, and make it a reality. So, it is indeed fair and fitting that he is our first guest.
Our conversation with Shernon covered areas including:
- What is ISOC and what does it do?
- What does Shernon’s role as Manager, Regional Affairs for Latin America and the Caribbean entail?
- How has the Internet in the Caribbean region changed over the past 10 years?
- What are the Caribbean’s greatest challenges in relation to developing its Internet economy?
- What should be the region’s priorities in relation to the Internet and Internet development?
- What has been the impact of the major report on the Internet in the Caribbean published by ISOC in 2017?
- What drove Shernon to write the article that garnered considerable attention across the region?
- What are some of the efforts and initiatives that are being implemented to improve the resilience of Internet/telecommunications infrastructure in the face of the disasters, particularly natural disasters, which the Caribbean region regularly experiences?
- What are ISOC plans/priorities in the Caribbean region into the foreseeable future?
Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that were mentioned:
- Internet Society
- Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
- Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (IICANN)
- Caribbean Peering and Interconnection Forum (CarPIF)
- ISOC 2017 report on the Caribbean, Unleashing the Internet in the Caribbean: Removing Barriers to Connectivity and Stimulating Better Access in the Region
- Shernon’s article, 5 Months After the Hurricanes, the World Must Do More to Reconnect the Caribbean
- ISOC Chapters
- Beyond the Net Funding Programme
- ISOC 2018 Action Plan, for the campaigns that will be implemented in the Caribbean region.
- Community Networks
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Image credit: StockSnap (Pixabay); S Osepa
Music credit: Ray Holman
