{"id":171305,"date":"2024-08-21T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-21T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/?p=171305"},"modified":"2024-08-21T06:06:02","modified_gmt":"2024-08-21T11:06:02","slug":"ictp-316-community-internet-networks-ecast-and-online-shopping-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2024\/08\/ictp-316-community-internet-networks-ecast-and-online-shopping-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"ICTP 316: Community internet networks, ECAST and online shopping protection"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>In our August 2024 Community Chat, and with members of the Caribbean tech community, Nima Anvar, Hotelier and Chief Executive Officer of conversational AI platform GuestChat in Grenada, and Max Larson Henry, Network Engineer and Founder of the tech company, Transversal, which is based in the United States and Haiti, the panel discusses: Community internet networks; the recently launched Eastern Caribbean Association of Science and Technology; and can Caribbean online shoppers get more protection?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/1901153688&#038;color=%23ff5500&#038;auto_play=false&#038;hide_related=false&#038;show_comments=true&#038;show_user=true&#038;show_reposts=false&#038;show_teaser=true\"><\/iframe><div style=\"font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-673719274\" title=\"ICT Pulse Podcast\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\" rel=\"noopener\">ICT Pulse Podcast<\/a> \u00b7 <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-673719274\/ictp-316-community-internet\" title=\"ICTP 316: Community internet networks, ECAST and online shopping protection\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\" rel=\"noopener\">ICTP 316: Community internet networks, ECAST and online shopping protection<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This episode is also available on <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-673719274\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SoundCloud<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/ict-pulse-podcast\/id1373550291\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Apple Podcasts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/3d0U4ZYX80e5lenYLdzyX4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Spotify<\/a> <strong>and <a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/3f727ec1-de7d-416f-8bdc-31d9a911a09e\/ict-pulse-podcast\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Amazon Music<\/a>!!<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Empowerment is often defined as the process of becoming stronger, more purposeful, and capable of achieving more. However, people cannot empower others; they can only offer guidance and support. Empowerment is something that individuals must do for themselves and is one of the common themes in this month\u2019s Community Chat episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In our August Community Chat, communities come together to provide for themselves what others are not prepared to do. Additionally, we find people with common interests and experiencing similar challenges coming together to create something greater than themselves that would be better positioned to do more than they can do individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, before we delve into the specifics of our discussions, do allow us to introduce our guests and thereafter, share the topics discussed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"576\" data-attachment-id=\"171312\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2024\/08\/ictp-316-community-internet-networks-ecast-and-online-shopping-protection\/nima-anvar-n-anvar\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nima-Anvar-N-Anvar-e1724166307747.jpeg?fit=640%2C576&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"640,576\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Nima Anvar (N Anvar)\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Nima Anvar&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nima-Anvar-N-Anvar-e1724166307747.jpeg?fit=300%2C270&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nima-Anvar-N-Anvar-e1724166307747.jpeg?fit=640%2C576&amp;ssl=1\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Nima-Anvar-N-Anvar-e1724166307747.jpeg?resize=640%2C576\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-171312\" style=\"width:298px;height:auto\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Nima Anvar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Introducing our guests<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/nimaanvar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>Nima Anvar<\/strong><\/a> is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of GuestChat, a conversational AI platform that develops customised chatbots for hotels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Nima is a hotelier with over two decades of hands-on experience in Hotel Management. He collaborates with hoteliers, general managers, and marketing managers to guide them in implementing chatbots. His passion is to apply the latest advances in Generative AI in the hospitality industry. Nima and his team are bringing AI bot technology to hotels around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"344\" height=\"300\" data-attachment-id=\"171311\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2024\/08\/ictp-316-community-internet-networks-ecast-and-online-shopping-protection\/max-larson-henry-m-l-henry\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?fit=344%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"344,300\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Max Larson Henry (M L Henry)\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Max Larson Henry&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?fit=300%2C262&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?fit=344%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?resize=344%2C300\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-171311\" style=\"width:300px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?w=344&amp;ssl=1 344w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Max-Larson-Henry-M-L-Henry.jpeg?resize=300%2C262&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 344px) 100vw, 344px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Max Larson Henry<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/max-larson-henry-93031428\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>Max Larson Henry<\/strong><\/a> is a network engineer, ICT instructor, and entrepreneur who founded Transversal in 2005, a company specialising in Transmission Control Protocol\/Internet Protocol (TCP\/IP) networks, ICT training, and mobile application development. His company partners with major tech entities like Cisco, Microsoft, CompTIA, and Ubiquiti, deploying applications across Haiti, Nepal, East Timor, and the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He serves as President of the Haitian Association for Information and Communication Technologies (AHTIC) and Vice President of the Haitian Internet Society Chapter. He has played significant roles in initiatives like the Cisco Networking Academy, the Haitian Internet Exchange Point, and the AYITIC Goes Global project (LACNIC). His contributions to ICT have earned him multiple recognitions, including the 2016 Digicel National Entrepreneur of the Year &#8211; Service Category, and awards from USAID and Harvard Business School for his pioneering efforts in mobile money and educational support in Haiti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Introducing the topics discussed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In most countries and communities, we access internet service via a local telecoms company licensed to provide that service. However, for various reasons, there might be communities that are not connected to the local internet infrastructure thus maintaining and even widening the digital divide in the country. However, in such situations, communities can come together to establish and maintain an Internet connection themselves. So, our first topic was <strong><em>Community internet networks<\/em><\/strong> with Max sharing how these networks have been deployed in Haiti, which has been and continues to experience a broad range of disruptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our second topic was the<strong><em> Eastern Caribbean Association of Science and Technology (ECAST)<\/em><\/strong>, a recently established association that seeks to transform the Eastern Caribbean into a technologically advanced and digitally empowered region. Nima is the President of ECAST, so we discussed key challenges tech entrepreneurs have been experiencing as well as some of the innovative products and services that are being developed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, using a Letter to the Editor published in a Guyanese newspaper as a jump-off point, we discuss, <strong><em>Can Caribbean online shoppers get more protection?<\/em><\/strong>, on the tightrope Caribbean shoppers walk having made online purchases that may or may not be successfully delivered to them in their home country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><em>We would love to hear your thoughts!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><em>Do leave us a comment either here beneath this article, or on our&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ICTPulse\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook<\/a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/ict-pulse-consulting-limited\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LinkedIn<\/a>&nbsp;pages, or via Twitter,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ICTPulse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">@ICTPulse<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><em>Also, if you or a member of your network is interested in joining us for an episode,&nbsp;<\/em><\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/fgd.dfv.mybluehost.me\/.website_c81a1e61\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong><em>do get in touch<\/em><\/strong><\/a><strong><em>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><em>Let\u2019s make it happen!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Select links<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that either were mentioned during the episode, or otherwise, might be useful:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/nimaanvar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Nima Anvar<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/max-larson-henry-93031428\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Max Larson Henry<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.guestchat.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">GuestChat<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.isoc.ht\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Internet Society Ha\u00efti Chapter<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetsociety.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Internet Society<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Internet Society Foundation article, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.isocfoundation.org\/2023\/10\/empowering-haiti-how-the-internet-is-improving-lives-in-communities\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Empowering Haiti: How the Internet is Improving Lives in Communities<\/a><\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ecaribbean.tech\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Eastern Caribbean Association of Science and Technology (ECAST)<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Kaieteur News article, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaieteurnewsonline.com\/2024\/08\/06\/more-protection-needed-for-online-shoppers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">More protection needed for online shoppers<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Images credit:&nbsp; N Anvar;&nbsp; M L Henry;&nbsp; Hunter Masters (<a href=\"http:\/\/unsplash.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Unsplash<\/a>);&nbsp; Christian Schr\u00f6der (<a href=\"http:\/\/pixabay.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Pixabay<\/a>); Shane Rounce (<a href=\"http:\/\/unsplash.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Unsplash<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Music credit: The Last Word (Oui Ma Ch\u00e9rie), by Andy Narrell<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Podcast editing support:&nbsp; Mayra Bonilla Lopez<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In our August 2024 Community Chat, and with members of the Caribbean tech community, Nima Anvar, Hotelier and Chief Executive Officer of conversational AI platform GuestChat in Grenada, and Max Larson Henry, Network Engineer and Founder of the tech company, Transversal, which is based in the United States and Haiti, the panel discusses: Community internet networks; the recently launched Eastern Caribbean Association of Science and Technology; and can Caribbean online shoppers get more protection?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":171308,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[355],"tags":[71,261,511,205,48,281],"class_list":["post-171305","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-podcast","tag-businesses","tag-customer-care","tag-digital-resilience","tag-entrepreneurship-2","tag-infrastructure","tag-internet","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Featured-Image-\u2013-Featured-Image-\u2013-Community-Chat-\u2013-No-8-of-2024.jpg?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2iE1G-IyZ","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171305"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=171305"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171305\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":171378,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171305\/revisions\/171378"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/171308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=171305"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=171305"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=171305"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}