This paper explores the contemporary preservation and production of the past in Umbumbulu, near Durban in KwaZulu-Natal. It examines the Ulwazi Programme, a web initiative run through the eThekwini Municipality that uses the existing library infrastructure, new digital technologies and municipal residents to create what its advocates term a collaborative, […]
2012 • archive • culture | preservation • custodianship • Durban | South Africa • identity • indigenous / traditional knowledge • KwaZulu-Natal • Umbumbulu • ZuluMcNulty Consulting blog
McNulty Consulting is a digital heritage consultancy with a focus on community-oriented projects, Web 2.0 technologies and open-source software in an African context. It specialises in digital cultural projects (including community, museum, heritage and archival initiatives) and the development and digitisation of content. The consultancy consists of two brothers, Niall […]
archive • cultural heritage • database • digital humanities • Durban | South Africa • open sourceThe Ulwazi Programme
The Ulwazi Programme is an initiative of the eThekwini Municipal Library to preserve the indigenous knowledge of local communities in the greater Durban area. This innovation, developed and implemented by the Software Applications Section of the Libraries, is based on a bottom-up model through which online indigenous knowledge resources are […]
database • Durban | South Africa • education • eThekwini • identity • indigenous / traditional knowledge • knowledge systems • libraries • Ulwazi ProgrammeOrganization Highlight: The Ulwazi Programme
The Ulwazi Programme is several things: a collection of technologies, social initiatives and research endeavors. On one hand, it is an online community-sourced website database and informative blog. On the other hand, Ulwazi involves programmatic aspects such as the School’s Project, a certificate project for secondary school students. A wonderful […]
database • Durban | South Africa • education • eThekwini • indigenous / traditional knowledge • Ulwazi ProgrammeSome challenges for Information and Communication Technologies in Indigenous Knowledge preservation
Abstract Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are the basis for social appropriation in local communities. ICTs hold significant potential for positive benefits for local communities to deal with ‘digital’ connectivity and global knowledge contexts. With the digitalisation of knowledge, including indigenous knowledge (IK), ICTs are offering alternative perspectives of knowledge […]
2010 • challenges • community informatics • culture | preservation • Durban | South Africa • eThekwini • ICTs • indigenous / traditional knowledge • Ulwazi ProgrammeThe Power of Mobile Technology for the Exchange of Indigenous Knowledge
The Number in My Pocket: The Power of Mobile Technology for the Exchange of Indigenous Knowledge Betsie Greyling (with Ulwazi) and Niall McNulty presented a poster by this name at the The Third International m-libraries Conference (11-13 May 2011) in Brisbane, Australia. The poster outlines the Ulwazi Programme’s plans for […]
2011 • Durban | South Africa • eThekwini • indigenous / traditional knowledge • mobile • Ulwazi ProgrammeA model for community participation in African libraries to preserve Indigenous Knowledge
Before you begin reading the essay, you may wish to listen to Betsie Greyling talk about the Ulwazi Programme in this video: Abstract Africa and African libraries and information centres are poorly equipped to make a meaningful contribution to the current global digital knowledge economy. The lack of management systems […]
Africa • database management • Durban | South Africa • eThekwini • ICTs • indigenous / traditional knowledge • knowledge sharing / exchange • library database • participatory • Ulwazi Programme • virtual library