Vision, Programs, and ProjectsWorld Wide Web FoundationWWWF_4c19df8a-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2aWe envision a world where all people are empowered by the Web. Everyone — regardless of language, ability, location, gender, age or income — will be able to communicate and collaborate, create valued content, and access the information that they need to improve their lives and communities. The creativity of the billions of new Web users will be unleashed. The Web’s capabilities will multiply, and play an increasingly vital role in reducing poverty and conflict, improving healthcare and education, reversing global warming, spreading good governance and addressing all challenges, local and global._4c19e3f4-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2aThe unique mission of the World Wide Web Foundation is to realize this vision through transformative programs which advance the Web technically by breaking down barriers and building capabilities, and which advance the Web socially, as a medium that empowers people to bring about positive change._4c19e584-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2aPrograms[Conduct] three integrated programs._4c19e660-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a1The Web Foundation’s three integrated programs – Web in Society, Web Standards and Web Science — are motivated by three challenges for the Web: the Content Gap, Technology Gap and Research Gap. These challenges inhibit billions of people from using the Web, and impede this technology from reaching its full potential as a medium of empowerment for all people.Web in Society ProgramLeverage the Web for Social and Economic Change._4c19e71e-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a1.1Challenge: The Content Gap. Creation of locally-relevant content on the Web is impeded in many places by the lack of knowledge and technology. Life-critical information and services are in limited supply, especially for those who need help the most. The Web in Society Program is the Web Foundation’s first step toward filling the “content gap”, the Web Foundation works directly in the field to provide grass roots organizations, governments, NGOs and entrepreneurs with the knowledge, training and tools to share locally-relevant information more effectively. Our initial focus is to support projects that foster social and economic progress in developing countries, and within sectors such as agriculture, health care, education, institutional transparency, women’s challenges and other topics of local and global relevance. Enabling content that is accessible on mobile phones will be key, especially in developing countries where mobiles are the dominant communication device. Exploring the use of voice as a first-class interface to the real Web is another goal. Anticipated outcomes: Projects directly supported by the Foundation will be more effective, thanks to the improved communication, collaboration and creativity. New challenges encountered will motivate new work in the Web Science and Standards programs, leading to future Web technologies that better serve people. Growth of the Web will be accelerated globally: * Web Foundation projects will become shining examples that many others emulate, * Tools and training materials will be available to everyone, openly and for free, * People trained by the Foundation will have the capacity to independently leverage the Web for future projects. Web StandardsAdvance one Web that works for all_4c19e7e6-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a1.2Challenge: The Technology Gap. More than one billion people who read poorly, read only languages not well-supported on the Web, or have disabilities are inhibited from creating and consuming Web content because of the current state of technology and practice. In addition, the introduction of incompatible and proprietary technologies, uninformed policies, censorship and other challenges threaten the vision of the Web as a single, universal medium for the sharing of information. The Web Standards Program is based on the knowledge that Web technology serves users as well as it does because the fundamental technologies that make it work are free to use, open for review and globally agreed. To ensure that Web technologies fill identified gaps, and that technologies work together, the Foundation works with the World Wide Web Consortium, which develops free and open technical specifications and guidelines. Standards work aimed at removing barriers to Web access because of literacy, language and ability are particularly important for the success of our Web in Society program. We must ensure that existing and new Web technologies work increasingly better across an expanding variety of devices used around the world. We also facilitate community-driven solutions to complex technology and policy issues. Web ScienceUnderstand the Web and explore new ideas._4c19e8c2-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a1.3Challenge: The Research Gap. The Web is not just technology, but “humanity connected by technology”. With over 1 trillion public pages (in 2008) and 1.7 billion people on the Web (in 2009), even experts do not fully comprehend the complexity and potential of this evolving system of people, information and links. This is a risk to the creative, yet responsible, evolution of the Web. The Web Science Program is the Web Foundation’s focused effort to address the “knowledge gap”. Web Science Trust and the Web Foundation have a common commitment to advance the new discipline of Web Science, and will work together on projects that improve our understanding of the Web and promote the Web’s positive impact on society. Web Science seeks to educate the next generation of scientists who will improve our understanding of the Web’s complex nature, and explore new technologies that could ultimately make the Web even more powerful for all people on the planet, an effort necessary to support our Web in Society program objectives. The World Wide Web Foundation is in the process of launching a new index — the World Wide Web Index. The Web Index will provide an annual measure of the shape, size, structure and use of the Web, and very importantly its social and economic impact on a per country and global basis. In addition to increasing our understanding of the Web and its evolution, the Web Index will provide a trusted tool for governments, international organizations, donors, investors and the press to identify economic sectors, geographical areas, languages, technologies, demographics, etc., where investment in the Web could boost social and economic development. More news on this will be available before the end of 2010.ProjectsAdvance the Web to Empower People through effective, high-impact projects._4c19e9a8-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2The Web Foundation will Advance the Web to Empower People through effective, high-impact projects. We provide global leadership, project coordination, training, and tools; and build communities around our projects.The World Wide Web Index[Develop a] multi-dimensional measure of the Web and its impact on people and nations._4c19eaac-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.1GoogleGoogle has given the Web Foundation a generous grant of US$1 million which is being leveraged to seed this project. The Web Index will be the world’s first multi-dimensional measure of the Web and its impact on people and nations. It will cover a large number of developed and developing countries, incorporating indicators that will assess the political, economic and social impact of the Web, as well as indicators of Web connectivity infrastructure. The Index will allow for comparisons of trends over time and benchmarking performance across countries, and should improve our understanding of the Web’s impact on humanity.mLab East AfricaFoster innovation and entrepreneurship within the Kenyan community, with a focus on Web and mobile services._4c19ebba-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.2KenyaiHubPartnereMobilisUniversity of NairobiPartnerRhe World BankFunder: the World Bank / InfodevThe Lab will provide a full range of resources and initiatives (training, business development support, community creation) to infuse innovators and researchers with the support they need to introduce innovative products and services that have an impact on the Kenyan context and abroad.Regreening in AfricaTrain and coordinate local developers to create and maintain Web-based platforms to help local farmers and others in the agricultural ecosystem in the African Sahel to share local innovations for growing vegetation in very harsh environments._4c19ecc8-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.3Web Alliance for Regreening in Africa (W4RA)Vrije Universiteit (VU) in Amsterdam VU has committed to fund 3 years of initial work in Burkina Faso to gather requirements and to develop early prototype implementation of several concepts.Economic and Social DevelopmentMaking the Web More Effective for Supporting Economic and Social Development._4c19edea-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.4Rockefeller FoundationThe Rockefeller Foundation is providing the majority of the funding for this project, with some supplementary support from the Web Foundation.The project will produce a study of the barriers to increased exploitation of the Internet and the Web for economic and social development. It will survey the existing state of affairs, assess promising avenues for ameliorating the situation, and will examine the roles and responsibiities of the various actors involved. It is expected that the study will be published in hard copy and online.Voice-Browsing Acceptance and Trust (VBAT)[Conduct a] pilot experiment on the use of Interactive Voice Response systems (IVR) as a potential alternate way to access the Web._4c19ef16-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.5Rockefeller FoundationFunderNorth West Universityled by Etienne Barnard for the automated voice components. One World South Asiafor the farmer helplines project.VOICESExplore and develop voice-based Web access through simplest phones and by rural population in West Africa._4c19f04c-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.6European UnionVOICES is an EU-funded project through the European Union’s 7th Research Framework Programme (FP7)W3C/ERCIMOrangeTNO, VUCRS4CSIRSahel EcoEcole Superieure Multinationale des TelecommunicationsFondation MerieuxPortugal Telecom InnovationNorth West UniversityVOICES: VOIce-based Community-cEntric mobile Services for social developmentMobile Entrepreneurship in GhanaTrain entrepreneurs to leverage mobile and Web technologies that are particularly relevant to the developing countries context, and that will enable them to launch new services to provide locally relevant content and applications and give them a stream of revenue._4c19f1b4-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.7Vodafone GroupGhanaMobile Entrepreneurs in GhanaDedicated public site (including the list of projects, and profiles of current entrepreneurs) Multi-Channel Data CollectionLead the design of a data collection tool which works across many modalities such as Voice, SMS and the Web._4c19f312-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.8Hewlett FoundationFunderOpen Government Data Feasibility StudiesConduct feasibility studies in Chile, Ghana and Turkey to assess their readiness for adopting an open government data program, and then develop a strategy and plan for implementing and sustaining such a program._4c19f470-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.9Fundacion CTICChileGhana TurkeyOne WebOne Web that's free and open for all._4c19f5e2-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.10With almost 75% of the world unable to contribute to or benefit from the Web, opportunities for creativity, collaboration and commerce remain unrealized. Adoption of Web standards can help increase Web adoption and drive the next leap in human potential World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is developing the standards that will make the Web accessible for people with disabilities and for people from the world’s diverse cultural and language groups. Working with the W3C, the Web Foundation is taking measures to ensure that these standards proliferate across Web browsers throughout the World, breaking down barriers and opening up the Web to a whole new community of Web contributors. Improving the WebImprove understanding of the Web’s complex nature and explore next-generation technologies_4c19f768-ec52-11e0-a0d2-cf4b7a64ea2a2.11The Web is young. We do not fully comprehend how this complex and expanding Web of “humanity connected by technology” really works. This is a risk to the creative, yet responsible, evolution of the Web. Working with the Web Science Trust (WST), the Web Foundation aims to improve understanding of the Web’s complex nature, and to explore next-generation technologies that could ultimately make the Web even more capable and valuable.2011-10-01http://www.webfoundation.org/vision/OwenAmburOwen.Ambur@verizon.net