Minke Valk , Henk van Dam and Sarah Cummings Women ’ s Information Centres and Networks

An enormous increase has been observed in the number andtypes of women’s groups and organizations around theworld. A complex of international, regional, national andlocal networks of individuals and organizations has emerged.At the same time, the recognition of women’s issues hasgrown, both nationally and worldwide, and so has the needfor comprehensive and reliable data on women and theirconcerns. Although information centres and networks su-perficially appear to be very different, the theory of network-ing indeed identifies them as being part of the same generaltrend. Networks are seen as an important tool for develop-ment. Networking is an avenue open to women who seekinformation about various problems, needs, capabilities andpossible solutions, as it is an accessible strategy which re-quires few resources. However, if networks from the Southand East are to operate outside their local and nationalboundaries, lack of resources become more of a constraint.Case studies are presented of national, regional and interna-tional networks. Finally, the role of ICTs in this process areconsidered. Minke Valk and Henk van Dam are Information Managers atthe Gender Resource Unit, Information, Library & Documen-tation, Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), PO Box 95001, 1090 HAAmsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: +31-20-5688344. Fax: +31-20-6654 423. E-mail: [email protected]. URL: http://www.kit.nl Sarah Cummings is currently on secondment from KIT tothe International Federation for Information and Documenta-tion (FID), PO Box 90402, 2509 LK The Hague, The Nether-lands. Tel: +31-70-3140671. Fax: +31-70-3140667. E-mail:[email protected]. URL: http://fid.conicyt.cl:8000. MORE ON WOMEN AND THE WEB After the walls: breaking NEWW ground in electronic communication. N. B. Huntemann. Feminist Collections, 17 (2) Winter 96, p.18–20. refs. Contribution to a special issue partially devoted to an examination of the use of information technology in women’s studies.Highlights the efforts of an international women’s organization, The Network of East-West Women, to broaden their influ-ence and facilitate feminist awareness through computer communications technology. This included electronic mail trainingand setting up an east-west women’s online discussion group. Creating a virtual sisterhood online. B. A. O’Leary. Feminist Collections, 17 (2) Winter 96, p.20–1. Contribution to a special issue partially devoted to an examination of the use of information technology in women’s studies.Virtual Sisterhood online strategies (Vs-online-strat) is a WorldWide Web network committed to getting women’s information,ideas, and perspectives online. It aims to identify the barriers to engaging women and their organizations in electronic communi-cation and shares solutions. It balances discussion with activist projects. Describes the network and how to participate. © 1999 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution.at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on April 14, 2008http://idv.sagepub.comDownloaded from