See below for bios about nominated candidates: Ellen Strickland, Emani Fakaotimanava-Lui, Etuate Cocker, Louise Nasak, Sean Linton, Timoci (Jim) Tora
ELLEN STRICKLAND
(nominated by Maureen Hilyard)
I believe PICISOC and its members bring together a wide range of expertise and experience vital to building a sustainable Internet for the Pacific Island region, and I would be honoured to continue to support PICISOC as a Board member, if reelected. My background has included being a government advisor, part of a university web development team, and a consultant and academic with a special interest in the Internet and ICTs. I am currently a researcher and consultant with the Centre for Communication and Social Change at the University of Queensland, finalising a doctoral research project on ICT policy formation in the Pacific Island region. As of October 1, I will be Collaboration and Community Lead with InternetNZ, helping support an open and uncapturable Internet for the NZ internet community. I have been involved in Pacific Island internet research, training and community projects since 2003, when working for the NZ UNESCO National Commission and completing a Masters in Communications at Victoria University on Pacific Island Telecentres. I have been serving on the PICISOC Board since 2010, as Secretary for the Board, and if reelected to the Board, I would like to continue to support engagement with members and support members in progressing their initiatives and voices in shaping the future of the Internet.
EMANI FAKAOTIMANAVA-LUI
(nominated by Ellen Strickland)
Emani has been involved with ICT since the late 90’s. His company RockET Systems (www.rocketsystems.nu) was formed in June 1999 to support Internet Niue (www.internetniue.nu) but in 2007, it took full control of the local ISP management. He presented an overview of Internet Niue’s Free Wifi in 2005 at the Kiribati PacINET. In 2011 he attended the IGF in Nairobi to receive the ISIF Award for Internet Niue’s work on the island in Localisation & Capacity Building. This year in April 2012 he represented PICISOC at ISOC’s INET. In June 2012 he attended the NZ NetHui to explore the Internet Governance Forum concept of NetHui and how Rural & Remote areas within NZ can compare with Rural & Remote areas in the Pacific. His work in Utilising the Internet and ICT as a Catalyst for the Preservation of Vagahau Niue (Niuean Language) was enhanced with the successful Grant from ISOC’s Community Grant 2012. Being located on one of the Pacific’s isolated islands has helped pave the way for innovation in using Wifi to distribute Internet to remote villages. With his recent attendance at various Internet related conferences, he has been spreading the good news about PICISOC’s work and main event of PacINET. People have come to appreciate the work that we are involved with and we need to to collaborate and work together as a Pacific Region to affect others at the international level to hopefully assist our local developments. This level of committment from all of us will ensure that our struggles and success stories will always be at the forefront of international discussion rooms.
ETUATE COCKER
(nominated by Will Tibben)
Etuate Cocker is originally from Tonga and a current PhD student at the University of Auckland. He has dedicated his study at the University of Auckland to improving connectivity in remote island nations of the Pacific. His PhD project includes a longitudinal study of the underlying causes of slow connectivity and aims to provide a solution to the issue. He holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of the South Pacific and a Master of Science in internetworking from the University of Technology, Sydney. He is also a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA and CCAI) and an EC-Council CEH. His professional experience includes a position as Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Officer at the South Pacific Geoscience Commission in Fiji and various positions as application developer and network administrator in the Pacific and New Zealand. He was also awarded the Prime Minister’s Pacific Australia and the Australian Computer Society Award while studying in Australia and a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship.
LOUISE NASAK
(nominated by Maureen Hilyard)
I am currently Internet Market & Governance Manager at the office of the Telecommunications & Radiocommunications Regulator of Vanuatu. My work includes Internet market research, awareness, education, Internet regulation development and implementing government Internet/ICT policies. I am working on an Internet Industry Code of Practice which is part of the work towards Online Child Protection. Other small scale projects I am assisting with are researching and assessing the possibility of Interactive/Smartboard in schools (to link up schools to improve lesson delivery and sharing, promoting Khan Academy videos etc.) and upgrading the computer network system of the Vanuatu Society of People with Disabilities centre. My past job was IT Manager for the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu from 1998 to February of 2012. I am a current member of the Vanuatu Cybersecurity Working Group whose task at present is developing a cybercrime legislation that stems from a cybersecurity policy the government is currently looking into. I am a member of VITUS (Vanuatu IT Users Society) and PICISOC, serve on IT Advisory Board of Vanuatu National Training Council (responsible for course accreditation etc.) and was Treasurer for the Vanuatu 2010 PacINET conference. While I may not have served on any regional organisations before, I see PICISOC as an opportunity to promote Internet and ICT developments both in Vanuatu and the Pacific region. I understand PICISOC’s work to be one that ensures ‘Internet for all’ by providing much needed advice to governments and the public on Internet-related matters. I will be happy to serve on the board to help with sustainable Internet developments in Vanuatu and the Pacific Island Countries as a whole.
SEAN LINTON
(nominated by David Leeming)
In 2010 I presented a paper at PacINET. I prepared this paper while I was in the Solomon Islands conducting my doctoral research. During this study I looked at music from the Solomon Islands, and issues relevant for people living in PICs. I worked closely with a number of people including David Leeming. Recently at the NetHui conference in my home country New Zealand I attended a session run by Ellen Strickland about the Internet and Pacific Island Communities. One thing I learnt at Ellen’s session was how important issues like online safety, security, and accessibility are to many people from diverse backgrounds, and how being involved with PICISOC’s community discussion groups is a good way to acknowledge these issues and make progress with them. I am currently involved with an organising group for NetHui, a conference run in partnership with InternetNZ. I am interested in being involved with PICISOC at any level, however I think that being elected to the PICISOC board would be an excellent opportunity to learn about, and contribute to, the Internet Society of the Pacific. The most effective Internet Society in PICs is one that enables peoples’ voices to be heard. I believe that means being sympathetic to attitudes, behaviours and characteristics of the Pacific region, balancing the cultural and currently existing channels for development and communication, with, for example, new community radio models and community motivated web deployment to grant greater access and empower more people with the advantages of being connected to the Internet
Timoci (Jim) Tora
(nominated by Anju Mangal)
Timoci Tora has been in the Information, Communications and Technology Sector for over 14 years within Asia Pacific. Since graduating from the former Fiji Institute of Technology with a Diploma in Computer Engineering in 1994, he has been at the forefront of the everchanging ICT industry. Jim as he is commonly known, started his career as an engineer with Datec (Fiji) Ltd as a computer technician and worked his way up in both the private and non-governmental sector in Fiji. His specialty is in the areas of telecommunications from project management, implementation, technical training and service desk management. His extensive experience also in the call centre environment has allowed him to manage technical service desks, quality assurance and project management of offshore transitions. Jim is a goal oriented individual with immense interpersonal and problem resolution skills. From his work experience he has been able to demonstrate his ability to lead and manage the implementation of a technical infrastructure from the ground up as well as train and manage human resources.