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Ecuador Wikimedians/OfflinePedia

Internet access is impossible for almost 4 billion people in the world, and even having a standard computer is very complicated for many of them.

OfflinePedia device with wooden box to make it more user-friendly

OfflinePedia is a volunteering and social action project aiming to redesign access to encyclopedic and academic content. Tons of freely available content are made available from the different branches of the Wikimedia project for vulnerable rural communities. In order to bring this content to remote areas, where there is no internet connection nor the possibility of using traditional computers an open hardware solution is proposed. A computer, based on Raspberry Pi and Kiwix, has been developed at low cost and with recycled components, such as CRT televisions, containing fully downloaded Wikipedia versions, hundreds books from Project Gutenberg, didactic simulations from PheT and varied academic content accessible without the internet.

Watch this video that summarizes our first experience in the territory.

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You can view ALL our content and members here.

Logs of our activities since the beginning of time here.

You can also suggest new ideas here.

Check out our teaching materials by clicking here.

OfflinePedia in Education access the information here.

Communities currently benefiting from

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Among the various rural communities in Ecuador that already have an OfflinePedia device operating in their public access places (communal houses, schools, colleges), the following can be mentioned

We are looking to install OfflinePedia in more communities, you can see the list of communities or institutions proposed here.

Main activities

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Group of volunteers participating in the installation of OfflinePedia v2, El Progreso, Pacto, Pichincha, Ecuador.

The main objective is to share the free knowledge available on Wikimedia (Wikipedia, mainly), through the call for student volunteers, and by sharing university experiences, by carrying out technology demonstrations in rural areas where people do not have access to the Internet. It also seeks to share and encourage the search for knowledge by disseminating concepts of science and technology without technical terminology.

Once the community is motivated, the OfflinePedia device is installed. This device is designed to function as the core of a rural library, which allows access to Wikipedia content in those contexts where there is little or no connectivity to the Internet. Thus, the rematerialization of Wikipedia online content into a physical device accessible without an Internet connection, bridging the significant digital divide in rural Ecuador.

Currently, the project is in the secondary phase of ethnographic analysis of the communities involved, in order to learn from the specific needs that arise during the implementation of OfflinePedia in their common areas.

Consult our work plan in progress, for future long-term beneficiaries, here.

Technical details

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The OfflinePedia device consists of a low-cost computer with open-source hardware and software, which uses a Raspberry Pi as its main component. The Raspberry Pi is connected to an analog TV via an RCA connection, and started with a version of Debian Raspbian with Kiwix installed to compress Wikipedia images offline. This configuration makes OfflinePedia cheap (about 100 USD) and easy to share and reproduce. In addition, a local Wi-Fi access point is set up so that people, in addition to being able to sit behind the TV to read, can connect via their mobile phone to the local server installed to read while they are near the OfflinePedia box.

UNESCO | recommends Open Educational Resources (OER)

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Niño conectándose a OfflinePedia, leyendo sobre Kiwix usando su teléfono celular

UNESCO considers that universal access to quality education contributes to peace, sustainable social and economic development and intercultural dialogue. Open educational resources (such as Wikipedia) offer a strategic opportunity to improve the quality of education and policy dialogue, knowledge sharing and capacity building. In its letter to the United Nations (link here), UNSECO recommends their use on a global scale to provide the world with free access to quality knowledge.

Local press coverage

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International press coverage

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Published scientific articles

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Impact on the environment

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Recycling is one of the factors to be mentioned. Because prototyping is more economical with the reuse and adaptation of analogue televisions that become obsolete by changing the signal from analogue to digital. Thanks to this, the project manages to extend the life cycle of these obsolete technologies and reduce the impact and amount of technological waste in Ecuador.

Tutorials

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Voulez-vous créer votre propre OfflinePedia? Consultez nos tutoriels.

If you have an old CRT TV or a computer that you want to revive to become an OfflinePedia, you can access our WikiLibros portal to get all the tools you need.

Contact *The sites above are mainly in Spanish

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E-mail: offlinepedia@gmail.com

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Other languages

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Español/Spanish : Wikimedistas de Ecuador/OfflinePedia

Français/French: Wikimedistas de Ecuador/OfflinePedia(fr)

*The content of the links is not translated

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