OLPC is restructuring. This time quietly, which at least doesn't start up the storm we had in January, but even slow news are important news, as they add up.
It was already public knowledge that the Learning Team is gone to Rwanda, for good. Nicholas Negroponte quipped to me during the IADB Seminar, saying that I "wouldn't have to see [David] Cavallo any more". (I actually liked David the time we met personally, but that's off the point).
President, One Laptop Per Child Assoc
We also had announced already that Sales went to Miami, no longer connected with Brightstar. While I personally hate to lose the connection with Marcelo Claure, someone also born in Bolivia, I'm sure there were reasons for that change.
Now, Rodrigo Arboleda, until recently OLPC President and CEO, Ibero-America & The Caribbean, dunks the geography verbiage and now is President, One Laptop Per Child ("OLPC"), taking over not just sales but operations responsibility for the whole OLPC Association, from Miami.
Dr. Negroponte will be focusing more specifically on future development (a.k.a. XO #?).
Chuck Kane stays as President of the OLPC Foundation, operating from the 1CC Boston headquarters.
More minor changes that do make a big difference: Adam Holt has a more definite and stable role to keep the community alive, SJ Klein is still sort of with us or maybe not quite while being one of the topmost to-go guys at Wikimedia.
I wish he had been able to do what he proposes for Wikimedia while he was with us, like open meetings and soliciting public input. Sean Daly is not quite a hire apparently, but he seems to be turning into a sort of a credible public spokesman for the project within the community, something we sorely needed.
We've seen some people go, in a less stressful way than what happened in January. We will miss dogi and isforinsects. They did a good job, and I for one learned a lot from them.
Will a new Global Advocacy Group for OLPC be based in Washington DC? While it is possible there will be some commuting, as Matt Keller is located in Cambridge, there might be interesting action to follow up in DC besides the McCain endorsement. Who knows, maybe even money will flow!
Alas, the message OLPC proposes doesn't seem to be yet aligned with the one that comes from major funding sources, mostly because it still falls short of a specific and definite focus for curricular content and support of classroom work.
An interesting page to keep an eye on is Jobs at laptop.org. The only change in a few months has been the interest in Middle East education. Anyway, some of those job offers never got anyone hired, so take the page as an indicator of trends rather than an up to date or otherwise accurate source. Notice the several offers for the soon to be finished XO-1.5. A cached version.
(full disclosure: the above is a compilation of an observation of trends and likely events, but may not be fully accurate, since it is so hard to get actual information on the goings-on at 1CC - I again requested to talk with them to check on facts, so far no answer)
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Recent Comments
Problem with OLPC is that directors dont get their hands dirty and they are completely disconnected with the real needs of the project.
Not sure this new move is actually any benefitial to the XO, but time will tell.
I agree with every aspect of the OLPC team and their big contribution towards small childrens and laptop organization.I agree with the stand that Problem with OLPC is that directors dont get their hands dirty and they are completely disconnected with the real needs of the project.The proper need and requirements can be calculated and governed properly.I want to ask one question that Will a new Global Advocacy Group for OLPC be based in Washington DC? I am waiting for the proper reply.
At the request of a great friend, a couple precisions: Spelling for the head of the Kigali-based team is "Cavallo", http://laptop.org/en/utility/people/david-cavallo.html
Mr. Sean Daly is a spokesperson for Sugar rather than for the OLPC institution itself. My mistake. However, I do stand by my opinion that I find him credible and enthusiastic, and as most XOs do run Sugar, his positive opinions on it tend to run over and improve on the looks of both projects.
"Us" is an additive set of the Community and the Institution, with some lurkers thrown in for good measure.
I would say that Sean Daly is the closest we have to an OLPC spokesperson. At least he speaks to the press with consistency, which in this program pretty much makes him official, even if he's just with Sugar Labs.