[Sigiii-l] Plaza

[Nadia Caidi]

(student essay)
Personally, I do not feel any particular “radical change” is imminent 
due to the “globalization of the information society”, assuming that 
that is a valid framework to begin with. The reason I say this is that, 
living as I do and where I do in North America, I am at the pinnacle of 
privilege when it comes to information access, provision, and 
participation in said information society. It seems to me that on a 
personal level, changes might be more evident in those societies which 
are on the less-developed side of the “digital divide”. One change I see 
occurring is the addition to the already great glut of information that 
requires wading through to get that which you seek, as more information 
becomes available globally.

A second result of the globalization of the information society is an 
awareness of the process itself. That is to say that the continuous 
progress of information technology has served to reveal gaps and 
inequities in the information society, such as the concept of the 
“digital divide”. It is an awareness of the issues and 
conceptualizations that come out of this process that allows me to 
articulate the context of my perceived (personal) position in the 
information society to begin with.

Professionally, I think information institutions need to become more 
aware and more involved in the process of globalization; they need to 
realize their position and importance in the “bigger picture”. 
Initiatives to narrow the “digital divide” cannot come exclusively from 
the perspective of developed countries; they must be looked at from 
other positions in the dynamic of globalization. As a professional I 
feel like, as in my personal opinion, there should be an awareness of 
where we fit into the global information society, which (ideally) will 
encourage meaningful participation in its continued and effective 
development.