Why are ITs important in integrated water resources management (IWRM)?
ITs allow people to share ideas, build relationships, and solve problems regardless of where they are in the world. Therefore, ITs are powerful tools that help GWP partners to achieve their IWRM goals.

When should I be using ITs?
Since information technologies help exchange information and knowledge, many are used daily without even thinking about it (e.g. telephones, basic email); however, this document discusses some of the more sophisticated uses. These advanced technologies are best used when trying to communicate with large groups of people (e.g. hosting an electronic conference), delivering a specific product or message (e.g. alerting your partners of new research findings), or keeping in touch with the needs of your associates (e.g. an interactive webpage). There are many other examples but in general, specialized information technologies should always be an option with the final decision dictated by the needs of your project or partners.

How can I use ITs to communicate my IWRM message more effectively?
As outlined in the engagement strategies document, one must carefully consider your target audience, their needs, and expectations in order to tailor your message for maximum impact. Part of this modification is the choice of information technology. For example, if you are trying to deliver a message to a group of farmers in a rural setting, developing a fancy website would be inappropriate since they may not be able to access it.

What factors should I consider when selecting an appropriate IT?
There are two primary considerations when selecting an appropriate information technology:

1. Social presence

What degree of personal communication is there? Is communication instanteous or is there a time delay? How will this impact the exchange of ideas?
2. Information richness

What type of information (video, audio, data, images) can be transmitted? Ideas can be communicated more clearly with a variety of information types.

What are some of the ITs I should consider?
Here are just a few options.

• Telephone

While many might take the telephone for granted, it is an invaluable tool for bringing together people from around the world. The primary benefit is its high social presence (i.e. ideas can flow back and forth instantly), but unfortunately only voice data can be transmitted. Advanced options include teleconferencing to bring together large groups of people into one conversation. While conference calls are a powerful tool, they need to be carefully planned to find affordably rates from services providers and to coordinate individual schedules across many time zones. Like any other meeting, an agenda should be circulated to all participants in advance and minutes should be recorded.
• E-mail

Email is a fantastic innovation as it allows quick and affordably text-based communication. Because the participants are not speaking directly, messages can be sent as is convenient and can be carefully crafted. Email attachments allow users to share documents, videos, images, and more; however, these additions will increase the size of the message, often a difficulty for those with slow internet connections. E-mail discussion groups allow communities to send messages to multiple recipients within a community of practice. Yahoo and Topica, are just two examples of free web-based e-mail list services ("listservs"). It can also be convenient to have a web-based email account (such as Yahoo or Hotmail) so that you can stay in touch when travelling. When using email, be sure to observe standard internet etiquette ("netiquette") and avoid sending inappropriate or junk mail.
• Online chat

Online chat combines the best aspects of telephone and e-mail technologies. It allows instanteous communication between multiple people and a variety of media can be included, such as video and images. However, as with conference calls, coordinating individual schedules across time zones can be difficult. IISD has found that agendas for online chat meetings should be shorter than their telephone equivalents, as people type more slowly than they speak. One technical problem is that slow connections can often result in confusing staggered postings to the chat; this can be avoided by using a moderator to control the flow of speech.
• Webpages

Webpages are one of the most common ITs used today. These sites allow users from all over the world to view pictures, download documents, and find basic information. Websites can range from a basic "This is who we are" site, such as GWP South Africa, to more complex community websites, like the GWP and GWP ToolBox. If your organization has strong IT skills, developing partner-only areas might be a useful tool to build contact databases, host discussion forums, and other interactive services. However the most important thing is to meet the needs of your target audience; this might be best achieved with a simple no-frills website. Some useful references to get started are listed below.

Further Reading

Creating a simple webpage using HTML - a very simple outline of how to write a webpage.

WebReference.com - a complete series of tutorials, from basic webpages to more complex designs.

Anderson, S., Bakker, D., Creech, H., Willard, T. 2001. Tools for Assessing Web Site Usage. International Institute for Sustainable Development: Winnipeg, Canada.

Duarte, D.L., Snyder, N.T. 1999. Mastering virtual teams: strategies, tools, and techniques that succeed. Jossey-Bass Publishers: San Francisco, USA.

Rykert, L., James, M. 1997. Working Together Online. Web Networks: Toronto, Canada.

Willard, T. 2001. Helping Knowledge Networks Work. International Institute for Sustainable Development: Winnipeg, Canada.