Jonathan B. Postel Technical Academy Created to Extend Internet Technical Skills in Kenya

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Jonathan B. Postel Technical Academy Created to Extend Internet Technical Skills in Kenya

Award winnersʼ donation funds equipment, personnel, and connectivity for new ICT center in Kendu Bay

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., USA and GENEVA, SWITZERLAND—9 February 2010—Winners of the most recent Jonathan B. Postel Award 
have donated their award to help establish a technical academy with computer equipment, staff, and Internet connections 
in Kendu Bay, Kenya. The new Jonathan B. Postel Technical Academy will provide individuals in Kendu Bay the opportunity 
to gain technical skills and experience, increasing their capacity to communicate, collaborate, and interact with 
people throughout the world.

The Internet Society presented the 2009 Jonathan B. Postel Service Award to CSNET (the Computer Science Network), 
recognizing the pioneering work of the four principal investigators that conceived and later led the building of 
CSNET—Peter J. Denning, David Farber, Anthony C. Hearn and Lawrence Landweber—and the U.S. National Science Foundation 
program officer and visionary responsible for encouraging and funding CSNET— Kent Curtis. CSNET was the research 
networking effort that during the early 1980s provided the critical bridge from the original research undertaken 
through the ARPANET to the modern Internet. The awardees have donated the US$20,000 presented as part of the Postel 
Award to help create the new technical center.

“We are honored to help create the Postel Technical Academy in Kendu Bay. We believe it extends Jon Postelʼs vision of 
a broadly accessible Internet that brings people together,” said Lawrence Landweber, one of the CSNET principal 
investigators recognized by the 2009 Jonathan B. Postel award. “The Postel academy also continues the CSNET legacy of 
empowering people around the world to communicate and collaborate through the use and understanding of networking 
technology.”

Establishment of the Jonathan B. Postel Technical Academy will be coordinated by Inveneo, a nonprofit social enterprise 
that gets the tools of information communications technology (ICT), such as computers, telephony, and Internet access, 
to those who need it most— people and organizations in rural and highly underserved communities of the developing 
world. The Postel Technical Academy will comprise part of the Kendu Bay Community Knowledge Centre, which is run by the 
local organization Rachuonyo Online Networks, and will be co-located with a Cisco Networking Academy, providing 
additional synergy and opportunity for collaboration to the Postel Academy students and instructors.

"The people of Karachuonyo are really looking forward to building ICT skills with support from the 2009 Jonthan B. 
Postel Award winners,” said Kennedy Kabasa, an ICT coordinator in Karachuonyo, Kenya, where the Postel Technical 
Academy will be located. “This initiative will enable us to help bridge the shortage of ICT skills and infrastructure 
in the region, and allow our people to participate more fully with others from all over the world in this wave of 
technology.”

About the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award
The Jonathan B. Postel Service Award was established by the Internet Society to honor individuals or organizations 
that, like Jon Postel, have made outstanding contributions in
service to the data communications community. The award is focused on sustained and substantial technical 
contributions, service to the community, and leadership. With respect to leadership, the nominating committee places 
particular emphasis on candidates who have supported and enabled others in addition to their own specific actions. 
Previous recipients of the Postel Award include Jon himself (posthumously and accepted by his mother), Scott Bradner, 
Daniel Karrenberg, Stephen Wolff, Peter Kirstein, Phill Gross, Jun Murai, Bob Braden and Joyce K. Reynolds (jointly), 
Nii Quaynor, La Fundación Escuela Latinoamericana de Redes (EsLaRed), and CSNET. The award consists of an engraved 
crystal globe and a US$20,000 honorarium. For more information, see: http://InternetSociety.org/postel
About Internet Society

The Internet Society (ISOC) is a non-profit organization founded in 1992 to provide leadership in Internet related 
standards, education, and policy. ISOC is the organizational home of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), the 
Internet's premier technical standards body. With offices in Washington, D.C., and Geneva, Switzerland, it is dedicated 
to ensuring the open development, evolution, and use of the Internet for the benefit of people throughout the world. 
For more information see http://InternetSociety.org
About Inveneo

San Francisco-based Inveneo is a non-profit social enterprise whose mission is to get the tools of information and 
communications technology (ICT) to people and organizations that need them most, in rural and highly underserved 
communities in developing countries. To accomplish this, Inveneo identifies and certifies affordable and highly 
sustainable ICT hardware, software and power solutions for organizations that provide vital services— healthcare, 
education, economic development, and relief—to some of the poorest communities in the world. Inveneo delivers these 
solutions by partnering with in-country ICT entrepreneurs who are trained and certified by Inveneo to design and deploy 
ICT technologies for challenging environments.

Media Contacts
Greg Wood Internet Society wood () isoc org +1-703-439-2145
Peter Brooks Inveneo peter () inveneo org +1-415-255-1554

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