MEDIA | PRESS RELEASES
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02 April 2004
SARS, environmental sustainability, equal opportunities
& disability – young Internet developers tackle
real issues in 2004 web academy
Academy hails best young web developers as twelve share
£30,000 prize.
London, 12 April, 2004: This week sees
the launch of the Cable & Wireless Childnet Academy
– a new venture that recognises the best young web
developers in the UK and abroad. The twelve winning entrants,
who have been accepted into the Academy, were recognised
after submitting websites, designed and built exclusively
by children and young people.
The judging panel selected entries that deal with a surprising
breadth of subject matter. SARS, environmental sustainability,
disability and equal opportunities were just a few of the
evocative topics explored on the winning websites created
by web developers as young as ten. The judging panel, consisting
of a team of international judges and a special young people's
panel (known as ‘The Networkers’) viewed 250
entries from over forty countries worldwide.
“We aim to elevate the Cable &
Wireless Childnet Academy to being the global prize for
young web developers around the world,” says Stephen
Carrick-Davies, Chief Executive of Childnet International.
“We were amazed by the breadth of topics tackled
by some of the entrants on their websites. It’s
exciting to see how young people are wanting to use the
Internet to produce their own content and inspire their
peers into making a difference to their environment and
society.”
These twelve winning projects will each receive a grant
from the £30,000 Academy Web Development Fund, as
well as ongoing training and mentoring from Childnet.
The UK is well represented, with winning projects in the
Schools, Individual and Not-For-Profit categories:
- Ten-year old Jake Lee has worked with his fellow pupils
at the Hagbourne primary school in Oxford to produce an
outstanding website encouraging environmental sustainability
(www.hagbourne.oxon.sch.uk/ecotastic)
- Joanne Evans and Zara Todd, both wheelchair users,
used a Whizz-Kidz No Limits Millennium Award to create
a website that acts as an information bureau for young
disabled people (www.wheelg2life.info)
Non UK winners include websites created by young people
in Jamaica, Australia and USA:
During the week-long Academy, Childnet and Cable &
Wireless will provide specialist web support, leadership
training and technical advice to the winning group with
participants given exclusive access to a team of internet
experts and mentors drawn from the world of education, business
and the public & voluntary sectors.
Gareth James, Managing Director of UK Corporate Markets
at Cable & Wireless says:
“Cable & Wireless is delighted
to continue its long-standing relationship with Childnet
International and support the inaugural Childnet Academy.
This year's winners offer superb examples of how the web
can be used to communicate ideas, inspire others and express
personal creativity - as well as being a powerful tool
for education and learning.”
The Academy is run on an annual basis by not-for-profit
child internet charity, Childnet International, with support
from Cable & Wireless. It is open to young people aged
18 or under, and the projects must have been developed by
the entrants. The programme has grown out of the highly
successful Cable & Wireless Childnet Awards, which over
the last six years has rewarded seventy innovative web projects
from around the world.
Members of the public can vote for their favourite project
at www.childnetacademy.org/winners.
The winner will be announced on 15 April.
www.childnetacademy.org
Notes to Editors
About Childnet
Childnet International’s mission is to work in partnership
with others around the world to help make the Internet a
great and safe place for children. In all its work Childnet
seeks to take a balanced approach. Since 1995 the organisation
has been developing award-winning education and awareness
resources for schools and parents as well as responding
strategically to the policy and protection issues. Childnet
is a member of the UK Government’s Home Office Task
Force on Child Protection on the Internet.
About Cable & Wireless
Cable & Wireless is one of the world’s leading
international communications companies. It provides voice,
data and IP (Internet Protocol) services to business and
residential customers, as well as services to other telecoms
carriers, mobile operators and providers of content, applications
and internet services.
Cable & Wireless’ principal operations are in
the United Kingdom, continental Europe, Japan, the Caribbean,
Panama, the Middle East and Macau. For more information
about Cable & Wireless, go to www.cw.com.
For further information, to speak to an Academy spokesperson
or 2004 winner, or to attend the inaugural academy ceremony
on 15th April 2004, please contact:
Nick Dudley-Williams or Ali Grad
Tel: +44 (0) 207 471 6834 / 6831
Email: nick.dudley-williams@maclaurin.com
/ alexandra.grad@maclauruin.com
1999
| 2000 | 2001
| 2002 | 2003
| 2004 | 2005 |