ICML 9

9º Congreso Mundial de Información en Salud y Bibliotecas

Salvador, Bahia - Brasil, 20 a 23 de septiembre de 2005

BVS4

4a. Reunión de Coordinación Regional de la BVS

19 y 20 de septiembre de 2005

Virtual SDE: An integrated model of knowledge sharing tools for technical cooperation

Participantes:
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
  • Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)

The Area of Sustainable Development and Environmental Health (SDE) of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) represents a multidisciplinary team that, together with other technical areas and collaborating centers, leads innovative, intersectoral and strategic efforts to reduce health risks and promote healthy environments where people live, study, work and play as a substantial and essential element of Human Security and Sustainable Development.

The universe of knowledge that encompasses the Area of SDE requires a comprehensive view of the health and disease phenomenon as well as the relationship between health, environment, and development. However, the diversity of institutions working on Sustainable Development and Environmental Health issues in Latin America and the Caribbean, including SDE involvement in PAHO country offices and collaborating centers, has resulted in the generation of multiple sources of information which are often disconnected. This real ity hinders obtaining comprehensive information on Sustainable Development and Environmental Health issues.

The purpose of this paper is to showcase SDE efforts, on behalf of PAHO/WHO, to establish a Virtual SDE: an integrated model of knowledge sharing tools which connects various sources of searchable information and includes the following components:

- The SDE Virtual Library functions as a central portal to information related to all technical areas of SDE (e.g. healthy settings, risk assessment, and basic sanitation), including country virtual libraries on health and environment.

- SDE has established a collective work space for knowledge sharing which promotes participation from all SDE professionals through Sharepoint. This collective work space generates information that feeds into the SDE Virtual Library as well as the SDE portal page on the PAHO/WHO Intranet and Internet sites.

- SDE information contained in the PAHO/WHO Intranet.

- SDE home page o n the PAHO/WHO Internet is fed with information from the three previously mentioned items.

- SDE information is fed to portals exterior to PAHO with information from all SDE knowledge sharing tools.

The integration of these informational tools facilitates the fulfillment of PAHO/WHO’s primary mission, offering technical cooperation to the countries of the Region of the Americas.