Marcolin, Cristina | Italy
1997: Degree in Political and International Sciences at the University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy.
1998: collaboration with co-operatives belonging to the CTM "Cooperazione Terzo Mondo", the Italian organisation working on a "Non Profit Basis" that imports and distributes into the country foodstuffs and handicraft products from the South. My duties concentrated on didactic activities at high schools, on staging exhibitions, and on internal promotion and development of external contacts.
1999: "Leonardo da Vinci" EU vocational training at Joanneum Research - Institute of Technology and Regional Policy, Graz, Austria. Major personal areas of activities: international and European projects, cross-border co-operation projects, project management, methodology and project development.
April - September 2000: Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Science, Technology and Society, Graz
Main field of interests: cooperation and development, international policy, sustainable technological development.
Project at IAS-STS: Technology policy in the Austrian development aid system
My research focuses on the Austrian programmes and policies for the developing countries, with special regard to technology policy.
The primary objective of this study is to survey and analyse best practice Austrian development programmes and projects for the developing countries in the field of technology policy. The study will therefore address project achievements, the appropriateness of project objectives to the given circumstances, and the factors that contributed to their success or failure.
The method will include an analysis of existing literature and an empirical research based on interviews with the actors involved in the design and the delivery of such programmes.
The second parallel objective of this research is to study theoretically the concept of technology policy in developing studies, giving an overview of the technology debate of the past decade and on the role played by sustainability within the Appropriate Technology (AT) movement.
In view of the promotion of sustainable technology and with regard of the "priority countries" of the Austrian development aid system I will assess the "interactive" approach of their policy strategies with the projects and programmes transferring technology. Attention will be delivered firstly to the acquisition of technological capabilities, that are the skills (technical, managerial, and organisational) necessary for enterprises to set up a plant, utilise it efficiently, improve and expand it over time, and develop new products and processes. Secondly it will be surveyed how can those projects improve the general standard life level and provide poverty alleviation remarking the AT concept that technological development is ultimately a social process.