The Digital Review of Asia-Pacific 2003-2006

This is a subjective view of the experience of contributing to the Digital Review of Asia-Pacific. Participation in this process, from 2003-6, permitted a unique opportunity to share perspectives across a wide range of cultural, technological and economic settings. As the Australian author I found myself responding in unexpected ways to the information being offered by other national representatives. For example, the human rights implications of some restrictions by nation-states in the Asia-Pacific were keenly felt by all group members, but could not be mentioned in ways that explicitly criticised the authorities concerned. In many nations of the Asia-Pacific the issue is not only one of content-produced in local languages, but also one of having the appropriate fonts in which to produce local content. Finally, the same technology, such as wireless broadband, is being used for very different purposes in different countries. This article reflects critically upon the value of an intensive and personal exposure to a range of different countries and cultures united in a geo-political global region but with such a wide divergence of political, social, economic, technological and religious identities.