DotAsia Steps-up Commitment to Relief.Asia with Charity Auctions
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For Immediate Release:
Guangzhou, 17 June 2008 – Relief.Asia today delivered a second batch of GPS personal tracking and SOS devices to the Guangzhou Civil Affairs Bureau to be used in relief and rebuild efforts in the Sichuan earthquake and the recent Guangdong floods. The GPS personal tracking and SOS devices – Peace On HandTM — developed by Navia Corporation, allow relief workers to stay in communication and provide a safety beacon in case relief teams are trapped in aftershocks and landslides.
Charles Mok, Chairman of ISOC HK (Internet Society Hong Kong) and Yunchang Chen, Minister of the Guangzhou Civil Affairs Social Welfare Bureau, along with Catherine Chung, CEO of Navia Corporation Ltd. was present at the commemorative occasion for the donation, which were facilitated through York Mok, Chairman of HKISPA (Hong Kong Internet Service Providers Association). “Relief.Asia made possible this meaningful donation that would make a difference for the safety of our fellow relief teams,” said Catherine Chung. “Peace On HandTM is more than a GPS device. The connectivity with GPS and mobile technologies allow the units to function as a critical SOS and communication device under high stress environments.”
“It is heart warming to know that the IT industry in Hong Kong had been able to deliver not only monetary donations to China, but also technologies that help save lives. The partnership between ISOC HK and Relief.Asia had made it possible for the IT industry to make a difference with its professional expertise,” says Charles Mok.
Relief.Asia is a platform bringing together people and technology around Asia for relief and rebuild efforts. Conceptualized after the 2004 Asia Tsunami, Relief.Asia took shape in the wake of the Myanmar cyclone and Sichuan earthquake. Immediately after the cyclone hit, Relief.Asia, through its partnership with the Museum of World Religions was one of the very few international efforts to gain access for relief materials to be delivered into the hardest hit areas in Myanmar. Bringing together open source and open knowledge technologies, Relief.Asia contributed to the coordination and deployment of DUMBO and SAHANA for the relief teams in the field on top of the delivery of humanitarian relief materials. DUMBO is an emergency mobile and wireless network infrastructure that utilizes mesh technologies to establish a wide network with constrained resources. SAHANA is an open source disaster management system with pluggable modules including victims and missing person registries, aid request / procurement system, inventory management, volunteer management, etc.
Relief.Asia is also a social media website and an online donation platform. Photos and works from relief teams in the field are updated to the blog at www.relief.asia. Relief.Asia also plays home to a meaningful initiative from the bloggers in Hong Kong: the 512 Letter (http://512letter.relief.asia) project which calls upon the community to send letters of comfort and encouragement to children and victims of the Sichuan earthquake.
DotAsia Recognized for its Contribution for World Peace
Staying true to the DotAsia mandate to contribute and give back to the .Asia community, the organisation stepped up its commitments toward sustained relief and rebuild efforts for Myanmar and Sichuan. DotAsia announced that from June till the end of August, it will donate US$1 from each registration from the Greater China Region through the Relief.Asia initiative to affected individuals. DotAsia’s channel partners in the region, including HiChina, eName, IP Mirror, WebCC, XinNet, Todaynic, Net-Chinese, 0101 Internet etc. have also expressed their full support.
“Through the Relief.Asia platform, DotAsia is committed to long term relief and rebuild efforts in Myanmar and Sichuan with practical approaches supported by technology,” added Ching Chiao, VP Community Relations of DotAsia.
Last week in Taipei, at the 2008 Globalization and Spiritual Traditions and the Eighth Buddhist- Muslim Dialogue International Conference, DotAsia also received from His Master Shih, Hsin Tao, a certificate of honour recognizing its innovative works in contributing to world peace. The theme at this year’s conference was “Peace On Earth” and featured prominent speakers from around the world, including UNESCO Chair, Rabbi Alon Goshen-Gottstein.
“We are humbled by His Master’s recognition for our small contributions. I am energized by being able to make a difference by leveraging our expertise and networks in the industry. I hope we can inspire others that beyond monetary donations, it may be even more inspiring to be able to contribute their knowledge in times of need,” says Edmon Chung, CEO of DotAsia. “The vision of the Relief.Asia platform is that IT can save lives. While the donations will help provide general relief materials through our partners such as World Vision and the Museum of World Religion, a key contribution through Relief.Asia is the delivery of information technology, supporting the efficiency and effectiveness of relief efforts when it truly is a matter of life and death,”
DotAsia and SnapNames to Hold Charity Domain Auctions at Paris Domainer Meeting
In an earlier announcement, DotAsia reported that proceeds from its Sunrise and Landrush auctions had already exceeded US$3M, with an average winning price of over US$10,000 among the top 100. Building on this strong demand for .Asia domains, DotAsia will release a few high quality domains at the SnapNames Live auction at the Domainer Meeting later this week in Paris. SnapNames Live will be donating their commission from the sales as well so the entire sale price will go toward helping those affected in the region. Three domains will be included in this:
- 21c.asia
- makeout.asia
- used-cars.asia
Proceeds from the auctions will go to the Relief.Asia initiatives to help relief and rebuild efforts in Myanmar and Sichuan. The industry is invited to participate and contribute to the charitable initiative. You do not need to be present to participate. To bid live online during the auction, you can download the SnapName Live online bidding interface here: https://www.snapnames.com/liveAuctions.do. This special system lets you communicate bids in real time directly with the auctioneer in Paris.
“Your participation is a contribution already regardless if you win the domain auctions. Every bid brings the total proceeds higher. Every US$200 gives a family new temporary housing to call home. Every US$700 can install a water purifier. Every US$17 gives a victim a respectable burial service. Every dollar counts and is delivered directly to the affected areas,” says Edmon Chung.
Media Contact: Pavan Budhrani, +852-3741-0015 pavan@registry.asia
About DotAsia Organisation
DotAsia Organisation is the Sponsoring Organisation and Registry Operator for the .Asia Sponsored Generic Top Level Domain. DotAsia is a not-for-profit, community-based organisation incorporated in Hong Kong. Asia has developed into a global force in the international commercial, political and cultural network. The .Asia domain aspires to embrace this dynamism in the Asia Century to become a nucleus, intersection and breeding ground for Internet activity and development in the region. To learn more about DotAsia, please visit: http://www.registry.asia.
About Oversee’s Aftermarket and Registrar Division
Oversee’s Aftermarket and Registrar Division, through Moniker® and SnapNames®, offers businesses and individual investors a complete array of Domain Asset Management® services to protect and grow the value of their domains. Services include name creation, registration, acquisition, portfolio management, appraisal and escrow services as well as after-market sales and live auctions. Oversee provides a single point of contact over the entire life cycle of domain ownership, including name procurement, management, monetization and sales.
SnapNames operates the largest auction of expired and deleting domain names and gives its customers exclusive first access to the world’s largest inventory of high-traffic, brand-able and investment-grade domain names every day. Moniker is a top 10 domain registrar and an industry pioneer who introduced the concept of live domain auctions and the industry’s first domain appraisal formula. For more information, visit www.snapnames.com and www.moniker.com.
About Navia Corporation Ltd
Navia Corporation is a GPS Mobile Telematics solution provider with speciality in providing personal safety device. Navia designs, manufactures and markets GPS products for worldwide markets. Navia’s international exposure and unique capability in professional GPS technology development enables itself to serve the emerging market needs in locating and tracking in both enterprise segment (e.g. workforce management) and consumer segment (e.g. kids).