http://www.whannenberg.org/

Born in 1908, Walter H. Annenberg wore many hats during his long career, including publisher, broadcaster, and Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s, Great Britain from 1969 to 1974. He remains perhaps best known for his devotion to philanthropy and the work done by The Annenberg Foundation, which he established in 1989. Visitors to the site can learn about their work, and also learn about how to apply for a grant from the Foundation. The “News” section on the site’s homepage provides concise details about their latest funding endeavors, such as their donations to disaster relief programs and literacy programs in Philadelphia. Users may also wish to read their 15th anniversary report, which details how the Foundation has made grants totaling more than $2.8 billion. The site is rounded out by a selection of links that lead directly to other programs and organizations established by the Foundation, such as the Annenberg Media organization and the Annenberg Institute for School Reform. [KMG]

http://urbo.ovpm.org/index.php?newlang=eng

Created in 1993, the Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC) has been given a mandate by the United Nations to protect the cultural, historical, and social heritage of the world’s great cities. For a number of years, the organization has worked towards this goal by publishing helpful “how to” materials for any number of interested parties, including city officials, heritage groups, and concerned citizens. Recently, this site was created in an attempt to bring these materials together at one online destination. On this site, visitors can learn about case studies (such as those designed to rehabilitate the urban core of Havana), read publications on how to preserve the built environment, and peruse a list of related links. The publications area is quite strong, as it contains a number of introductory works such as “A History of Architectural Conservation” by Jukka Joklehto and “Standards in Preventive Conservation” by Rebeca Alcantra. [KMG]

http://digarc.usc.edu:8089/cispubsearch/

Universities and colleges have been involved in creating digital archives for the web-curious public for over a decade, and successful projects have been launched at institutions such as the University of Wisconsin and the University of Pittsburgh, among others. The University of Southern California (USC) has created their own digital archive, which draws on their own archival holdings, along with those of other collaborating institutions. Currently, the USC Digital Archive provides access to over 100,000 photographs, maps, and texts. Within this archive, there is a distinct emphasis on materials that relate directly to the Southern California region, particularly the city of Los Angels. Additional materials are related to the western United States more generally, and the Pacific Rim region as well. Visitors can perform a basic or advanced search within this archive, or they can also browse through one of the thematic collections. These collections include a clutch of land use maps of Los Angeles created by the Works Progress Administration and the Sea of Korea map collection. [KMG]

http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/ev.php-URL_ID=7277&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

The phrase “information society” may not be well-known to all, but the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has been compelled to keep member states abreast of related developments in this area since October 1998, when the Observatory was created. Their initial objective was to provide information on the following issues: access to information in public domain, electronic commerce, privacy and confidentiality in cyberspace, and violence in cyberspace. Today, their mission is much the same, and those persons with an interest in these general and specific areas will find this site quite useful. The Observatory maintains a number of regional observatories in different regions of the world, and visitors can look through each of these areas to read topical news coverage and reports generated by each of these units. Visitors can also look through a thematic list of categories on the homepage that address such topics as e-governance, internet governance, frameworks for online communication, and several dozen others. [KMG]

http://www.econlib.org/index.html

With substantial financial support from the Liberty Fund, Inc. the Library of Economics and Liberty is “dedicated to advancing the study of economics, markets, and liberty.” The site will be a real treat for anyone with a penchant for these issues, and perhaps may even spark a new interest for the first-time visitor. The site’s features include a number of features columns, definitive editions of classics in the fields of political theory and economics, and a number of annotated bibliographies. For those looking for some contemporary perspectives on related issues, they need look no further than the Library’s homepage. Visitors can read reflections on “licit globalization” from Ibsen Martinez and a piece titled “Why is Economics so Boring?” from Boston College’s Donald Cox. For a bit of fun, visitors can also view a list of upcoming birthdays of notable economists such as Gunnar Myrdal and others. [KMG]

http://www.schoolsanitation.org/

The United Nations and the World Bank remain committed to improving education in the developing world, and this website is designed to address one key component of this initiative, namely school sanitation. For students to remain successful in school settings, it is hoped that these materials will help “create an enabling learning environment that contributes to children’s improved health, welfare, and learning performance.” From the homepage, visitors can learn about the materials in the toolkit provided here, read a list of basic principles contained within the toolkit, as well as the guiding principles behind it. Visitors will also appreciate the section titled “Project Cycle”, which gives first-hand details about how to create these types of public health projects in a variety of educational settings. For those who may be unacquainted with the argot used in this area, there is also a glossary of terms. [KMG]