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video

The ICDL Foundation promotes tolerance and respect for diverse cultures by providing access to the best of children's literature from around the world.

"The Film The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute film that takes viewers on a provocative and eye-opening tour of the real costs of our consumer driven culture-from resource extraction to iPod incineration. Annie Leonard, an activist who has spent the past 10 years traveling the globe fighting environmental threats, narrates the Story of Stuff, delivering a rapid-fire, often humorous and always engaging story about "all our stuff-where it comes from and where it goes when we throw it away." Leonard examines the real costs of extraction, production, distribution, consumption and disposal, and she isolates the moment in history where she says the trend of consumption mania began. The Story of Stuff examines how economic policies of the post-World War II era ushered in notions of "planned obsolescence" and "perceived obsolescence" -and how these notions are still driving much of the U.S. and global economies today. Leonard's inspiration for the film began as a personal musing over the question, "Where does all the stuff we buy come from, and where does it go when we throw it out?" She traveled the world in pursuit of the answer to this seemingly innocent question, and what she found along the way were some very guilty participants and their unfortunate victims. "

from Free Technology for Teachers: "Fresh Brain, a non-profit funded in part by Sun Microsystems, provides teachers and students with ideas for technology projects. On Fresh Brain students and teachers can find projects in which they build games, build iPhone and Facebook apps, make web pages, and mash-up videos. Fresh Brain provides space and a forum for students to connect and collaborate. To complete each project, Fresh Brain provides a list of suggested tools and getting started guides for completing each task. Some of the popular projects on Fresh Brain right now are a project in which students create a webpage about cultures and a graphic design competition. Applications for Education There is no shortage of project and activity ideas on Fresh Brain. Teachers looking for creative ways to bring digital content creation into the classroom should explore Fresh Brain. The projects and tools suggested on Fresh Brain are intended for middle school and high school use."

from the site: "Mission The World Digital Library (WDL) makes available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from countries and cultures around the world. The principal objectives of the WDL are to: * Promote international and intercultural understanding; * Expand the volume and variety of cultural content on the Internet; * Provide resources for educators, scholars, and general audiences; * Build capacity in partner institutions to narrow the digital divide within and between countries. "

"It's amazing how pervasive advertising is in our culture. There are the obvious means - billboards, commercials, newspaper inserts - as well as the not-so-obvious channels, like logos on clothing, branded shopping bags, giveaway products, and lots more. Though advertising isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's important for students to recognize it for what it is - a message designed to persuade them to give someone else their money. Admongo, an online game from the Federal Trade Commission, takes students on a journey into a virtual tower that's crawling with advertisements. Along the way, the game teaches kids exactly how they're being marketed to, and how to recognize it when it's happening." (from Instructify) sign-in required

"MYLO is an exciting online language learning service that links your favourite interests with things you like doing on the internet - like playing games, creating blogs and movies, and sharing and working with others - making learning languages exciting and fun! It isn't just about passing exams. Learning a language can help you make new friends, find your perfect job, travel the world and experience new cultures. From music to sport and fashion to film, languages can help with whatever you want to do. Learn a language French, German, Spanish and Chinese."

produces and hosts high-quality documentary films and photographs. The films and images focus on exploring the world and the work of non-profit organizations around the world.

links to free resources for 20 titles