Dear Friends, The Global Network of Internet & Society Research Centers (NoC) is happy to welcome 5 new participants from across the world! The joining Centers are described below. Please visit the links to get further information on their current research, areas of interest, and on the contact persons. The full list of the Centers involved in the NoC -currently 56- is available at http://networkofcenters.net/centers. -- The following Centers have joined the NoC as *Participating Centers*, i.e., academic research centers whose agenda is primarily focused on Internet & Society topics. They are listed in alphabetical order. * *Centro de Estudos Sociedade e Tecnologia, University of Sao Paulo *[Brazil] o Webpage: http://www.cest.poli.usp.br/en/ o The Centro de Estudos Sociedade e Tecnologia (CEST) was created at Universidade de São Paulo in December, 2013, starting from a grant by Microsoft Corporation. CEST’s purpose is to research and discuss the way Information and Communications Technologies affect people’s life and create new habits, solving many problems but also raising issues related to safety, business, privacy, intellectual property. CEST works on these complex issues by producing research and white papers and by fostering discussions in events involving academics, technologists, public officials, and the society at large. Currently CEST is focusing on issues such as online and open education, creative currencies, Internet of Things. o The main contact persons within the NoC are *Edison Spina* (Founder and coordinator) and *Fabio Nascimbeni* (Collaborator). [See bios at http://www.cest.poli.usp.br/en/pessoas/] * *Institute of Communication Sciences (ISCC) *[France] o Webpage: http://www.iscc.cnrs.fr/ o The Institute of Communication Sciences (ISCC) is a research center of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), Paris Sorbonne and University Pierre and Marie Curie (UPMC). Its activities, spanned in 12 research groups with 13 permanent researchers and 31 researchers from partner universities, are dedicated to interdisciplinary research in communication science with a special interest in the interaction between science, technologies and society. o The main contact persons within the NoC are *Mélanie Dulong de Rosnay *(Permanent researcher at CNRS, and Leader of the research group Information and Commons Governance, http://www.iscc.cnrs.fr/spip.php?article1558), and *Francesca Musiani* (Researcher, http://www.csi.mines-paristech.fr/People/musiani/). * *Melbourne Networked Society Institute, University of Melbourne* [Australia] o Webpage: http://networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au/ o The Melbourne Networked Society Institute undertakes interdisciplinary research on the connectivity between people, places and things to solve the problems facing the networked society. The Melbourne Networked Society Institute officially commenced in February 2015. MNSI builds upon the history of the Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society (IBES) and marks the natural evolution of the Institute as research has evolved from focusing on universal access to broadband to the complexity, scale and speed of connectivity underpinning the networked society. o The main contact persons within the NoC are *Adam Lodders* (Executive officer) and *Thas Nirmalathas* (Director, http://networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au/about/people/nirmalathas.html). * *United Nations University Institute on Computing and Society (UNU-CS) *[China] o Webpage: http://cs.unu.edu/ o The United Nations University Institute on Computing and Society (UNU-CS) is a new research institute at the intersections of information and communication technologies and international development (ICTD). Located in Macau SAR, China, UNU-CS focuses on the key challenges faced by developing societies through high-impact innovations in computing and communication technologies. o The main contact person within the NoC is *Michael L. Best* (Director, http://mikeb.inta.gatech.edu/). * *Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society* at Tilburg University [Netherlands] o Webpage: https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/research/institutes-and-research-groups/ti... o The Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT) is a top player in the field of the regulation of technology and its normative implications. They conduct research into the legal and social implications of various emerging technologies such as ICT, bio- and nanotechnology, neurotechnology and robotics. A key feature of the institute’s research program is the interaction between legal, technological, and social perspectives. TILT is consistently ranked a top institute for research and education by national and international Legal Research and Education Assessment Committees. o The main contact person within the NoC is *Ronald Leenes* (Director, http://www.ronaldleenes.nl/prof-dr-ronald-leenes/) Again, a warm welcome to all new participants in the Network of Centers! -- *About the Network of Internet and Society Research Centers* The Global Network of Internet and Society Research Centers (NoC) was launched by a group of academic centers in 2012 in recognition of the lack of internationally coordinated research and engagement activities in issues concerning the Internet and related technologies. The NoC is a collaborative initiative among academic institutions with a focus on interdisciplinary research on the development, social impact, policy implications, and legal issues concerning the Internet. This collective aims to increase interoperability between participating centers in order to stimulate the creation of new cross-national, cross-disciplinary conversation, debate, teaching, learning, and engagement regarding the most pressing questions around new technologies, social change, and related policy and regulatory developments. See http://networkofcenters.net/get-involved/. -- Raimondo Iemma Managing Director & Research Fellow Nexa Center for Internet and Society http://nexa.polito.it/ Project Manager Global Network of Internet & Society Research Centers http://networkofcenters.net/
