Lögberg-Heimskringla - 15.02.2019, Side 3

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Lögberg-Heimskringla • 15. febrúar 2019 • 3
visir.is – Social media
and fake news will be on the
agenda for discussion at the
National Security Council’s
next meeting in February. This
surfaced during Prime Minister
Katrín Jakobsdóttir’s response
to a question in Alþingi from
Reform Party leader Þorgerður
Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, who
asked what the government
planned to do to best ensure
that undisclosed parties
sponsoring advertisements,
and even fake news, do not
endanger democracy in the
country during a run-up to
elections.
Þorgerður’s query
referred to a letter from the
Data Protection Authority to
the Icelandic government.
The agency warned against
imminent risks to democratic
elections from social media in
many parts of the world. The
letter came after a meeting with
European Commissioner for
Justice, Consumers and Gender
Equality Vera Jourová. Her
message to the European Data
Protection Supervisor at the
meeting was that no elections
would ever be the same as
before because of social media
and the abuse of protected
personal data through them.
“Here in Iceland,
undisclosed parties paid
for advertisements during
campaigning for Alþingi’s
last elections. Whether it was
Icelandic voters, political
parties, lobbyists, or even
foreign states, we do not know.
There are now more than two
years to elections. What does
the Prime Minister plan to
do to best ensure that these
undisclosed parties do not pose
a risk to democracy? How can
we prevent these undisclosed
parties from playing games
with democracy?” asked
Þorgerður.
The prime minister said
that there would be meetings
this week on the matter in the
Office of the Prime Minister as
well as the Ministry of Justice,
which supervises how elections
proceed. She said that the matter
was very important. In addition,
she said the idea the Data
Protection Authority proposed
in its letter was good – to
establish a consultative forum
on elections. Furthermore,
Katrín said she had put the
matter on the agenda of the
National Security Council’s
next meeting.
She then turned the
discussion to fake news. “We see
everywhere this change in the
nature of political discussion.
In many Nordic countries, there
are clear examples of spreading
fake news, not least about
immigrants and their affairs.
The source is not thought to
be from abroad but rather from
inside the countries; however,
they do not build on any facts
and spread frightfully fast,”
said the prime minister in
Alþingi.
Reprinted with permission
from Icelandic News Briefs,
published by KOM PR.
Morgunblaðið – Minister of Education, Science
and Culture Lilja Alfreðsdóttir dismissed the notion
that students ought to avoid exchange programs in
Britain due to uncertainty about Brexit. Norway’s
Minister for Science and Higher Education, Iselin
Nybø, has advised Norwegian students considering
exchange programs to avoid studying in Britain next
fall.
“I urge students to consider Britain like other
countries where there are dynamic universities,” said
Lilja. I want our people to seek their education in the
best schools. Preparations for Brexit began in 2016.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Culture keeps
very close tabs on all collaboration plans, science
plans, and all communications regarding Britain,” said
the minister. “We want to increase relations with the
British, and we see ripe opportunities in doing so, and
we have very good communication with them. Many
of the best universities in the world are in Britain, so
we want rather to increase collaboration,” she added.
Iselin Nybø expressed special concerns about
students that would go to Britain on an Erasmus+
grant, the European Union’s grant system. The British
Parliament rejected a draft agreement on Brexit in
January, which provided for Britain’s continuing
participation in plans like Erasmus+ through 2020.
According to Lilja, this may put Britain’s participation
in the EU’s exchange plans in jeopardy, if the UK
leaves the EU without an agreement on March 29,
but according to a declaration from the EU, students
going to Britain on an Erasmus+ grant are safe. The
declaration says that individuals from EU states in
Britain that are in exchange programs through an
Erasmus+ grant can finish their program without
having to go home early. Lilja said that the same
applies to Icelanders.
Twenty-three students at Icelandic universities are
in exchange programs or job training this semester
in Britain through an Erasmus+ grant, according to
information from the Erasmus+ National Office.
Reprinted with permission from Icelandic News
Briefs, published by KOM PR.
Since 2015, Bjórdagur (Beer Day)
has shown how cold beer, hot
dogs, and warm company can take
the chill off of winter far better than the
prognostications of groundhogs. This
year, Lögberg-Heimskringla is returning
to Gimli for the fifth annual Icelandic
Beer Day in Manitoba, which will be held
at the Gimli Recreation Centre Curling
Lounge on Friday, March 1, 2019, from
6:00 to 10:00 p.m.
Bjórdagur, or Beer Day, has been
marked in Iceland since 1989, when the
ban on “strong beer” was finally lifted after
nearly three-quarters of a century. It was
the last vestige of prohibition
there. Thirty years have passed
since then and the brewing
industry has flourished in
Iceland. In addition to the
two major breweries, there
are perhaps another dozen
and a half microbreweries and
craft breweries. Together, they
produce about sixty different
varieties of beer. Today, beer
accounts for more than three-
fifths of Icelanders’ alcohol
consumption and exports of Icelandic
beer continue to grow.
In Iceland, Bjórdagur evolved into the
Annual Icelandic Beer Festival, which
will run this year from February 21 to 23.
But, since nothing is sacred, the festival
no longer coincides with Bjórdagur itself,
so those who wish to keep the tradition
alive must do so on their own, unless they
happen to be in Manitoba. The first Beer
Day in the province was held in 2015,
when Robbie Rousseau and Leif Norman
convinced L-H that hosting such an event
would be a fun way to celebrate Icelandic
culture in the province.
Beer Day will take place in the
curling lounge on the second floor
of the Gimli Recreation Centre,
located at 45 Centennial Road,
west of Highway 9. Admission is
just $15 and includes an Icelandic
hot dog and dessert. Beer Day
tickets are available online at
https://www.lh-inc.ca/shop2 or
by calling the L-H office at (204)
284-5686 or toll-free at 1-866-564-
2374. Tickets will also be available
at the door.
BJÓRDAGUR RETURNING TO GIMLI
Education minister remains calm about British exchanges
Social media and fake news concern Icelandic parliamentarians
GENEALOGY IN
A DIGITAL AGE
Lögberg-Heimskingla is pleased to o er a three-session genealogy
course on how to make the most of your family research,
led by L-H editor Stefan Jonasson.
Session 1: Tracking Down Your Ancestors
Session 2: Pedigree Charts nd the Worldwide Web
Session 3: Developing Your Family Story and Sharing It
At its best, genealogy is about more than na es and dates –
it’s about telling the stories of our families and locating ourselves
within them.
Wednesdays
April 3, 10, & 17, 2019
7:00 to 9:30 pm
at the Lögberg-Heimskringla o ce
835 Marion Street, Winnipeg, MB
$25 per session (non-subscribers)
$20 per session (subscribers)
*Spots are limited
To register: WWW.LH-INC.CA | (204) 284 5686 | LH@LH-INC.CA
Register today and discover your family story
GENEALOGY IN
A DIGITAL AGE
Lögberg-Heimskingla is pleased to o er a three-session genealogy
course on how to make the most of your family research,
led by L-H editor Stefan Jonasson.
Session 1: Tracking Down Your Ancestors
Session 2: Pedigree Charts and the Worldwide Web
Session 3: Developing Your Family Story and Sharing It
At its best, genealogy is about more than names and dates –
it’s about telling the stories of our families and locating ourselves
within them.
Wednesdays
April 3, 10, & 17, 2019
7:00 to 9:30 pm
at the Lögberg-Heimskringla o ce
835 Marion Street, Winnipeg, MB
$25 per session (non-subscribers)
$20 per session (subscribers)
*Spots are limited
To register: WWW.LH-INC.CA | (204) 284 5686 | LH@LH-INC.CA
Register today and discover your family story
Following the financial crisis that
hit Iceland a decade ago, people
questioned how things could
have gotten so bad. People rallied in
protest, sparking a monumental and
historical movement. What followed
was a gathering of 1,200 randomly
selected citizens, ultimately resulting
in the first crowdsourced constitution
– a document literally by the people,
for the people.
This effort inspired participatory
democracy, a theme that has since
taken root in other societies around the
world. It reshaped the dialogue on how
a population can work with available
technology, consensus building, and
civic engagement while reinventing the
governmental processes in supporting
the needs of their constituents.
Input was collected from social
media, handwritten letters, emails,
chats, live feed videos, etc. Then it was
assembled by an elected council of 25
people and their staff. All this content
and deliberation was utilized when
writing the constitution proposals.
Since then, its and pieces of this whole
process have been kept in a variety of
formats and locations.
Much of what went into making
this proposed constitution a remarkable
process and relevant document can be
preserved and made readily available
to everyone. Because it was the first
crowdsourced national constitution in
history, there hasn’t been a blueprint
on how it should be catalogued – until
now. An archive named KRIA is being
established to serve as a centralized
host to preserve the documentation of
this process.
The project’s partners include the
University of Iceland, the National
Archives of Iceland, and the University
of Washington. KRIA has launched a
Kickstarter page to raise funds for this
archival project. (Visit Kickstarter
and search for “constitution” to link to
the page.)
Project seeks to preserve
crowdsourced constitutional process