[DDI-SRG] DDI regional users group?

[Joachim Wackerow]

Pascal and Nikos,

We discussed this issue already at the last TIC conference call. In 
general I welcome the idea of regional DDI groups and the willingness of 
the IZA to support this kind of groups.

I think in the current state we should stick to one global user group 
communicating by the DDI users email list. When this group is too active 
or the subjects have too much regional concern, we can switch to 
regional groups. Similar we can invent new subject groups when specific 
subjects are discussed intensively on the general interest group and the 
subjects are of interest only for sub-groups of users. (On the other 
hand a non-active discussion forum doesn't look attractive to the community)

Currently - looking at the activity of the global user group discussion 
- I don't see the necessity to make a step into this direction. First we 
need more activity on several levels, then it makes sense to think about 
a finer grained communication structure.

Cheers, Achim

Pascal Heus wrote:
> Achim:
> as you know I was at IZA in Bonn a couple of weeks ago. We had very 
> productive discussions and IZA will soon join the DDI Alliance as well 
> as come to IASSIST 2008 to share their experiences using DDI in an RDC 
> environment.
> 
> One of the activity that IZA would like to put forward as an initial 
> contribution is the establishment of a Germany or European DDI Users 
> group. The idea would be to not only have a virtual space but for 
> members to get together on a regular basis for sharing experiences and 
> technical discussions. This would be hosted by IZA (or possibly other 
> locations in Germany). Such initiative will of course be conducted in 
> close partnership with the DDI Alliance. Given your extensive knowledge 
> of DDI and  familiarity with the DDI landscape in Germany, your input on 
> this topic would be most valuable. So far, we have only mentioned this 
> to Mary as we want to stategize it right before sharing the idea with a 
> broader audience. Nikos Askitas, my primary contact at IZA , has asked 
> me to put him in touch with you to further discuss the idea. As a 
> newcomer to the DDI community, he would also in general greatly benefit 
> from your general DDI expertise and knowledge.
> 
> all the best,
> Pascal


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