Date: May 12-13, 2003 
Location: International Development Research Centre (IDRC), 250 Albert Street, Ottawa, Canada 
Sponsors: Bellanet, CIDA, UNDP, AED and the World Bank

The workshop�s theme is: "Knowledge Sharing in Communities of Practice and in Globally Distributed Organizations & Networks". The first day we will be addressing issues around Communities of Practice (CoPs) with Etienne Wenger as a presenter and resource-person. During this very interactive day, participants will listen to and tell stories, as well as brainstorm on issues regarding CoPs in plenary and in Peer Assists. On the second day, we will explore knowledge sharing challenges in globally distributed organizations and networks through stories from experiences (also via video conference), brainstorming and birds-of-a-feather sessions.

The objective of the workshop is to learn from each other's experiences on Communities of Practice and in globally distributed organizations & networks. Although different aspects of Knowledge Sharing and Knowledge Management will most certainly be covered during the sessions, this will not be an introductory KM workshop. Participants will need to have had basic exposure to KM/KS approaches and/or Communities of practice or thematic networks.

Attendance

If you would like to attend, please send an email to Lucie Lamoureux (llamoureux@bellanet.org) indicating your wish to participate. We will not be able to accommodate much more than 50 participants and there has already been a great deal of interest so please respond beforeMonday April 14. If we have too many participants, we will need to make decisions based on the following criteria:

• Has concrete experiences to share on Communities of practice and/or thematic networks
• Is currently working in the International Development field
• Is linked to an International Development organization

There will be no workshop fees but participants must cover their own travel and accommodation. Partial funding for travel costs of a few southern-based KM practitioners is possible but you must specifically make the inquiry in your email message.

Hotels

We have booked blocks of rooms in two downtown hotels. The first one is a 5-minutes walk to IDRC, the second, about 15-20 minutes' walk. Taxis are also easily available at both hotels. Please note that the Ottawa Tulip Festival will be underway and hotels rooms will be hard to come by so best to book early.

OPTION 1: Residence Marriott Inn (5 minutes� walk from IDRC) 
161 Laurier Ave West 
Tel 613 231 2020 
Fax 613 231 2090

Rate will be CAD $155 plus taxes (approx. USD $102). This rate includes continental breakfast each day and complimentary hors d'oeuvres each night.

Method of reservation: 
Each guest is to contact the Hotel directly, quoting the "IDRC reservation May 11". Each guest will need to advise the hotel of their arrival and departure dates and use their own credit card number to guarantee. Please note that the hotel will release un-booked rooms on April 11.

OPTION 2: Business Inn (15-20 minutes� walk from IDRC) 
180 MacLaren Street 
Tel 613 232 1121 or toll free 1 800 363 1777 
Fax 613 232 8143

Rate will be CAD $99 plus taxes (approx. USD $65) for single occupancy, CAD $109 plus taxes (approx. USD $72) for double. This rate includes continental breakfast each day.

Method of reservation: 
Each guest is to contact the Hotel directly, quoting the "IDRC reservation, number 026572". Each guest will need to advise the hotel of their arrival and departure dates and use their own credit card number to guarantee. Please note that the hotel will release un-booked rooms on April 28.

Stories and Peer Assists

If you would like to tell a story on your Communities of practice and/or thematic network, please send an email to Lucie Lamoureux (llamoureux@bellanet.org). These presentations would be very brief (10-15 minutes). Also, if you would like to have a Peer Assist for a problematic aspect of your CoP or network, please send an email indicating your interest and a brief paragraph indicating the nature of the issue that you would like to solve.