On forming a Sakai Special Interest Group

On May 22 we had our second meeting in The Netherlands with those institutions interested in Sakai. The following institutions were present, and as such are really working (or will start working soon) with Sakai: Saxion Hogescholen, University of Amsterdam, University of Twente, Erasmus University Rotterdam and Technische Universiteit Eindhoven. Also present were SURFnet and Stoas. SURFnet is the innovative networking partner for all HE institutions within The Netherlands. Stoas is the first commercial affiliate for Sakai in The Netherlands.
The meeting started of with all institutions, as well as Stoas, sharing current events and future plans. The plans are actually quite diverse, but can be characterized as being pilot or experimentation. We also discussed what the goal of a SIG should be, and which activities should be carried out. Furthermore we discussed how we could organize a common ground regarding specific Dutch (European?) issues and viewpoints. We could collate and prioritize these issues together and drive them to a desired outcome within the Sakai Foundation, according the working procedures within the Foundation.
On a more basic level we concluded that we should really strive to inform each other on a regular basis and as completely as possible. Stoas for example shared with us that they have been talking to a HE institution about the use of Sakai as their primary VLE. The name of the institution could not be disclosed during the meeting, but will be disclosed soon.
There were several action items that we have agreed upon. Some of them are:
(a) we will meet again on July 5, where we will discuss in detail what is happening at the institutional level,
(b) every institution will provide some more text, that we can (and will!) share with the worldwide Sakai community (keep watching this weblog for this information) and
(c) there is a need for a coordinator, that should drive the SIG in the right direction.
So, as you can see, there is really something good happening within The Netherlands. I hope that we can also gain some progress on a European level, during our BOF meeting in Vancouver!