Well, believe it or not, this is my first time posting to the Collectanea blogosphere since the inception of the Center for Intellectual Property's blog in early 2007. (By the way, I'm the CIP's Executive Director- Kimberly Bonner). When the CIP developed the blog in 2007, we envisioned the blog as the primary communication platform for scholars with whom CIP collaborates. Although the CIP anticipated interest in the blog, the response far exceeded our wildest expectations. Collectanea's favor is, in large part, due to the wit and wisdom of Georgia Harper.
For the past 2 years, Georgia has been the primary scholar working with the CIP on educational programming, research and experimenting with the Collectanea blog. Without a lot of assistance, but mountains of creativity and passion, Georgia has helped to create a space online where over 30,000 folks come to read and reflect on Georgia's musings.
I am among Georgia's legions of fans who enjoy thinking about her new ideas and nuanced reasoning. I'm very fond of teachers...probably because I come from a long line of them. I admire Georgia's uncanny ability to take the incredibly complex, break it down and make it incredibly accessible. That's a quality sorely lacking these days- particularly in copyright circles.
Georgia's collaboration as our IP Scholar ended November, 2008. She will still serve on the CIP Board of Advisors, but she will no longer moderate the blog. (I know, I know...let's just pass the Kleenex now and go rent Beaches). But alas, this good thing has come to an end. Please let Georgia know how much you appreciate her work.
In 2009, the CIP will implement many changes. Change appears to be the "buzzword" in the U.S. and it certainly applies to the CIP. The first change will be our new IP Scholar. Peter Jaszi has graciously agreed to collaborate with the CIP for the next two years. Peter is a terrific scholar and professor at American University's Law School. We are excited about this collaboration and hope you are also.
Peter will begin posting to the Collectanea blog in February, 2009. Please visit the CIP's website at www.umuc.edu/cip for more updates on future programming.
Happy Holidays and have a wonderful 2009! Change is definitely in the air....
Kimberly
