Call for Papers
Spoken Language Technology for Development
  - from promise to practice
 

Venue - The Abbey Hotel, Tintern, UK
Dates - 11-12 September 2009

 
It has long been believed that spoken language technology will have a significant impact in the developing world, where illiteracy is often a severe issue and computer access is limited. Although recent years have seen some progress towards this goal, the usage of SLT in the developing world is still negligible compared to its significant uptake in the developing world.
 
Following on from a successful special session at SLT 2008 in Goa, this Interspeech 2009 satellite workshop invites participants with an interest in SLT4D and who have expertise and experience in any of the following areas:
  • Development of speech technology for resource-scarce languages
  • SLT deployments in the developing world
  • HCI in a developing world context
  • Successful ICT4D interventions
  •  
    The aim of the workshop is to develop a "Best practice in developing and deploying speech systems for developmental applications". It is also hoped that the participants will form the core of an open community which shares tools, insights and methodologies for future SLT4D projects.
     
    If you are interested in participating in the workshop, please submit a 2-4 page position paper explaining how your expertise and experience might be applied to SLT4D, formatted according to the Interspeech 2009 guidelines, to Roger Tucker at roger@outsideecho.com by 30th April 2009.
     

    Venue, Transport and Costs

    Tintern is a historic village in the beautiful Wye valley on the Wales-England border. It is famous for the Cistercian Abbey which thrived from 1131 until its dissolution in 1536. We will be taking over the Abbey Hotel for the workshop, parts of which date back to 1206 when it was inside the original precinct wall of the Abbey.
     
    There will be a coach leaving Brighton as soon as Interspeech finishes on 10th September, arriving around 10pm that evening. The workshop will officially start at 9:30am on 11th and finish around 5pm on 12th September, but participants may like to stay for an extra night before returning home just to relax and enjoy the setting.
     
    For going back home, airport coaches run regularly around the clock from nearby Chepstow direct to Heathrow airport and then on to Gatwick airport. Details can be found on the National Express website.
     
    Although final pricing is yet to be confirmed, the early registration cost of the workshop, with 3 nights accomodation and all meals, is expected to be well under $400. Accompanying persons sharing the same room will be able to stay at no extra charge but they will need to pay for their meals.
     

    Important Dates

    Papers due: 30th April 2009
    Acceptance Notification: 10th June 2009
    Early Registration deadline: 3rd July 2009
    Workshop: 11-12 September 2009
     

    Program Committee

    Roger Tucker, Outside Echo, UK
    Etienne Barnard, Meraka Institute, SA
    Hema Murthy, IIT Madras
    Amitav Das, Microsoft Research
    Kalika Bali, Microsoft Research India
    Nitendra Rajput, IBM India
    Jahanzeb Sherwani, CMU
     


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