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THE technology sector is at the forefront of this era's green movement. Natural ly, HP and Intel - two of the largest tech companies in the world right now -- are advocates. The two companies are channeling innovation into this movement and their mantra can be deduced to three words: "less is more" -- from manufacturing computer c hips that run on less power to redesigning product packaging that use less raw materials. In their annual Synergy press off-site , dubbed "Greenergy" to conform with the theme, HP and Intel talk about local green initiatives.

By Erwin Oliva INQUIRER.net "STAND with the Burmese Protesters," says an online petition inviting people around th e world to support the ongoing protests in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, ag ainst the junta. Hundreds of protesters, mostly monks, have been arrested and one Japanese natio nal has already been reported killed after thousands of protesters took to the streets 10 days ago. Led by Avaaz.org, the on line protest hopes to gather about 150, 000 signatures, which would be submitte d to the United Nations Security Council members and the media. At this writing, online petition has already gathered over 100,000 supporters w orldwide. Avaaz.org is a global civic advocacy group founded by Res Publica. It has also been involved in Internet advocacy in the United States. Res Publica is community of public sector professionals promoting good governan ce, civic virtue and deliberative democracy, its website said. "After decades of military dictatorship, the people of Burma are rising -- and they need our help. Marches begun by monks and nuns have snowballed, bringing h undreds of thousands to the streets. Now the crackdown has begun," the Azaaz.or g online petition read. The online petition urges supporters to provide contact information, including their name, e-mail address, mobile phone number, and country of origin. After s igning up, it also encourages supporters to pass on the invite to friends. "When the Burmese last marched in 1988, the military massacred thousands. But i f the world stands up and supports their struggle, this time they could succeed . We'll send our petition to United Nations Security Council members (including the dictatorship's main backer China) and to media at the UN, while also alert ing the Burmese to our support," the online petition said.

IT'S a powerful vision that has now become a re ality, even though the $100 laptop now costs almost twice that amount. Still, this is a very significant milestone. The "Give 1 Get 1" campaign of the One Laptop per Child movement is a great idea for helping empower the world's children -- those who don't have the money to enjo y the technology that a lucky few have been blessed with and sometimes even tak e for granted. Here's a presentation Nicholas Negroponte gave la st year in the TED Talks series to share the vision of the non-profit OLPC proj ect. Let's hope more of the digital haves will do their best to help the digital hav e-nots, until one day, we'll all enjoy the benefits of ICT.