Though well thought out and concrete, RICA has yet to be realized in the form of any recognizable projects. Organized by The Learning Alliance, Paper Tiger and FAIR, the purpose of Freeing the Media was to critique corporate media concentration while exploring ways to strengthen progressive communication. To inform the process, Freeing the Local Media invited members of media collectives from six North American cities to tell their stories. In July, a fourth strand formed, as dozens of political groups came together in Austin, Texas for a local Encuentro. Within this framework are opportunities for grassroots activists.
Community development needs to be at the core of our information projects.
These four strands, all offshoots of the First Encuentro, wove themselves together at the Second Encounter. Members of the Information Mesa attended the First Encuentro, worked on RICA, participated in Freeing the Media, were active in local collectives, the IFIM, and the Austin Encuentro. In the end, the Second Encuentro was really just another beginning. Because it was another beginning, the Encuentro is hard-pressed to point to any concrete results. Yet it is one more step toward a concrete network.