Published by the Kathmandu, Nepal-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), this newsletter shares some resources and experiences of the Information and Knowledge Management (IKM) initiative of this mountain learning and knowledge centre. ICIMOD's IKM Programme works to make mountain knowledge accessible to, and usable for, partners, policy-makers, advocates, and development practitioners as part of an effort to foster action and change for overcoming mountain people's economic, social and physical vulnerability.

This ICIMOD Newsletter (No. 47) begins with a list of 15 knowledge management (KM) resources, with brief synopses of, and links to, each one. For instance, "Knowledge Management Initiatives around the Globe" is an article by "leading thinker Karl-Erik Sveiby" which defines KM by looking at 40 KM initiatives from around the world. And links to such sites as "ABC of KM", "Glossary of KM Terms", and "KM Tools" provide additional background.

The opening "Letter from the Director General" provides some background on KM and ICIMOD's work in this area. A key point made here is that "The most essential element of knowledge management is the human factor: how do people share tacit knowledge - their personal knowledge and experience. Knowledge networks are one approach. They are not solutions in themselves, but rather systems that facilitate knowledge-sharing and collaborative problem-solving." The author of this Letter notes that new computer-based technologies can be powerful KM methods, but that traditional tools such as books, tape recorders, writing tools, filing systems, libraries, and direct human communications "are still most vivid and vibrant."

Following this introductory material, the Newsletter includes articles from contributors, with the following titles:

• Basics of Information and Knowledge Management
• Information Knowledge Management at ICIMOD - A Strategy Framework
• Knowledge Networking for Development
• The Mountain Knowledge Partnership in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas
• Managing Knowledge with Context Technology
• Case Study in Knowledge Management: Agricultural Market Information Services in Bhutan
• Institutional Profile: Bangladesh Institute of Theatre Arts

A series of ICIMOD organisational news items concludes the publication.