On the evening of Wed June 23, 2004 SchoolNet Uganda’s “The World Starts With Me (WSWM)” project was awarded the 2004 Golden Nica Award for the Digital Communities by Prix Ars Electronica for its innovation and relevancy. This top award was at a ceremony held at the UN Headquarters in New York, US. In attendance were many delegates to the Economic Summit (the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit). This ceremony was the inaugural year for the Digital Communities category and saw two of the seven Golden Nicas awarded to The World Starts With Me and to Wikipedia. Each Golden Nica came with a cash award of 10,000 Euros.

“The World Starts With Me” (WSWM) is a computer-based sex education and AIDS prevention curriculum aimed at young Ugandans. WSWM was developed and produced by Butterfly Works (www.butterfly-works.org/) and the World Population Foundation (www.wpf.org) in association with SchoolNet Uganda (http://schoolnetuganda.sc.ug).

The Golden Nica award for The World Starts With Me was accepted by Mr. Alex Okwaput (a teacher at Bishop Senior Mukono and SchoolNet Uganda – World Population Foundation senior consultant for WSWM) and three Dutch ladies; Ineke Aquarius, Herster Ezra and Emer Beamer.

The Golden Nica is a gold plated replica of the Greek Nike of Samothrace. Nike of Samothrace is a 3rd (third) century marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike (Victory). Since 1884, it has prominently been displayed at the Lourve and is one of the most celebrated sculptures in the world.

Prix Ars Electronica (http://www.aec.at/en/prix/) is an International competition for CyberArts. It is one of the most important awards for creativity and pioneering spirit in the field of digital media. Each year, 6 Golden Nicas, 12 Awards of Distinction and approximately 70 Honorary Mentions are presented to the participants.