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Sun Microsystems will sponsor 12 young African civic and technology leaders, including Neema Mgana of Tanzania, the youngest of 1,000 global activist women collectively nominated for the 2005 Nobel Prize for Peace, as Sun Participation Fellows at this year's PopTech conference. Held next week in Camden, Maine, PopTech is a leading forum for exploring the social impacts of technology and the shape of things to come. Sun sponsors the Fellows to attend the three-day conference, where they will be able to work with and learn from some of the world's best thinkers in technology, science, the arts and business. In addition to full participation in the conference, the Sun Participation Fellows will participate in a roundtable on how technology can be used for social and economic advancement in Africa. Sun's Chief Researcher and Vice President of the Science Office John Gage and Fortune Senior Internet Editor David Kirkpatrick will also participate in the discussions, held from 9-11 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 23 at Camden's Opera House. "People around the world -- from New Orleans to Tanzania to Islamabad -- can use the power of the network to have a huge impact on their society," said Gage. "The Sun Participation Fellows bring their direct experiences in Africa to the discussions at PopTech. Together, we will create new direct, person-to-person links to support fundamental change in Africa." "The Fellows program is a perfect demonstration of our shared belief in the role of technology in solving grand challenges," said Andrew Zolli, PopTech curator. "Without Sun's commitment, this first-of-its-kind program would not be possible." Working in partnership with the United Nations' New York Office of Sport for Development and Peace, PopTech selected Fellows from across Africa and from among Africans living abroad and working on improving conditions in their home countries. Each Fellow is working to advance social and economic agendas including reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS, alleviating extreme poverty through fair trade, business and government reform, and improving healthcare. "The young African leaders at PopTech will have a significant opportunity to draw on the knowledge of technological visionaries and discuss ways that technology, combined with the convening power of can contribute to efforts by the next generation to improve opportunity in their home countries," said Djibril Diallo, director of the UN New York Office of Sport for Development and Peace. The Fellows include: Neema Mgana, 30 years old, Tanzania 2005 Nobel Prize for Peace nominee, HIV/AIDS activist, youth leadership activist Elleni Muluneh Gebremariam, 20 years old, Ethiopia Education and communications specialist Lydia Muchodo, Uganda Promoter of peace and tolerance through sport Khaddiatou Diedhiou Diop, 30 years old, Senegal Youngest member of Parliament of Senegal, focused on reducing child mortality and improving maternal health Rotimi Olawale, 22 years old, Nigeria Reformer of private sector, partnerships, media Clement M. Bwalya, 27 years old, Zambia Advocate of social change through sport, reformer of health sector Brian Longwe, 34 years old, Kenya Chief technology officer for the Africa Internet Service Provider Association (AfrISPA) Eric Osiakwan, 27 years old, Ghana Internet communications consultant, journalist, blogger Ndesanjo Macha, 35 years old, Tanzania Key figure of Swahili-language blogging, lawyer and digital rights activist Ory Okollah, 28 years old, Kenya Leading blogger, telecommunications reform activist David Gyewu, 41 years old, Ghana Former deputy minister for communications and technology for Ghana, telecommunications reform activist Emeka Okafor, 41 years old, New York Blogger, consultant and entrepreneur focused on finance and sustainable technology Sun Participation Fellows Program is Latest Step to "Share the Opportunity" The Sun Participation Fellows Program at PopTech is the latest step in Sun's Share the Opportunity initiative, a global effort to help promote participation in social change. It is also continues the company's agreement with the United Nations, the last result of which was Sun's donation of technology, support and training at the UN's Second Pan-African Youth Leadership Summit in Morocco. Sun believes the world is entering a new era - a Participation Age - where dramatically lowered barriers to entry, plummeting device prices, and near-universal connectivity are driving a new round of network participation. From blogs to Java technology, SMS messages to Web services, participants are forming communities to drive change, create new businesses, new social services, and new discoveries. This growth in the network economy is fueled by sharing and collaboration among communities interconnected by technology and driven by purpose. Sun also believes that sharing and collaboration in the Participation Age will stimulate innovation to help all participants from across the world grow and prosper.