The meeting and conference industry is very varied, and conference designers strive to optimise the resources used during an event or conference. During several years of working in the conference and meeting industry the author found that some tasks associated with meetings and conferences are still handled manually. It was from the experience of these sometimes labour-intensive tasks that the idea sprung to introduce computer support. This thesis describes the development of a prototype in a mobile environment using Near Field Communication (NFC) as an identification token for an attendee at a conference or meeting. The conference centre where the conference and meeting scenario incorporated in the developed prototype is gathered from the author’s current place of work. As the prototype is developed as proof-of-concept it is not complete and needs to be developed further in order to be of use for a conference designer. The gain in reduced work can in some cases be quite intuitive, and in some other cases needs to be analysed. During the development of the prototype the author gained new knowledge in how mobile operating systems (OS) can differ compared to developing for OS aimed for stationary computers. One key difference was that the OS could at any time close or pause the application in order to free or save resources, such as memory or power, this behaviour needs to be managed and taken into consideration when developing for mobile OS. The author also learned how to use NFC and develop applications using NFC with an attendee-driven approach, which is important as the meeting industry strives to reduce the use of resources by making it more attendee-driven. The main idea behind the attendee-driven approach is to shift the tasks that are normally handled by the arranger of the conference, over to the conference attendee, e.g, the conference attendee books his or her lecture online, reducing the need of staff at a reservation call center.

La déconstruction des liens de coopération entre les pouvoirs publics locaux et les migrants s'opère dans cette thèse par l'étude des réseaux d'alliance stratégiques en France et au Mali. Ils sont à l'origine du processus d'institutionnalisation de la migration et du développement dans les dispositifs locaux de coopération internationale dans la région de Kayes au Mali. L'engagement de ces acteurs met en lumière la multiplicité des stratégies de légitimation et la divergence des intérêts. La cohabitation de ces différentes rationalités permet d'étudier la dimension stratégique de cette alliance au prisme des luttes d'influence, de pouvoir, de résistance à la domination, d'identification et d'auto-identification. Cette recherche montre que malgré leur hétérogénéité, ces éléments contribuent de manière paradoxale à unifier les acteurs de la configuration locale de la migration et du développement. L'étude de cas de la coopération décentralisée entre la région de Kayes, la région d'Île-de-France et les ressortissants de la région de Kayes en France est mobilisée pour révéler l'importance stratégique de l'alliance créée entre migrants, pouvoirs locaux et ONG. Elle permet notamment de cerner les tensions, conflits et relations d'interdépendance au cœur des changements et des recompositions de la coopération décentralisée franco-malienne depuis maintenant trois décennies. La spécificité de cette coopération est finalement mise en exergue au moyen de l'étude de cas comparative des modes d'engagement français et canadiens dans le développement local au Mali. / The study of cooperation between local governments and migrants is realized in this research through its focus on strategic alliances networks in France and Mali. These networks are involved in the institutionalization process of migration and development in international activities of local governments in the region of Kayes (Mali). The commitment of these actors highlights the multiplicity of legitimization strategies, the marginalization of minority communities and the divergent interests. This research shows that despite their heterogeneity these issues contribute paradoxically to unify the actors of local migration and development configuration. The case study of decentralized cooperation between the region of Kayes, the region of Île-de-France and the migrants originated from Kayes is mobilized to reveal the strategic importance of the alliance created between migrants, local authorities and NGOs. It allows to identify the tensions, conflicts and interdependent relationship at the heart of changes and reconfigurations of franco-malian decentralized cooperation for the past three decades. The specificity of this cooperation is ultimately highlighted by comparative case study of French and Canadian modes of engagement in local development in Mali. This demonstration put special emphasis on the critical discourses of the Malian authorities as partners of international cooperation.