Twenty years. It’s easier said, but it’s not. It has been two decades of hard work by Tono magazine to fulfill dreams, to think about the world of science and technology from a small nation with limitations, but with the desire to live to the fullest the experience of looking into the development of this field with innovative proposals created by the work teams of ETECSA, the leading telecommunications company in Cuba.

Its challenges are huge, but its journey since its birth in September 2004, when the first issue was out, the start, is equally long. This and more was discussed at a meeting held at the Gran Canaria Hall of Meliá Habana Hotel, where founders, authors, editors, consultants, collaborators, representatives of institutions and guests attended to remember the 20th anniversary of the publication.

According to its director Grisel Ojeda Amador, in her initial words, “it’s a magazine that was born outside the scientific environment, but little by little has been able to insert itself and be a reference.” In these twenty years they have managed to climb in this direction and today they have certifications that support it. Its prestige is increasing, and it has to do with the collective effort, the capacity of its experts, and the need to expand knowledge of computing, technology, and communications.

Tono is solely issued for internal circulation, it’s distributed in universities, libraries, and technical centers, and it’s available on Internet for everyone. It’s a reference magazine, and, although it’s the responsibility of a really small team, it shows professionalism and is thorough in its content, it deals with technological progress and its application in environments as difficult as our country.

Among its primary objectives is to be the voice of ETECSA specialists, of their own research.

In addition to a pleasant dialogue, the meeting served to promote the evolution of Tono, highlight the work of the technical team, and recall one of its most important successes, when, due to its results, in 2018 the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment (CITMA), granted it the status of serial scientific publication, a category that says a lot about its level of expertise, supported by hard work.

Related topics were also addressed at the discussion and recognition was given to people and organizations that have been fundamental support for Tono, based on their knowledge and accompaniment in the task of disseminating Cuban scientific work.

The same goes for sister editorial groups of allied publications produced at the Technological Universidad José Antonio Echeverría Institute of Information and Communication (CUJAE) and the University of Computer Sciences (UCI) : the Telemática Magazine and the Cuban Computing Science Magazine, respectively; as well as CITMA and its Directorate of Scientific and Technological Potential; and ETECSA itself and its Directorates of Organizational Communication and Security Operations.

A surprise was the recognition given by Ana Luisa Cabrera Toledo, Director of Serial Publications and Websites of the Institute of Information and Social Communication, to commemorate the anniversary of the magazine.

One of the most interesting moments was the lecture by Dr. C Caridad Anías Calderón, Tono's collaborator and professor at CUJAE, on the importance of AI in the face of the challenges of science, the concerns and threats that this means for the current world and for Cuba, but also the opportunity and the impact that it represents in our environment for the so-called Digital Revolution that we cannot deny, but rather perfect with the tools we have at hand.

In addition, a panel was held with the participation of Paulino Linares Herrera, member of the Cuban Academy of Sciences; Raúl Abreu Martín, journalist and social media manager of Juventud Técnica magazine, and Caridad Anías Calderón, as director of the Telemática Magazine, of CUJAE.

Although it shows transcendental advances, the challenges for Tono are plenty, since it’s a young magazine. Therefore, it plans to grow, achieve a greater reach with necessary and innovative content for science and technology, encourage research and publish its results on the progress of communications and information technology.

Tono is oriented to spread how we apply the knowledge acquired in this arena and aims to position itself as a space of reference and exchange.

Translated by Amilkal Labañino / CubaSí Translation Staff