Accessing the Internet is not only difficult, but also a major hurdle in many rural, remote, and urban low-income areas. The digital divide is growing, has many different causes, and affects people from different backgrounds around the world.
Those affected are people from indigenous communities that have been ignored due to lack of business interests, such as in the Chaco region of South America. Some areas, such as the communities of Kunde and Khumjung near Everest and Uluqaktok in the Canadian Arctic, are so isolated that geographical and climatic conditions make it difficult to build infrastructure.
But even in urban areas like Baltimore in the United States, historically marginalized people struggle to connect. For these communities and many others, the Internet is more than just a source of entertainment and social interaction. It is a lifeline to essential services, education, and economic opportunity.
People, organizations, and governments have attempted to bridge the connectivity gap by supporting and building community networks. These are local networks built and managed by the communities that use them, usually initiatives that start with a common purpose not necessarily related to the Internet, such as community development, education, or health care. However, these groups recognize that the Internet is a powerful tool to expand their impact and embark on a journey to build community-driven networks tailored to their specific needs.
Who can build a community network?
There is no single person or organization that represents the typical community network builder. Skill sets range from technical to entrepreneurial, but all are driven by a desire to make internet access affordable and available to communities.
Some of the people building community networks are experts with technical backgrounds and know how to set everything up to get the network up and running quickly, but getting the necessary equipment Maybe you just need the funds. In other cases, local non-profit organizations without a technical background work with local communities on a variety of projects, including agricultural initiatives and entrepreneurship. However, you may face challenges at various stages of the process.
Even if you have a technical background, you may not have experience identifying other community champions to help drive your project forward. Similarly, you may not be familiar with the local regulatory environment or licensing requirements to ensure your network is within legal boundaries. At the same time, organizations can become community engagement experts without any business experience and ensure that their community networks remain financially sustainable over the long term.
It may seem daunting, but people have overcome these challenges and achieved success over the years. It turns out that with the right tools, anyone can build a community network.
Community Network DIY Toolkit
With this vision in mind, we developed the Community Network Do-It-Yourself toolkit. In 10 steps, we compose a set of resources that outline everything you need to know to prepare, build, and maintain a community network. This includes manuals, case studies, online training, and other materials from us and others that help local organizations and communities build community networks.
This toolkit covers several important topics, including helping community organizers and network builders understand the needs of their communities before getting into the nitty-gritty of laying cables and setting up routers. In this way, the network adapts to the region and addresses the biggest challenges first.
Next, the toolkit discusses the importance of building a sense of ownership within the community. Successful community networks are not forced onto people from the outside. It grows from within. The steps outlined in the toolkit encourage the community to play a major role in networking.
The toolkit also pays close attention to sustainability. This means your network won’t just work well the first time, it will continue to get stronger. Consider money issues and how to keep things running smoothly in the long run. Finally, we provide all the technical information you need to build a practical community network.
Each step includes additional reading material to dig deeper into what each person feels is more important to their community network efforts. Following this process will also be helpful for prospective applicants to the Connecting the Unconnected program, which allows organizations to apply for funding to support community network projects.
Check out the Community Network Do-It-Yourself Toolkit to learn how to bring connectivity to your community.
Image © Nyani Quamin
