Indigenous communities face unique challenges to Internet access and inclusion. To address this digital divide, the Internet Society is bringing together community network operators, Internet service providers, community members, researchers, policy makers and Indigenous leadership at Indigenous Connectivity Summits.
Indigenous Connectivity
Including Indigenous voices in the decisions and solutions that shape the Internet is a critical part of closing the connectivity gap in rural and remote communities around the world.
Let’s continue the conversations we’ve started at the Summits! Do you want to connect your Indigenous community? Do you want to support Indigenous connectivity? You can find ever-growing resources on topics including community networks, cultural preservation, and Indigenous-driven access. Although we began this conversation in North America, our hope is that all Indigenous communities around the world will have the opportunity to connect to the Internet.
We published the policy documents where we outline the actions that governments of Canada and the United States can take to ensure that the Internet is for everyone.
Get Involved
There are several ways you can take part:
- Read 2019 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Policy Recommendations
- Participate in FCC Tribal Consultations
- Get Updates from the National Congress of American Indians on Telecom
- Join the National Tribal Telecommunications Association
- Apply for ICANN Global Indigenous Ambassador Program
When it comes to connecting the world, everyone’s voice counts.
Resources
- Watch the recorded Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2020 Livestream
- Watch the recorded Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2019 Livestream
- Watch the recorded Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2018 Livestream
- Understanding Community Broadband: The Alberta Broadband Toolkit
- Free Online Course: Colonialism and the e-Community
- Stories from the First Mile: Digital Technologies in Remote and Rural Indigenous Communities
- Inforum Course: Introduction to Network Operations
- Inforum Course: Building Wireless Community Networks
- Policy Brief: Spectrum Approaches for Community Networks
- Unleashing Community Networks: Innovative Licensing Approaches
- Resources compiled by The Dynamic Coalition on Community Connectivity (DC3)
- Watch the recorded Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2017 livestream
- Read Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2017 presentations
- Watch the 1st-Mile Institute’s video profiles of Indigenous Connectivity Summit 2017 participants
- Federal Communications Commission 2018 Broadband Deployment Report
- Federal Communications Commission 2018 Broadband Progress Report
- Broadband Connectivity in Rural Canada: Overcoming the Digital Divide
- Signs of digital distress: Mapping broadband availability and subscription in American neighborhoods
- Broadband Internet Service Coverage in Canada
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Ensuring every Canadian has access to the Internet
COVID-19 has shed light on an alarming digital divide in Canada.
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Indigenous Connectivity in the United States
Complementary connectivity models can bring affordable and sustainable Internet access to tribal areas across the country.
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2019 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Policy Recommendations
Based on conversation and outcomes from the Summit, 2019 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Policy Advisors developed 8 recommendations to help policymakers...
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2019 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Report
The 2019 Indigenous Connectivity Summit (ICS) was held in Hilo, Hawai’i on November 12 and 13, 2019 to build...
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2018 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Community Report
The 2018 Indigenous Connectivity Summit (ICS) was held in Inuvik, Northwest Territories (NT) on October 11 to 12, 2018...
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2017 Indigenous Connectivity Summit Community Report
Executive Summary The Indigenous Connectivity Summit, held November 8 and 9, 2017, at Hotel Santa Fe in Santa Fe,...
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Innovations in Spectrum Management
The paper makes a detailed survey of the current status of spectrum management in frequency bands used to provide...
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Unleashing Community Networks: Innovative Licensing Approaches
After more than 25 years of Internet development, there still remains a profound connectivity “gap” in many parts of...
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Policy Brief: Spectrum Approaches for Community Networks
Community networks are built and operated by people in the community; they are the result of people working together,...
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A policy framework for enabling Internet access
This policy framework provides recommendations policymakers can use to flexibly create their own Internet-enabling environment.
Indigenous Connectivity in the News
- Why are Indigenous People such avid users of Social Media?
- 2017, Indigenous, Global, culture preservation
- Broadband Bruce: Fighting Canada’s Digital Divide
- Native Communities look to DIY model to get online
- Internet as an act of reconciliation
- Internet Connectivity in Indigenous Communities (Episode 34)
- From the Arctic’s Melting Ice, an Unexpected Digital Hub
- ‘A good start’: High-speed internet to reach 112 rural, remote Manitoba communities
- Federal government urged to address Canada’s $7-billion rural broadband shortfall
Launching the First-Ever Virtual Indigenous Connectivity Summit
Community Networks
1 October 2020
Launching the First-Ever Virtual Indigenous Connectivity Summit
COVID-19 has moved many of our lives online, and our conversations around how to further broadband access are no...
The 2020 Indigenous Connectivity Summit and Trainings: Register Now
Community Networks
12 August 2020
The 2020 Indigenous Connectivity Summit and Trainings: Register Now
People around the world are relying on the Internet to keep them connected to everyday life, but Indigenous communities in North...
Tribal Priority Window Extended to September 2 – But It’s Still Not Enough Time to Connect Indigenous Communities to a Critical Lifeline
Community Networks
31 July 2020
Tribal Priority Window Extended to September 2 – But It’s Still Not Enough Time to Connect Indigenous Communities to a Critical Lifeline
While Indigenous communities across the US battle some of the most brutal COVID-19 mortality rates in the country, they’ve...
Indigenous Connectivity Summit Policy Recommendations: Helping Policymakers Make Inclusive Decisions
Growing the Internet
8 April 2020
Indigenous Connectivity Summit Policy Recommendations: Helping Policymakers Make Inclusive Decisions
As billions of us move into self-isolation, one thing is crystal clear: Internet access is critical. If anyone of us...
‘These Are Our First Roadways’: Internet Access and Self-Determination in Pu’uhonua O Waimanalo
Growing the Internet
14 October 2019
‘These Are Our First Roadways’: Internet Access and Self-Determination in Pu’uhonua O Waimanalo
The establishment of Pu‘uhonua o Waimānalo in 1994 was a significant milestone in the native Hawaiian movement to regain...
Beyond the Palm Trees: Local Action Key to Fast, Affordable and Reliable Internet Solutions in Rural Hawai’i
Community Networks
30 August 2019
Beyond the Palm Trees: Local Action Key to Fast, Affordable and Reliable Internet Solutions in Rural Hawai’i
To many North Americans, Hawai’i is a place of beaches, resorts, surfing, rainforests, and volcanoes — it’s a vacation...
Leading image: Community Networks training program participants and community members in Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories. © 2019 Angela Gzowski