Building Resiliency to COVID-19 and Future Pandemics by Closing the Digital Divide in Native American Communities and Across Tribal Nations

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT 

The project aims to tackle the issue of broadband access inequality in North America, which has disproportionately disadvantaged Native Americans and First Peoples. After the successful establishment of a Tribal Resource Center (TRC), a center that provides targeted and appropriate support for Tribal leaders seeking to engage in the space of information and communications technologies (ICTs), this project seeks to build upon that work.  

To close the digital divide, it is necessary to bring more Tribes online and maintain their online presence after the initial network has been built. The TRC serves as a hub and helpdesk but ultimately aims to become a self-sufficient community that provides peer assistance. To achieve this, it is important to create and curate high-quality, relevant content and increase outreach, network weaving, and engagement. The ultimate goal is to establish a TRC for all tribes and to enable tribes to help each other through peer-to-peer learning. 

WHY IS THIS PROJECT IMPORTANT? 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Native American communities were hit particularly hard as they had limited access to medical care and information due in part to a lack of access to broadband Internet. This also affected students, for whom remote education was not possible.  

Broadband access is essential to community resilience, enabling tribes to recover more quickly from the pandemic and better navigate future disruptions. By providing access to broadband, tribes can access telemedicine, remote learning, workforce development, public safety, and better public health, as well as more community connections, all of which contribute to their overall resilience.