Wireless Internet in Abbey Court Project Update

Technology without Borders (which started an adult computer literacy program for University employees. It matches student volunteers with employees who want to improve their computer skills) is working toward getting wireless internet service in Abbey Court. They finished their first grant for funding (Sea Graves Grant Application). They were very hands on with their committee members, inviting all of their members to take part in creating the best grant possible to ensure that they received the funds. They are now waiting to hear back as far as I know (from the Community Grants Committee). Tech without Borders is also working with Digital Literacy Committee and Project Homeless Connect. They have been invited by SITCH (formerly HOPE through the Campus Y) to join forces.

Tech without Borders Justification:
“Despite the relative affluence of the Chapel Hill/Carrboro, NC area, many of our neighbors remain stuck on the disconnected side of the digital divide, without regular access to a computer in their home, no options for affordable internet service, and a lack of training on how computers can have meaningful use for their individual circumstances. While non-profit and municipal organizations have worked to address different facets of this problem, their efforts have often fallen short of their objectives. The fundamental reason for this is the chicken-and-egg problem of computers, internet access, and digital literacy training: having access to any one or two of these is largely useless without the third. Our project attacks this problem all three fronts, with computer donations to families in need, digital literacy training for those families, and the development of a community wireless network to provide low-cost internet access comprising a holistic, community-based approach of closing the digital divide among low- and no-income groups. We have identified in our area a community that faces these issues acutely, Abbey Court. This apartment complex is home to some of the poorest residents of Carrboro, largely Latino immigrants or Burmese refugees. Unemployment is rife, and all too often the residents face racial discrimination without any real means of recourse. We hope that our project will not only prove instructive to the Internet community’s efforts to close the digital divide, but also serve to ameliorate some of the suffering faced by this community by connecting them—both literally and figuratively—to the opportunities the Internet can provide.”

Objective:
The primary objective of this project is to serve as a pilot project for equipping low-income communities in our area and across the U.S. with internet connectivity, computers, and the necessary training to utilize digital technology. We will be using the ISOC grant to provide free or low-cost internet connectivity for the community of Abbey Court (Carrboro, NC) and build the organizational framework and expertise needed to replicate the project throughout Orange County. The combination of internet connectivity, donated computers, and training preformed by volunteers will allow our clients to more effectively communicate with friends and family, work on homework, and search for jobs, in addition to more easing engagement with local government and access local health services. We also seek to develop a better understanding of usage patterns, attitudes to technology and technology service projects, and best practices for ICT-related projects in low-income communities.

Method:

TWB will solicit donations of used computers from area businesses and individuals. TWB volunteers, many of whom are experienced with refurbishing computers for donation, will ensure the machines work properly, load the appropriate software onto the machine (currently planning to use Ubuntu), and prepare the machines to be used in a client’s living room. Our digital literacy workshop subcommittee will coordinate an application process for distributing these machines, as well as training sessions based on our organization’s standard curriculum for digital literacy workshops.We plan to build a mesh network that uses a three-tiered design that has been utilized in other successful large-scale Open-Mesh deployments.
Connected to our two internet uplinks will be a “backhaul” network consisting of high-power point to point links provided by the EnGenius routers. Connected to the backhaul network will be “supernodes” located in within line of sight of as many other mesh nodes as possible. Finally, mesh nodes in clients’ apartments will connect to these highly-visible “supernodes” and provide service to the clients’ apartment, as well as neighboring apartments. Payment for access will be managed with a RADIUS AAA server, which is supported by the Open-Mesh firmware. We envision payment for access being on a “pay as you can” scale, with community members able to perform volunteer work for the project in lieu of payment; this is described in more detail below. Our network management software will also enable us to track usage statistics on our network, as well as identify and document technical problems.
In conjunction with our community partner, the Human Rights Center, we will distribute a total of four surveys to gauge penetration of and attitudes toward computers and internet in the community; we’ll also use these as a vehicle to improve the quality of service we are able to offer our clients. Finally, towards the end of our project, we will perform a qualitative study of the effects of our project on the residents through interviews with community members. All data acquired in our project will be made public whenever possible to provide lessons for the larger Internet community.





Tech without Borders is encountering the common problem when trying to get cheap wireless internet service in needy neighborhoods: it is regarded as unfair and the competition/other wireless companies do not look favorably upon this, because they see themselves losing business/profits. Many do not agree with supplying communities with affordable (also known as extremely cheap) wireless internet access. In Chicago, some people are using a building near the Sears Tower as a base for the main internet connection and intend on connecting it to nearby disadvantaged communities, in order to supply them with cheap wireless internet service. Although many areas encounter much backlash and opposition in trying to do this, it appears as if in this case in Chicago, the proponents of affordable wireless internet service may win.