Our cookbook, Recipes for a Digital Revolution, features 10 inspiring digital rights campaigns from Latin America in the form of recipes.
Objective: To create community mobile phone networks in rural areas not covered by telecommunications companies.
Serving: 3,000
Ingredients:
- Villages with no cell phone coverage
- Radio spectrum that can be used for community initiatives
- Manuals, open source software and network equipment
- A plan for installation, maintenance and repair of technology
- Community members trained to do maintenance
Cooking directions:
Gather the know-how and funds (around $7,500) to build a local mobile network that offers free or inexpensive calls within a local community, and long distance calls over the Internet. If needed, team up with a lawyer to get radio spectrum designated for community initiatives.
Who did this?
Rhizomatica created 19 cell phone networks in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico serving 3,000 people. And they helped change national telecommunications regulation.
When? Since 2012
Link: Rhizomatica.org
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