Nuts, Bolts, and Cables: Opportunities in Tribal Broadband
A conversation about the research on tribal broadband and opportunities for tribes to improve their communities’ Internet access. This is the third event in the Center for Indian Country Development’s (CICD’s) 2023 webinar series: Cultivating Native Economies in the 21st Century. The series provides tribal leaders, policymakers, and practitioners with information they can use to strengthen and expand Indian Country economic prosperity.
Internet access connects communities to economic opportunity and vital services. Research from CICD has found that tribal areas have inadequate access to high-speed Internet, known as broadband. Today, new funding and partnership possibilities are opening opportunities for tribes to improve their communities’ digital infrastructure. Seizing these opportunities requires accurate, comprehensive data on the state of broadband across Indian Country.
The webinar will feature research on the tribal digital divide and information on modern broadband policies and programs. Tribal broadband practitioners and federal policymakers will discuss data challenges as well as opportunities for tribal governments to advance their service networks. Presenters and panelists will also explore the connection between tribes’ ability to make decisions about their digital infrastructure and tribal sovereignty. Participants will have the opportunity to share questions as part of a live question-and-answer session.
Speakers include:
- Geoffrey Blackwell (Muscogee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Omaha), National Congress of American Indians
- Valerie Fast Horse (Coeur d’Alene Tribe), Coeur d’Alene Tribe
- Casey Lozar (Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes), CICD, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
- Traci Morris (Chickasaw), American Indian Policy Institute, Arizona State University
- Matthew Rantanen (Cree), Southern California Tribal Chairmen’s Association and Tribal Digital Village
- Steven Shepelwich, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City
- H Trostle (Cherokee Nation), CICD, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
- Danae Wilson (Nez Perce), White House Office of Science and Technology Policy