Connecting
the Unconnected
Community networks help bridge the connectivity gap.
The Internet makes it possible to connect to education, work, and each other. We are at our very best when this happens. But not everyone has equal access to the opportunities the Internet brings. We need solutions where the people who use the Internet are empowered to bring it to those who don’t. Community networks can help. A community network is when individuals come together to establish and maintain an Internet connection themselves. Internet by the people, for the people.
![students at a class](https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Nepal-students-min.jpg)
Growing the Internet
We’re helping close the global digital divide by:
- Supporting initiatives to deploy Internet infrastructure to connect those who need it most
- Supporting the development of local technical skills
- Promoting more favorable policies on licensing, spectrum, and public funding for community networks
- Working with partners to identify and leverage funding opportunities for local infrastructure
Get Involved
![kids looking at computer screen smiling](https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/kids-in-front-computer-450x201.jpg)
![Women in the DDCN training course getting hands-on experience with hardware.](https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/hands-on-ddcn-training.jpg)
![a group of women surfing the Internet in a huge conference room](https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NANUM-ladies-small.jpg)
![four men sitting on the ground and talking](https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Builders-small.jpeg)
Latest News
New York City Groups Take Broadband into Their Own Hands
New Case Study: The Impact of a Community Network on Improving Education in Pakistan
Learning by Doing: Have You Heard of the Suusamyr Community Network in Kyrgyzstan?
Third Summit on Community Networks in Africa a Success
Indigenous Access: “We Haven’t Reached Our Full Potential”
Resources
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Image copyrights:
© Nyani Quarmyne, © Nyani Quarmyne, © Nyani Quarmyne, © Gagny Traoré, © Gustavo Castellanos Echazú, © Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF)