2nd round of broadband mapping town hall meetings set next week

One Economy, in cooperation with the Department of Commerce, BroadMap LLC, and the New America Foundation, will be conducting a second round of village/town hall meetings to present and discuss the recent completion of the CNMI Broadband Mapping Community Survey.

Residents of CNMI reported significant barriers to broadband adoption, especially cost and availability. According to residents, there are significant areas that are completely unserved by broadband, notably on the islands of Tinian and Rota; however, residents of Tinian and Rota place a high importance on having the Internet at home. As a result, there are residents who would like to subscribe to the Internet that are not being served.

One Economy wants to share these findings with community members and receive feedback on the results. “We would really like residents’ help to fill in the gaps in the data, because we know that a survey and numbers are only going to tell part of the story,” said Daniel Calarco, director of International Programs for One Economy.

Thomas J. Camacho, CNMI Community Liaison for One Economy, will be conducting the meeting and presenting the Community Survey findings.

The meeting dates, time and location are as follows:

– Monday, April 23, 2012, 6pm at the cafeteria, Dandan Elementary School, Dandan Village

– Wednesday, April 25, 2012, 6pm at the cafeteria, Kagman High School, Kagman III Village

– Thursday, April 26, 2012, 6pm at the cafeteria, GTC Elementary School, San Roque Village

– Friday, April 27, 2012, 6pm at the Cafeteria, Tanapag Elementary School, Tanapag Village

The public’s attendance and participation in this community engagement will help map Internet access, usage and attitudes. One lucky attendee will have a chance to win a Cisco Flip Video Ultra HD. Refreshments will be served.

The program is part of an initiative of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to develop and maintain a comprehensive, interactive, and searchable nationwide map of existing broadband capability and availability throughout each state or territory. In addition, One Economy aims to improve broadband adoption in CNMI by better understanding the barriers to adopting broadband that residents may face. (One Economy)