The Impact of Internet Access in Indigenous Communities in Canada and the United States: An Overview of Findings and Guidelines for Research

The Internet Society commissioned this report to provide an overview of findings to date on the impacts of the Internet in Indigenous communities in Canada and the United States. It begins by summarizing the theory of the role of information, and by extension, information services such as the Internet in the development process, followed by a review and analysis of the available research on the effects of information services for:
• Personal use
• Health care and education
• Business and commercial activities
• Non-profit organizations and local/tribal governments.
This report then examines how online and mobile software and games are being developed to preserve and promote Indigenous languages and to share knowledge of Indigenous cultures, and how Indigenous enterprises and organizations are operating communications networks and providing digital services, concluding with evaluation planning, research design and indicators that could be included in future evaluations of the impact of the Internet in Indigenous communities.

Written by:

Dr. Heather E. Hudson

Professor Emerita, University of San Francisco

Affiliate Professor and Former Director, Institute of Social and Economic Research University of Alaska Anchorage

https://www.internetsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Impact-Indigenous_Communities-EN.pdf