How to use local WiFi networks to engage communities
How to use local WiFi networks to engage communities
Simon Galperin · November 20, 2018
A portable network kit developed by PNK for deployment by emergency first responders. (Photo from PNK)
Two major challenges in community engagement are reach and activation.
Individuals and organizations need to figure out how to make contact with a member of their community and get them involved in their cause.
The typical way to reach and activate people living in a geographic area is direct mail, texting, micro-targeting, and canvassing. But public WiFi networks create additional opportunities.
WiFi networks are known for connecting people to the Internet but that’s not all they do. Local WiFi networks can host chat rooms, websites, and provide cloud storage all without connecting to the Internet.
When Puerto Ricans lost power during Hurricane Maria in 2017, some launched local WiFi networks with portable network kits to communicate with each other to share information and coordinate local relief efforts.
Residents in Red Hook, Brooklyn launched mesh networks, during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Since then, other neighborhoods in New York City have launched their own wireless networks in preparation for the next storm.
Those networks are built to share wireless access to the Internet during power outages through strategically placed modems and repeaters powered by alternative energy.
Here are a few ways you might use a local WiFi network to reach your community:
You’re a news organization with a paywall but wants to make sure its reporting reaches communities who have lesser means. You can launch a local WiFi network to give residents in a particular neighborhood access to your content through that network. This can also serve as your connection to an underserved community.
You want to engage a geographic community you cannot otherwise reach. You can setup and promote a local WiFi network that people could join to connect with you and each other.
You’re a subscription or membership organization and want to promote opportunities to join. You can sponsor the WiFi at a local coffee shop. Customers can be introduced to your work and encouraged to become a member.
Your community doesn’t have broadband access. You can facilitate the development of a mesh network to take existing Internet connections and make sure signals reach the community you serve.
You want to make your community’s physical environment more interactive. Create WiFi hotspots at locations of interest where people can learn about historic or cultural value of the place they’re visiting.
Considering how physical location can be used to create positive digital interactions is critical to reaching geographic communities. Public WiFi networks are one way to facilitate that connection. And connection is a critical component of good public service.