Primary Investigator:

Alison Powell, Concordia University

Partnering Organizations:

Acorn Active Media Foundation; Ethos Group

Comprehensive data on broadband initiatives (on such issues as roll-out plans, structure, and access policies) is often unavailable, even at the local level.  This hampers local decision makers and the press.  With this grant, Acorn Active Media Foundation and researcher Alison Powell will survey several public interest researchers and academics who track local broadband initiatives.  Confirmed project partners, including the Ethos Group, the Association for Community Networking, the Institute for Local Self Reliance, and the New America Foundation, have agreed to be interviewed and to share their current data collection practices, data categories, rational, and related policies.  Partners will also provide feedback on the data profiles of other organizations and provide input in the development of a data model/taxonomy.  Acorn Active Media Foundation will publish the resulting data model and maintain a publicly searchable dataset based on that model.  Prospects for deeper data coordination may include direct query of the dataset as a Web service and data sharing between trusted sources.  By establishing a standard data  framework that will allow for coordinated collection of data on local communications infrastructure initiatives, the project will reduce redundant efforts and allow for ongoing maintenance of a more extensive public dataset.