Local Connectivity Lab

The pandemic has shown us that affordable, quality Internet access is a vital utility that our marginalized communities in Seattle and King County are not receiving.

The Seattle Community Network aims to close this gap by working with local organizations and volunteers to build community-owned infrastructure for internet access, or “community networks.” Our (501c3) nonprofit the Local Connectivity Lab partners with local neighborhood orgs to set up Internet access sites. We use open-source 4G LTE cellular networks, reaching up to a mile in coverage range. We also train up community members and local youth on the high-tech skills needed to build and maintain these networks, thus bringing power to the people.

Our Goals

While we have some initial funding from King County and the City of Seattle to start building these networks, we still have a couple of unmet funding needs:

1. Equipment for new sites. We currently have a network running on the Filipino Community Center roof in South Seattle, however it only provides partial coverage to the neighborhood. We need another antenna that points in the opposite direction to cover other low-income housing and homeless shelters. Our target budget is $10k.

2. Teaching and outreach. We’re looking to expand our existing Digital Stewards training program, developed with the Black Brilliance Research Project, to youth and the wider community. This requires teaching equipment, materials, and compensation for our instructors. Our target budget is $10k.

3. Nonprofit expenses. Our grants cover equipment, but we also need to cover administrative expenses such as legal and accounting fees, and our target is $5k.

Donate to our Gofundme campaign here!

You can also find out more and volunteer at seattlecommunitynetwork.org.

Thank you to all our partners, including the Black Brilliance Research Project, API Chaya, For Forty Two, Tacoma Cooperative Network, Althea, Filipino Community Center, Cham Refugee Community, Breakfast Group, Tacoma Public Library, Seattle Public Schools, Seattle IT, King County Library System, and the University of Washington.