Colnodo, an organisation based in Colombia, has been working for many years to facilitate communication among local, national and international organisations through low-cost electronic networks. So many years, in fact, that this month it turns 30.
To mark its anniversary, Colnodo is planning an event called Thirty years weaving opportunities: Celebrating Colnodo’s impact on social development and digital inclusion, which will include panel discussions on technological innovations for the social development and empowerment of diverse populations through digital technologies. The event will also feature music, traditional dances, and an Entrepreneurship Fair hosted by women trained by the organisation.
APC reached out to Colnodo to congratulate one of our network’s oldest members on this milestone anniversary and talk about its work.
In 30 years you must have done a lot. What do you remember from the early days, at the dawn of the internet, and how has your work changed over these decades?
This celebration of our 30 years has been an opportunity to look back and reflect on our history. Colnodo began its activities in the year 1992 with the goal of facilitating communication among organisations working for development, by providing access to online documentation centres, email services, discussion forums, a directory of social organisations, access to conferences, and discussion lists. Those first steps were possible thanks to visionaries, particularly in APC, who realised how technology could facilitate and enhance the work carried out by organisations. That year we came up with the idea of creating a node in Colombia that would replicate the Antenna Technologies experience in the Netherlands.
Shortly after, we began operating with just one personal computer with no hard disk, using a 1,200-baud modem, which, at that time, was considered advanced technology. Despite these limitations, we established a system that allowed some 30 Colombian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and several documentation centres to connect and begin exchanging information through the network. We had no internet connection back then; we connected through an x25 network, a very expensive network used primarily by banks. This led us to work with APC in search of communication alternatives with some of its members, and, at that time, we found that the Institute for Global Communications in San Francisco, California, was the best option.
In 1993 Colnodo became a member of APC, thanks to the support of Brazil’s Alternex, headed by Carlos Afonso, thus consolidating its position as a key player in the global democratisation of information. Some time later, with the emergence of the internet in Colombia in the year 1996, Colnodo quickly adapted to the new technologies, migrating its servers to Linux platforms to provide low-cost services to a growing community of users. Those early years were instrumental in establishing Colnodo as a pioneer in the use of technology for social development, thanks to the support of its founding organisations, proving that technology is a powerful ally in the struggle for social justice and community-based development.
Our work has been continuously changing. I believe Colnodo is an organisation that has evolved along with the internet, at the same pace, adapting over the course of these 30 years to those changes. This has been possible because we have been able to interact with organisations around the world, especially with APC members, and with other allied organisations, allowing us to identify the best strategies so that technology can continue to be an ally of development. Hence our slogan: “Strategic use of the internet for development.” We have always focused our efforts on finding new alternatives and strategies that will enable us, through our projects, to bring information and communication technologies (ICTs) to communities that have not yet benefited from the full potential the internet offers for furthering social justice and improving their living conditions.
What challenges have you encountered in recent years in the country and the region where you focus your work?
Here I would like to mention the work we have been doing to develop community networks, which has to do with our efforts in connection with the Local Networks (LocNet) initiative and APC. Since 2017, we have resumed our connectivity work to support communities, especially in remote rural areas, to enable them to have a quality internet connection. The internet has been available in Colombia for over 25 years now and many of these communities are still under-connected or not connected at all. We believe it is through community networks that we can bring quality connectivity that will allow communities to harness the full potential of the internet, and we see how technologies that use the mobile communication spectrum, for example, can be a factor in helping to bring the internet to those remote communities located in geographically difficult areas. Unfortunately, in Colombia access to the IMT (international mobile telecommunications) spectrum is only possible through auctions. We are asking the national government to facilitate access to this spectrum to enable the deployment of networks using LTE (long-term evolution) technology in remote areas. These technologies, which are usually only available to large corporations, would allow us to build more reliable and easy-to-manage networks. Gaining access to this spectrum for community networks is a goal for which we have been working and which can contribute to improving people’s living conditions through internet access.
Working in partnership is critical for this purpose. In this sense, through LocNet and with the support of Rhizomatica, we have been making progress in the drafting of a proposed regulation aimed at facilitating access to the spectrum. We are doing this also with the help of the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL), and funding from the Internet Society (ISOC) Foundation, through the project “Connecting Disconnected Communities: Implementing Community Networks Using the IMT Spectrum”.
What would you say is the most important lesson you have learned over these 30 years?
Thirty years is a long time for an organisation such as Colnodo, considering that that is almost as long as the internet has been available on our planet. I think the main lesson that we have learned is that we need to work in partnership with multiple organisations and participate in initiatives that share the values and principles that have allowed us to keep going throughout all these years.
This work through civil society organisations has made it possible to contribute to different internet governance spaces. That has allowed us to have a say in how we should address the challenges that arise in the use of new technologies and how they affect human rights, the right to privacy, and online safety, so that the internet is useful and safe for everyone.
The ownership processes that are necessary for an effective use of the internet are another element that has contributed to achieve a better use of the internet and has helped expand the opportunities for communities to access training processes through the web.
Being part of initiatives that foster transparency in our day-to-day activities, such as ONGs por la Transparencia (NGOs for Transparency), have firmly consolidated Colnodo, and have led to its becoming an organisation that is entrusted with managing resources for internet governance initiatives in Colombia and Latin America and the Caribbean with LACIGF (the Latin American and Caribbean Internet Governance Forum).
Participating in initiatives such as the Internet Governance Forum and in global campaigns to foster the safe and strategic use of the internet by communities with limited access has been key in our development. These experiences have enabled us not only to leverage the potential of the internet to improve living conditions, but also to adapt to emerging risks. Our participation in campaigns such as APC’s Take Back the Tech!, aimed at preventing violence against women in digital spaces, has also been particularly significant.
Using the internet challenges us and invites us to reflect on the health of our planet. Climate change and the excessive consumption of energy to maintain telecommunications infrastructures, as well as artificial intelligence platforms, have a major impact on the environment. At Colnodo, we work to mitigate that impact through the installation of solar energy systems in our data centre, which has allowed us to considerably lower our energy consumption and contribute to reducing our carbon footprint. We hope that by sharing these experiences we can inspire others to implement actions to reduce their environmental impact.
What is Colnodo’s perspective for the future?
Over the coming years, Colnodo will focus on continuing with its work in digital inclusion, sustainability, and strategic collaboration to bring about significant changes in rural and urban communities. One of our priorities will be to further strengthen our role as ISOC Foundation Fiscal Sponsors, monitoring projects to enhance digital literacy and improve the living conditions of participants.
We will continue to pursue partnerships with both local and international organisations towards expanding our collaboration in the development of the Community Network School, a space that seeks to train individuals and communities interested in developing and implementing their own networks. In this context, we will also offer virtual courses, such as the GIS (Geographic Information Systems) for Environmental Activists course and the ICTs and the Environment course, which are part of the Sustainable Development Network (Red de Desarrollo Sostenible, or RDS). These programmes promote the strategic use of technology to address environmental challenges.
As part of our commitment to strengthening community networks, we will continue to pursue partnerships at the national and international levels to support the establishment of new networks in rural areas and to improve existing ones, and we will work to gain access to the IMT mobile communications spectrum to enhance the sustainability of community networks.
Colnodo will also continue with its role in the Secretariat of the Latin American and Caribbean Internet Governance Forum. This space will be critical for advancing the discussion on internet governance in the region, which is a central issue for what we do.
We want to enhance our service offering, including by implementing online training processes, developing educational content, and facilitating virtual resources, thus contributing to digital capacity building in different sectors. Along with this, we will remain committed to providing in-person training for women entrepreneurs in rural areas, to enhance their digital skills and promote the growth of their businesses.
The working environment at Colnodo will continue to be a space of collaboration, harmony and personal growth, where all members of our team are able to explore and deploy their talents to successfully carry out our projects. We will also continue to participate in discussion forums and spaces where we can have a say in rural connectivity, gender-responsive digital inclusion, internet governance, and digital safety, among other issues, thus maintaining our leading position in these fields.
With these actions, we aim to reassert Colnodo’s commitment to a more inclusive, safe and sustainable digital future, focusing always on the well-being of the communities and on reducing our environmental footprint.