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Ilustration: Sonaksha Iyengar

Welcome to the 30th monthly round-up of developments impacting your local access networks.

We have created a new platform for community networks to share our experiences and grow together. Please join us at: https://communitynetworks.group/

APC shares highlights of its work to promote affordable and sustainable connectivity between 2016 and 2019. Read more.

Events and conferences
  • A partnership between IBEBrasil and ISOC Brazil is offering a course on regulation of community networks. Read more.

  • Battlemesh v13 will be happening online this year on 14 November. Read more.

  • Reclaiming Digital Infrastructure for the Public Interest is a three-part series to build awareness, intention and engagement in an ecosystem of ideas and practices that could bring into being digital infrastructure that aligns with community aspirations, protects personal and group safety, and prioritises people, communities and a public good. Read more.

Resources from past events
  • This year's Summit on Community Networks in Africa is being held virtually in the form of five webinars. Two have already taken place, but there are still three more to come! Read more.

  • The Rural ICT Camp hosted by Common Room from Indonesia was held earlier this month. You can check out the presentations here. Read more.

  • The reports from the last Inter-American Telecommunication Commission meeting, where community networks were discussed, are now available here. Read more.

  • The India School on Internet Governance featured a presentation by Sarbani Belur on community networks. Read more.

  • The Kenyan School of Internet Governance featured a number of topics related to community networks, such as local content. Read more.

  • At the last Kenyan Network Operators Group gathering, a webinar was hosted about wireless ISPs and community networks. Read more.

Community networks in news and blogs
  • KICTANet has featured the work of Zenzeleni as part of a series of blog posts about community networks. Read more.

  • Connecting Bhutan's remote locations with TV white space. Read more.

  • Lilian Achom shares her journey with AfChix, which includes her appreciation for four women-led community networks. Read more.

  • The Internet Society Foundation announced their Beyond the Net grants results, with funding awarded to five projects related to community networks. Read more.

  • Coolab shares a photo shoot of their process of building bamboo towers. Read more.

News on policy and regulation
  • Expanding the telecommunications operators ecosystem: Policy and regulatory guidelines to enable local operators. Read more.

  • Factual and legal considerations aimed at recognising community networks in Colombia. Read more.

Research
  • This paper considers the problem of router node placement (WMN-RNP) in wireless mesh networks. Read more.

Tools and toolkits
  • Check out this YouTube channel for tutorials about self-hosting services for your networks. Read more.

  • Guidelines and FAQs for audiovisual productions from a community network perspective. Read more.

  • Preliminary study on the use of bamboo in community networks. Read more.

Funding opportunities
  • USAID's WomenConnect Challenge is open for applications for funding to close the gender digital divide. Read more.

Previous editions
  • Previous editions of this newsletter are available here.

This newsletter is part of the Local Networks (LocNet) initiative, an initiative led by APC in partnership with Rhizomatica that aims to directly support the work of community networks and to contribute to an enabling ecosystem for the emergence and growth of community networks and other community-based connectivity activities in developing countries. You can read more about the initiative herehere, and here

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One more thing! If you have comments about the newsletter or information relevant to the topic that you would like us to include in the next edition, please share it with us at localaccess.newsletter@apc.org.