Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged.
http://www.knightfoundation.org/
The Knight News Challenge accelerates media innovation by funding breakthrough ideas in news and information.
https://www.newschallenge.org/
We recently entered the HOPE project in the Knight News Challenge. We are very excited to learn that the project was chosen as one of the 47 finalists from a total of 620 projects.
A Digital Library Solution for the 4.3 Billion People Who Don't Have Access to the Internet
The HOPE Project is a device that can serve digital content to hundreds of users within a 100-foot radius. No internet connection required.
The Hope project is a solution to the problem of access for the 4.3 Billion people in the world who don't have access to the internet. While the long-term solution to this problem is obviously to grow the internet infrastructure so more people have full access to the internet, this is a very costly and long-range endeavor. The Hope project offers an extremely efficient and cost-effective interim step for providing access to the majority of the world that doesn't have stable access to the internet.
The Hope Project can be loaded with web-based content and deployed to areas where the internet is either inaccessible or unstable. The device creates a 100' radius, walled garden network that can be accessed by anyone with a device that can utilize a wifi connection. These users can then browse, read, and play the content via the internet browser on their device.
The device itself is powered by a combination of battery and solar making it 100% self-sufficient. Content on the device can be updated via a mobile data connection, a locally wifi connected device, or a USB flash drive, making it extremely versatile.
There are two existing solutions to this problem, as detailed below, each with their own challenges.
For one, some programs have attempted to address this problem by creating devices that can only be used by one person, requiring each individual they are serving to have a device with a full version of the digital library loaded. These programs have only had limited success due to the extremely cumbersome process for maintaining and updating content and software (if there is a lab of 30 devices, each one needs to be updated individually). The other issue is that the devices are expensive resulting in them being secured inside a computer lab that is seldom open or accessible.
Secondly, you have traditional paper books. You might think that traditional paper books and local libraries would be the most economical solution to the world's education gap, however, the cost of buying the books, getting them to remote areas, building a library to house them, training local people to manage the library and keep track of the library inventory, is much more costly and difficult than you would expect.
Our solution has one device that holds all of the software and digital content and can be updated and maintained remotely. Anyone with a smartphone or tablet can connect and consume content. Smartphones and tablets are available on the market for $25-$50 each making the program very affordable even if all devices are being provided through the program. The Hope Project device will cost somewhere between $100 and $200.
You can read more about the HOPE project and our entry at:
https://www.newschallenge.org/challenge/how-might-libraries-serve-21st-century-information-needs/submissions/a-digital-library-solution-for-the-4-3-billion-people-who-don-t-have-access-to-the-internet
http://www.knightfoundation.org/
The Knight News Challenge accelerates media innovation by funding breakthrough ideas in news and information.
https://www.newschallenge.org/
We recently entered the HOPE project in the Knight News Challenge. We are very excited to learn that the project was chosen as one of the 47 finalists from a total of 620 projects.
A Digital Library Solution for the 4.3 Billion People Who Don't Have Access to the Internet
The HOPE Project is a device that can serve digital content to hundreds of users within a 100-foot radius. No internet connection required.
The Hope project is a solution to the problem of access for the 4.3 Billion people in the world who don't have access to the internet. While the long-term solution to this problem is obviously to grow the internet infrastructure so more people have full access to the internet, this is a very costly and long-range endeavor. The Hope project offers an extremely efficient and cost-effective interim step for providing access to the majority of the world that doesn't have stable access to the internet.
The Hope Project can be loaded with web-based content and deployed to areas where the internet is either inaccessible or unstable. The device creates a 100' radius, walled garden network that can be accessed by anyone with a device that can utilize a wifi connection. These users can then browse, read, and play the content via the internet browser on their device.
The device itself is powered by a combination of battery and solar making it 100% self-sufficient. Content on the device can be updated via a mobile data connection, a locally wifi connected device, or a USB flash drive, making it extremely versatile.
There are two existing solutions to this problem, as detailed below, each with their own challenges.
For one, some programs have attempted to address this problem by creating devices that can only be used by one person, requiring each individual they are serving to have a device with a full version of the digital library loaded. These programs have only had limited success due to the extremely cumbersome process for maintaining and updating content and software (if there is a lab of 30 devices, each one needs to be updated individually). The other issue is that the devices are expensive resulting in them being secured inside a computer lab that is seldom open or accessible.
Secondly, you have traditional paper books. You might think that traditional paper books and local libraries would be the most economical solution to the world's education gap, however, the cost of buying the books, getting them to remote areas, building a library to house them, training local people to manage the library and keep track of the library inventory, is much more costly and difficult than you would expect.
Our solution has one device that holds all of the software and digital content and can be updated and maintained remotely. Anyone with a smartphone or tablet can connect and consume content. Smartphones and tablets are available on the market for $25-$50 each making the program very affordable even if all devices are being provided through the program. The Hope Project device will cost somewhere between $100 and $200.
You can read more about the HOPE project and our entry at:
https://www.newschallenge.org/challenge/how-might-libraries-serve-21st-century-information-needs/submissions/a-digital-library-solution-for-the-4-3-billion-people-who-don-t-have-access-to-the-internet
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