[Changemaker Series] Reimagining the Internet: Conversation With Mike Jensen on Community Power and Digital Inclusion

This is the first blog of our Changemaker Blog series for the Unboxing Tech Toolkit: Unboxing Internet Infrastructures.

In this piece, we share insights from our conversation with Mike Jensen. 

Mike is a pioneer in global connectivity whose work spans over four decades. He is a 2017 Internet Hall of Fame inductee and co-founder of Canada’s first non-profit ISP, The Web. Mike has contributed to work involving community networking and open-access internet development, with experience spanning Africa, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific.

Keeping this in mind, we explore the question of what happens when communities and not just corporations, take the lead in building the digital future.

In this conversation, we explore reframing the definition of sustainability. We observed that for underserved and rural regions, sustainability is defined by affordability and local control, rather than technical infrastructure longevity alone. 

Our conversation with Mike shifted the focus from purely technical network resilience to social and economic viability. It posits that for underserved regions, a network is only truly sustainable if it achieves local autonomy and meets the affordability benchmark of its users, thereby ensuring its long-term adoption where large providers fail. This perspective offers a diverse understanding of not only what sustainability may entail for different communities, but also how locally powered and developed networks could themselves be drivers of sustainability by promoting a need-based frugal infrastructure.

What role do communities play in making internet infrastructures more sustainable, especially in underserved or rural regions?

Mike:

My organisation has shifted its language from "community networks” to “community-centred connectivity initiatives”. This term better captures the diversity of locally led approaches.

These initiatives range from classic cooperative models, where a village or group of villages jointly builds and manages their own network, to NGO led programs that operate at the grassroots level, or municipal connectivity schemes that provide local Wi-Fi hotspots independently from national operators. It is a broad spectrum, as you might have a village that already runs a food co-op or some other collective effort, and they can easily repurpose that structure to manage internet infrastructure. Or you might see municipalities setting up their own local networks that are not tied to big national telcos. 

The goal is local autonomy and sustainability. In regions where large telecoms see little profit in expanding, these small-scale, community-based efforts often become the only viable path to affordable access.

Affordability is a defining fact:

In many of the places we work, people simply can not spend more than one or two dollars a month on internet access. That is the affordability benchmark we aim for. We also prioritise flat rate pricing because when users pay per gigabyte, they ration their use, saving data for emergencies or important calls. Flat rate models free them to explore, learn, and engage fully. This aligns with global standards but reflects the lived reality of affordability. The ITU measures affordability using two gigabytes per month, but the global average consumption is closer to 11 GB. That shows how misleading affordability metrics can be in practice.

Can you highlight some case studies or specific projects that stand out as successful examples of creating sustainable internet infrastructures?

Mike: 

There are several models across the Asia-Pacific that illustrate how communities are driving innovation in connectivity.

From Indonesia, NGO Common Room supports rural communities to be connected. They work in places like Ciptagelar, where they have developed hybrid connectivity models. In Ciptagelar, the municipality uses village funds that allow local authorities to allocate budgets for essential services that support connectivity. Sometimes that means partnering with a private ISP like RWNet, but the community then extends that network into homes themselves. It is a cooperative model built on shared ownership and mutual benefit.

In the Philippines, schools are emerging as powerful catalysts for community internet access. We are seeing schools not only providing connectivity for students but also sharing that access with surrounding communities. This approach transforms educational institutions into community digital centres, offering an anchor point for local innovation.

Another standout initiative is Unconnected.org. Unconnected.org reduces the cost of internet, power, and digital tools by buying technology in bulk and securing subsidies, then passing these savings to local ISPs, NGOs, and schools. They partner with trusted local groups who use these affordable solutions to connect underserved communities. Together, they build sustainable, community-led networks that provide long-term, measurable digital access.

In Nepal, NGOs have developed public access facilities based on similar principles. These centres get free or heavily discounted bandwidth from local ISPs. They act as demonstration sites, showing what is possible while helping ISPs reach new markets. In many cases, these centres become focal points for local development.

It is truly phenomenal how these initiatives work. Each of these initiatives shows that when communities take ownership - whether through co-ops, schools, or small entrepreneurs, the results are both resilient and affordable. This also results in a need-based network that avoids wastage and is frugal in nature, ultimately making it sustainable. 

Given the rapid digitisation and rise of AI in the Asia-Pacific region, how do you see AI contributing to sustainable internet futures?

Mike: 

AI is transforming how people interact with technology and has the potential to make learning, creativity, and problem-solving more inclusive. For instance, seeing people with limited digital literacy learn video editing or software tools just by conversing with ChatGPT is phenomenal.

However, AI also has energy and infrastructure challenges. Running AI models consumes huge amounts of energy. Due to this factor, initiatives in which I have been involved are increasingly integrating connectivity with renewable energy deployment. The cost of powering the network, including charging devices and maintaining access points, can be ten times higher than the connectivity itself.

For communities with limited bandwidth, the future is in localised AI. I have often experimented with small-scale models that can run offline on laptops or even Raspberry Pis. They are slower, but they work, and they can operate in local languages. 

For the understanding of our readers, Raspberry Pi is a tiny, low cost computer that works like a full desktop. It is used for learning coding, building electronics projects, and creating low cost servers or digital tools. Because it is affordable and energy efficient, it is popular in schools, community networks, and DIY tech projects.

Further, given all this, reliability remains a concern. Hallucinations are a real risk with AI. For critical areas like health advice, we might need dual AI systems that cross-check each other’s outputs. Tiny ML (machine learning embedded in small devices) is a promising field. Imagine local AI that interprets environmental data, monitoring soil, air, or water, and shares that knowledge locally. That is powerful for both sustainability and resilience.

What is the best way for youth in APAC to engage in building sustainable internet infrastructures?

Mike: 

Youth is absolutely central to this movement. They are adaptable, tech-savvy, and naturally collaborative, but they often lack entry points.

While our organisation has not focused exclusively on youth, there are growing opportunities for engagement. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) runs excellent youth leadership programs and training courses. Various organisations often partner with the ITU Academy to deliver training courses on community networks. I have been a part of some of these initiatives myself in Latin America and Africa, and we plan to bring them to Asia soon. The demand for these courses is overwhelming; we received over 500 applications immediately after opening the call for the African training. 

Further, the Internet Society (ISOC), which has been active in Asia recently launched a Community Networks Fund. The Community Networks Fund provides grants and technical support to help rural and underserved communities build their own internet infrastructure. This program is especially active across Asia, where ISOC helps enable locally owned and sustainable connectivity.

However, the main barrier is still awareness. Most young people do not even know it is possible to build or manage their own networks. Once that awareness spreads, participation is bound to increase. The importance of supportive regulation can also not be ignored. In Africa and Latin America, it is easier for small-scale operators to get licensed. In the Asia Pacific, the regulatory environment can be restrictive, which limits experimentation. 

Digital sustainability does not only concern using green servers. It includes designing systems and behaviours that minimise waste, promote reuse, and empower local resilience. Knowing how the internet works - its layers, costs, and dependencies helps you make informed, ethical choices as digital citizens. This awareness should also be instilled in youth for them to change their choices over time. 

What are the system-level challenges and gaps in making the internet (and AI) more sustainable?

Mike: 

There are multi-layered challenges from awareness and regulation to technology and policy. On the citizen level, awareness is low. Many people do not realise they can create their own connectivity models. At the policy level, regulatory barriers make it difficult for small or community operators to exist legally. On the industry side, most sustainability efforts are still focused on the Global North. Even when communities have the will, the ecosystem does not always support them. There is a need for funding mechanisms, technical training, and increased collaboration between different stakeholders.

However, we are seeing momentum. Tools like plug-and-play kits, local servers, and renewable-powered hotspots are making deployment easier than ever. 

For the understanding of our readers, plug and play kits are readymade connectivity packages that work as soon as they are powered, with no technical setup required. They usually include preconfigured routers, local servers, or solar powered hotspots. These kits are used across education, healthcare, disaster response, and community networks to deliver rapid, low-barrier connectivity and digital services in resource-constrained settings.

Mike offers incredibly valuable insights for a sustainable digital future. This future is the one that is rooted in community ownership, energy-conscious design, and inclusive participation. As the internet continues to evolve, sustainability will depend not just on technology but on people, communities that see connectivity as a shared, living ecosystem. We must acknowledge that this can be done only through collaboration, awareness, and innovation across various stakeholders.