After working with the Navajo Nation on policy development to enable more infrastructure and community development in Navajo communities , E.J. John, became a Senior Research Analyst at the American Indian Policy Institute (AIPI) at Arizona State University.  In this role, E.J. supports Tribal broadband development and digital equity by providing his knowledge and experience in Tribal and telecommunications policy. 

The AIPI works to ensure that federal and state entities recognize Tribal sovereignty and include Tribal considerations in their policies and programs. Rather than working on behalf of any specific Tribe, AIPI helps bridge the gap between federal agencies and Tribal broadband practitioners.

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What motivated you to enroll in the program?  What challenges were you trying to solve?

Broadband is still a fairly new field for me, and the opportunity to learn about digital equity is what first caught my attention. The course’s focus on bringing in expert practitioners seemed like a great way to learn how to address some of the challenges that I have seen in my own community.

How has the course equipped you with skills to solve those challenges and others?  What capabilities and skills have you learned or sharpened through the course?

The knowledge I gained about collaborating and finding data has helped me craft better policy solutions that account for the needs of Tribal communities. I have also been able to form new partnerships, like the one we started with the National Congress of American Indians to establish the Center for Tribal Digital Sovereignty. The course’s focus on strong community partnerships supported our idea to form this new center that focuses on applying Tribal sovereignty principles to network infrastructure and the data that flows through it.

The course also helped me feel more confident working with information like census data. I have been able to look through award data from some of the federal grant programs to see how the resources have been going to Tribal areas. Unfortunately, the data still misses Tribal communities, but after taking the course I have a better idea of what that missing data is.  

Can you share a specific example or two of how the course content has been directly applicable to your work in digital equity or related areas?

The course had a lot of great examples of community partnerships. That left the biggest impression on me and has inspired me to reach out to groups like the Arizona Telemedicine Council. Telemedicine could be a great asset in many Tribal communities, so a group such as this could support our work to promote digital equity. 

I want to try and do the same with other groups in Arizona to build a supporting network to help Tribes connect to broadband resources.  I am better able to see how digital equity forms the foundation for the work of many other groups who may not seem like they are directly related to digital equity. 

What aspects of the course content did you find most valuable, and why?

Hearing from people working on the ground and case studies were very helpful. It helped me to see what good collaborations look like and what kind of potential partners are out there. 

Working on Tribal broadband and digital equity can feel isolating, but hearing from expert practitioners showed me that these are several levels of commonality and that my work was similar to many who work in diverse communities.

How has the course influenced your approach to creating and supporting digital equity?

It has helped me to see a larger picture when it comes to digital equity issues. Being able to communicate and share information is at the heart of digital equity to ensure that many, if not all, people have a stake. This expands our ability to find innovative ways to promote digital equity. There is potential to include partners outside of broadband and information technology, and there is a lot of equity work in other fields to potentially draw from. 

I can now see digital equity from different perspectives within a community, and try to find new ways to use ideas and resources that already exist.