UBER update, 29Nov08
UNIVERSAL BROADBAND FOR A RURAL REGION

A rural universal broadband initiative originated in 2008 through discussions by regional economic development leaders at meetings of the Southwest Wisconsin Economic Development Council (SWEDC). The mission of the SWEDC is to bring together the economic development organizations of Grant, Iowa, Green, Lafayette and Richland Counties. However, there are no fixed geographic boundaries for UBER and the UBER initiative welcomes contacts from supporters and prospective partners.

Forwarding this update is encouraged, especially to those who may be stuck with dial-up!

TIPS for those with Dial-up
We apologize if this email took a long time for you to load because you're using dial-up service. UBER is about the need for better parity for all taxpayers and community members to receive online health care, education and other government services. For example, as rural Job Center offices are being closed, dial-up users may benefit from these tips when using the Virtual Job Center. Other resources for dial-up users include: http://www.trilliumfoundation.org/cms/en/dial_tips.aspx and http://grainstoves.net/dial-up_tips.html.

UBER REQUEST TO COMMERCE
On October 22, UBER reps met with Wisconsin Department of Commerce and Wisconsin Public Service Commission reps. An UBER memo that borrows from the Connect Kentucky and Connected Nation models asked whether Commerce would consider a Community Development Block Grant for Public Facilities (CDBG-PF) for an UBER initiative. Commerce assures us a response is forthcoming and we’ll share that with UBER supporters when it's received.

NO WORKER LEFT OFF-LINE
The search continues for strategic partners to move forward with a universal broadband initiative. SWEDC discussions identified WIRED as an appropriate prospective funding partner. An initial contact was made November 6 to the WIRED Leadership Caucus. An intent of the federal WIRED grant is to fund innovative infrastructure development projects and programming with lasting impacts for the region. The next meeting of the Leadership Caucus, in January 2009, may provide an opportunity to advocate for WIRED support of a rural broadband initiative.

No Worker Left Off-Line (memo attached) includes the basic goals and tasks in UBER’s request to Commerce. The memo explains why rural universal broadband is, to a great extent, a workforce issue, and why it is a good fit for two of the WIRED strategies, to "expand distance learning capacity", and to innovate "new system development related projects."

The Federal Broadband Data Improvement Act
Although the final version passed by Congress recently deleted $40 million to implement much of its goals, the bill will still provide some important steps and it represents acknowledgment that availability of affordable, real broadband is a national concern. Read all about it HERE, including a link to the text of the bill.

Lemonweir Valley Telephone Company installing Fiber to the Home (FTTH) 
Cooperatives and small telco’s like Lemonweir are often the leaders to extend real broadband choices to rural communities like Camp Douglas, New Lisbon and Hustler: http://www.lemonweirtel.com/. Developing plans that have buy-in from the private and public sector, a goal of initiatives like UBER, would help in pursuit of the goal of universal broadband.

Yes, UBER is a word:
Merriam Webster: über- Function: prefix Etymology: German, from über over, beyond, from Old High German ubar 1 : being a superlative example of its kind or class : Super-übernerd 2 : to an extreme or excessive degree : Super- übercool