Salamanca: Just one Click away from the World
At Union we got wireless internet everywhere. Library, dorms, houses, classrooms… We are just one click away from the rest of the world. Imagine that same thing all over Schenectady. Can you realize how it would improve the Schenectady’s quality of life? Education, Health Care, Government bureaucracy and telecommunications would become much more fast and easy.
This thought bears from two major events which happened these past couple of weeks. First Google announced the implementation of WiFi all over Mountain View, California. This 70 thousand people city is located in the heart of Silicon Valley and there is where Google Inc. has its headquarters. This free access network not only will help Google itself, but Mountain View’s whole community. This is the first American city with broad band for everyone.
Last Monday September 4th, a Chilean senator, Fernando Flores (in Wikipedia), brought up Mountain View in Salamanca, a small 25 thousand people town in the Coquimbo Region in Chile (about 200 miles northern from Santiago, Chile’s capital city). He spoke to 2.500 people in the municipal gym, among who we found the Chilean President, Ms. Michele Bachelet, the major of Salamanca, Mr. Gerardo Rojas, several senators, members of the Parliament, State secretaries, business men and women, lots of journalists and, of course, the very inhabitants of Salamanca. What brought all these people together?
Salamanca is the first city in the world with free wireless internet access. It is so since a month ago when 11 antennas were installed covering the entire urban area of Salamanca. Last Monday, this project “Salamanca flies with internet” (English for “Salamanca vuela con Internet”) was inaugurated, “but not finished -stated Mr. Flores-, this is just the beginning. We have to keep educating the people of Salamanca; it’s worthless to be connected if no one knows how to use the Internet”.
That is the second edge of the project -the first is, of course the technical approach, I mean, installing the antennas-: educating. According to Andrea Salinas, from the Mercator Foundation, Volunteers -for the most part, college students- dedicated their winter break (in July) to digitally alphabetize 309 inhabitants of Salamanca, and they are waiting founding to proceed in September with a huge alphabetization campaign which goal is to educate 4800 people, about 20% of the total population in around 4 months.
The Mercator Foundation (English for Fundación Mercator) is commanded by Mr. Flores, leaded the project, together with Salamanca’s City Hall, the mining company Los Pelambres and D-Link who provided the technological supplies. “This is how -said the President, Ms. Bachelet- both business and Government, together with citizens institutions, merge towards building a better country”. This is a major event in Chile’s history. This is the first city with WiFi, but there is already 15 other interested, including Puerto Montt, a 176.000 inhabitants city.
After Mountain View, Google said “it has no plans for national WiFi service”, according to the New York Times (August 16th, 2006). Down here, after Salamanca, we do.
This thought bears from two major events which happened these past couple of weeks. First Google announced the implementation of WiFi all over Mountain View, California. This 70 thousand people city is located in the heart of Silicon Valley and there is where Google Inc. has its headquarters. This free access network not only will help Google itself, but Mountain View’s whole community. This is the first American city with broad band for everyone.
Last Monday September 4th, a Chilean senator, Fernando Flores (in Wikipedia), brought up Mountain View in Salamanca, a small 25 thousand people town in the Coquimbo Region in Chile (about 200 miles northern from Santiago, Chile’s capital city). He spoke to 2.500 people in the municipal gym, among who we found the Chilean President, Ms. Michele Bachelet, the major of Salamanca, Mr. Gerardo Rojas, several senators, members of the Parliament, State secretaries, business men and women, lots of journalists and, of course, the very inhabitants of Salamanca. What brought all these people together?Salamanca is the first city in the world with free wireless internet access. It is so since a month ago when 11 antennas were installed covering the entire urban area of Salamanca. Last Monday, this project “Salamanca flies with internet” (English for “Salamanca vuela con Internet”) was inaugurated, “but not finished -stated Mr. Flores-, this is just the beginning. We have to keep educating the people of Salamanca; it’s worthless to be connected if no one knows how to use the Internet”.
That is the second edge of the project -the first is, of course the technical approach, I mean, installing the antennas-: educating. According to Andrea Salinas, from the Mercator Foundation, Volunteers -for the most part, college students- dedicated their winter break (in July) to digitally alphabetize 309 inhabitants of Salamanca, and they are waiting founding to proceed in September with a huge alphabetization campaign which goal is to educate 4800 people, about 20% of the total population in around 4 months.The Mercator Foundation (English for Fundación Mercator) is commanded by Mr. Flores, leaded the project, together with Salamanca’s City Hall, the mining company Los Pelambres and D-Link who provided the technological supplies. “This is how -said the President, Ms. Bachelet- both business and Government, together with citizens institutions, merge towards building a better country”. This is a major event in Chile’s history. This is the first city with WiFi, but there is already 15 other interested, including Puerto Montt, a 176.000 inhabitants city.
After Mountain View, Google said “it has no plans for national WiFi service”, according to the New York Times (August 16th, 2006). Down here, after Salamanca, we do.
visits so far.
