Internet to the Hogan
A Cisco news release on the deployment of an IP network for the Navajo Nation.
Promise Of 'Internet To The Hogan' Begins Delivery Of Key Services To
Remote Navajo
Nation. Window Rock Chapter House Serves as Model for IP
Benefits Via Cisco Network.
ALBUQUERQUE, NM, April 18, 2006 - Cisco today announced the
completion of the initial
implementation of the first IP network for the Navajo Nation. The
entire IP network of 660
phones will eventually serve all 110 chapter houses of this 27,000
square mile, three-state nation, much of which is still not served by
electricity or paved roads. Cisco made the announcement at its
"Connected Communities" event today in Albuquerque highlighting the
community benefits being delivered by Internet Protocol, or IP,
capabilities, to a range of public and private sector
organizations.
Cisco is continuing to work with the Navajo Nation of 250,000
citizens to bring a range of
benefits to this remote and underserved population. The "Internet to
the Hogan" is an overall initiative to drive connectivity to families
in remote areas, including to Chapter Houses and the hogan, which is a
traditional Navajo dwelling. Before the introduction of the IP network,
Nation residents had to spend up to 12 hours traveling great distances
just for access to social, health, educational and informational
services. Now with the roll-out of this network, expected to be fully
complete in the next 12 months, Navajo Nation residents will have quick
and easier access to numerous services using voice, video and data on a
single line, all at a greatly reduced cost:
* Distance learning teleconferencing will feature classes from the
major universities near the Nation, including Arizona State University,
University of Arizona, University of New Mexico and the University of
Utah.
* Telemedicine will allow medical patients to receive superior
health care via access to
doctors in numerous large medical facilities in larger urban
areas.
* School children who travel as much as four hours daily on a bus to
attend school will have after-hours access to the Internet for
homework, ensuring that they keep pace with students in more populous
areas.
* Elderly populations, many of whom speak only the Navajo dialect,
will have access to
information on agriculture in their native language.
* Central government services such as housing, children's health
insurance, e-government, job listings and voting will be as close as
the nearest chapter House, versus hours away or even unavailable for
those with no access to vehicles.
"Just as the Navajo Nation only recently upgraded itself by moving
from the horse and wagons to the automobiles, it's the same with the
Internet," said Harold Skow, director of information technology for the
Navajo Nation. "The benefits of adoption are enormous for our people in
terms of education, economic development, access to vital services,
preservation and furtherance of our culture. And the savings will allow
us to not only use the funds for other resources but also perhaps
generate much-needed revenue streams." The Navajo Nation expects to
save as much as 75 per cent over present network costs for this greatly
enhanced network and its related capabilities when the network
implementation is completed.
Last month, the Navajo Nation began providing voice services over
the network using Cisco Unified CallManager and Cisco Unity Voicemail
servers in the central government offices in Window Rock, the Nation's
headquarters. The White Rock Chapter house was the first of 110 chapter
houses to receive IP telephony and video services. Residents can come
to the Chapter House to make free phone calls to any other Chapter
House in the entire three-state Navajo Nation because the calls travel
over the IP network.
"It is exciting and fulfilling to work with the Navajo Nation to
create such a robust, efficient
network capable of delivering such enormous benefits to this remote
population," said Bruce Klein, vice president of federal operations for
Cisco. "The Navajo Nation is joining the many federal, state and local
governments moving to IP for the numerous advantages and the cost
savings. These benefits will increase dramatically at the end of the
year when the network is fully in place and serving all 110 Chapter
Houses."
IT Director Skow noted that he expects additional benefits down the
line to include:
* A Navajo Nation Web portal offering e-commerce and access to
numerous government
services
* Tourism enhancement by promoting Navajo crafts as well as vacation
sites
* Job creation by developing an IT work force and call centers for
the Navajo Nation
* Connections to a vast store of information about other tribes and
Navajo peoples, thus
preserving and promoting the culture, both within and outside the
Nation
* Disaster recovery capabilities, a significant improvement over the
present method of
dropping leaflets into remote sites
Also present at the Albuquerque event was New Mexico State Senator
Leonard Tsosie, who is a champion of the Internet to the Hogan
legislation that brought the network to the Navajo Nation.
"The Internet to the Hogan project seeks to bridge the digital
divide in a culturally sensitive manner and tries not to leave a Hogan
behind," said Senator Tsosie. "The project benefits all citizens in or
near Navajo Indian country, with inferences to services for children
and health care. This project has great potential for services to all
citizens."