The University of North Dakota Faculty Research Seed Money Committee has made a decision to fully award a collaborative project developed by the Communication Program faculty member Dr. Slavka Antonova and Dr. Dave Yearwood, Chair of the Technology Department. The project is titled “Universal internet in rural communities: uses, needs, and concerns” and was ranked “the best proposal received” for its interdisciplinary focus, mixed method approach, and relevance to the state and the region.
Dr. Antonova describes the project: “Closing the urban-rural ‘digital divide’ is a political goal that requires studying the current Internet uses in rural settings, and the needs and concerns of the rural users. To this end, and with the help of a graduate student, the research will seek answers to how the Internet is accessed and used in the North Dakota rural communities, what concerns residents have, and how information about the identified needs and concerns can be used to make changes.” Associate Professor Slavka Antonova is a researcher in Internet Governance, and her book “Powerscape of Internet governance: How was global multistakeholderism invented in ICANN?” was published in 2008.
