NON-PROFIT PARTNERSHIP WILL BEAM INTERNET SIGNALS FROM ATOP PITT’S CATHEDRAL OF LEARNING/TALLEST EDUCATIONAL BUILDING IN WESTERN HEMISPHERE

PITTSBURGH, Pa. (Nov. 9, 2020) — In a historic collaborative effort, Meta Mesh Wireless Communities, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh, and the Keystone Initiative for Network-based Research (KINBER) have partnered together to provide free, high-speed Internet access primarily to school-age children as the COVID-19 pandemic forces the integration of remote instruction.

“To live and work in today’s digital society, it is essential to have access to the Internet. Reliable Internet access is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity and a right. Unfortunately, many people in our own City of Pittsburgh cannot afford the Internet services they need. Every1online is a one way to begin to see Internet access as a human right,” said Adam Longwill, Executive Director of Meta Mesh Wireless Communities.

Designed to create more equitable access to the internet, Every1online will provide WiFi at no cost to eligible households during a 12-month pilot program in the Coraopolis, Homewood and New Kensington areas—with the goal of expanding the program to additional communities in Western Pennsylvania beyond the first year. As the first non-profit wireless Internet model in the country, the project seeks to shrink the Digital Divide by prioritizing Pittsburghers in-need. [Read the full KINBER press release]