Could you imagine your life without the internet? For starters, you wouldn’t be reading this article. You wouldn’t be able to send messages instantaneously. No more up to the minute news reports, Facebooking or Tweeting. And no more information (endless amounts) at your finger tips.
Countless
people in the United States, Canada and in many other countries around
the world depend on the internet – and take it for granted. But there
are 4.6 billion people (68% of the planet) with no internet access.
Kosta Grammatis is trying to get every single person in the world online. In an exclusive interview with The Pappas Post, he says Internet connection is a basic necessity – a human right – for every global citizen.
He’s
busy traveling the United States and Canada meeting with potential
investors and partners—seeking a cool $1.5 million to launch a project
that could ultimately change the world.
His
project has picked up both steam, and a good set of legs.
Advisors and
early investors include NASA astronaut John Herrington, the Chief
Technology Officer of Deutsche Telekom Thomas Curran, Founder of XM and 1
Worldspace satellite radio Noah Samara, UN Chief Cherif Ghaly, the
Founder of Earth Day International Nigel Seale, the founder of the Greek
America Foundation Gregory Pappas, and many more.
The 26-year-old Greek American is the founder and CEO of A Human Right – a San Francisco-based organization charged with bringing low cost internet access to everyone on earth.
The
organization made newspaper headlines on July 6 when the United Nations
declared freedom of expression on the internet to be a basic human
right.
“This is an exciting and important step towards the extension of access to everyone,” says Grammatis.
“The
UN’s call for member states to ‘promote and facilitate access to the
internet’ is powerful,” he adds. “In the future, we hope the UN will
clarify that no one should be denied access to the internet.”
Last
year, Grammatis signed a memorandum of understanding with the United
Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to work on
bringing internet access to relief and development efforts.
This
is not the first high-profile project Grammatis has worked on. He was
the chief engineer for a video camera enabled prosthetic eye called the
“Eyeborg Project” which was awarded one of Time Magazine’s best
inventions of 2009 and featured in "Ripley's Believe it or Not".
Prior
to his position as a visiting scientist at the MIT Media Labs he was an
Avionics Systems Engineer for SpaceX, responsible for an experimental
micro-communications satellite that is currently in orbit.
These
days Grammatis is meeting with vision aligned investors. He’s inviting
them to take part in building his next initiative that will bring free
Internet access to millions of people in both developed and developing
countries as a social business.
“We’re not saying a
lot right now about what it is – but I am thrilled with the people who
are joining this effort. Thomas Curran, the CTO of Deutsche Telekom
flew in from Berlin to sit down with us. He pledged his support as one
of our first investors.”
He’s mum on the details
about how exactly it will work but he gushes about the social impact:
“One of the components of this venture is something we’re calling The
Bandwidth Bank – it’s a platform that collects unused bandwidth and puts
it to work for social causes. We’re working closely with partners like
the United Nations to build something that can help a lot of people get
online.”
Below is a Q & A with Kosta about his work:
Why did you start A Human Right?
I
started it about two years ago to make sure that all people have access
to the internet. There are currently about 5 billion people in the
world who can’t get online. When we start thinking about how the
Internet is shaping our culture and the way we communicate with one
another across the globe it becomes glaringly apparent that the internet
is a pretty vital tool for getting anything done. Our work is to
connect everyone.
Tell me about the Bandwith Bank?
We are building something called the “Bandwidth Bank” where we don’t need to own or build any infrastructure.
Some
30% of all telecommunications satellites are sitting around not being
used. We’re building a bank to take the world’s unused Internet
capacity and put it to work for social and humanitarian causes.
We
have some great partnerships with the United Nations and a number
of NGOs and humanitarian organizations all over the world – The
Bandwidth Bank will make it easier to bring Internet into the places
that need it most.
Do you really think you’ll be able to provide internet access to everyone on the planet?
It’s
going to happen in the next 10 to 15 years with our without our help.
Access will be affordable and ubiquitous because it is a necessary
component of life today. However, we are trying to assure that nobody
is denied internet access for any reason (political or monetary) and
we’re working to accelerate the process of getting people online.
What’s the reaction you get from people when you talk to them about your plans for the internet?
Some
people absolutely believe that nobody should be denied access to the
internet. Other people make the assumption that we are talking about a
government mandate that everybody should be guaranteed an internet
connection and they get offended.
However, it’s
the same thing with access to housing which is considered a human right.
Nobody is saying that the government needs to step in and build housing
for all, but all parties involved are urged to ensure that the barriers
to accessible housing are as low as possible because it’s a basic human
need. We’re pushing for the same considerations for Internet access.
All
in all, people have been very open and receptive of what we are doing.
They are excited, especially people in developing countries where
getting online is much more difficult.
What’s the situation in developing countries?
Access
is far too expensive in most of these places. In Africa the majority
of the population is under 24 years old. Young brilliant minds who can
solve many of their own problems with their own ingenuity if they are
given some basic tools – like access to knowledge.
There
was a young boy in Africa who literally reinvented the technology
behind the windmill on his own over four years – he used it to power
small lights in his hut. Someone showed him the Internet and he was
shocked to learn that the world’s instruction manuals for windmills were
available online. What could he have achieved in the same span of
time? Perhaps a power system for his whole village!
More
than individuals, entire communities require information in order to do
anything. In Papua New Guinea – a very impoverished country, one of the
first things the prime minister wanted to do was to launch a satellite.
His country has villages that are so remote that the only way to
communicate is to mail a letter. This can take forever. Can you imagine
trying to do something or to organize at the government level without
telecommunications?
How would you describe the internet?
The
internet is a tool that helps people to help themselves. That’s my
guiding philosophy. It is the portal to the worlds knowledge, all
available in one place.
It’s also a tool for
communication. I make the analogy of the internet being this big giant
room where the entire planet can have a conversation and make collective
decisions on issues that affect us all. That is why being able to
participate in this space is so important and must be ensured to every
person. If you are not in that room listening to what is going on or
participating you are missing out and decisions are being made without
you.
Do you remember the first time you used the internet?
I
was the first kid on the block with a dial-up connection. My dad was
the chief information officer for a high school and a middle school and
we had all the greatest technology at our house all the time.
When
we got internet, I was on AOL chatting with strangers and learning from
other people’s life experiences. But before I was online I had a CB
radio. I used to sit in my closet in the middle of the night and talk to
people in my city. I made lots of friends.
Being
able to talk to people from all different walks of life and learn about
how they live was, and continues to be, fascinating.
Is it true Greece was one of the first countries to declare the internet a human right?
Yes. Greece definitely understands the importance of democratic discourse on the internet.
Tell us about your Greek background.
My
mom was a tourist in Greece when she met my dad at a party. My mom was
actually hitchhiking the wrong way – she was supposed to go from Paris
to Rome but ended up in Greece.
They met and
fell ridiculously in love. My dad had to do his military service so my
mother left for America. For two years they had to go to telephone
stations to call each other. They wrote each other letters. This is
what life was like before the internet.
When my
dad was discharged, he sold all of his things, moved to America, and
married my mom; he’d never been to America before, he barely spoke
English.
I used to speak Greek when I was a kid
but I lost it over time. My mom mastered Greek cooking after spending a
couple of years with my yia-yia. I know I’m biased, but she makes the
best baklava ever.
What’s your take on the economic crisis in Greece?
It’s
a tragic time, but I’m optimistic. The most beautiful flowers bloom
after the worst fires – I think Greece will re-emerge stronger after the
recession passes. I gave a speech in Athens a year ago and I remember
thinking how the young people all seemed to want to do big
world-changing things. I know there is a place for idealism in every
Greek, let it grow, because it is the seed for a beautiful future.
Kathy Tzivilakis
Source: The Pappas Post
*Thanks Elia A. for the information!
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