Closing the Digital Divide for the Quinault Indian Nation

Closing the Digital Divide for the Quinault Indian Nation with Tyson Johnston

By Colin Larsen

Among America's Indigenous communities, the legacy of settler colonialism has left deep scars. As they confront disparities in health outcomes, economic development, and political attention, Tribal governments must routinely do more with less to provide necessary services to their people.

In addition, accelerating climate change threatens local ecologies, which many tribes rely on both culturally and economically, in unpredictable ways. Indigenous leaders have no small task before them in preparing for the future.

The Quinault Indian Nation (QIN), located in Washington State along the Pacific Ocean, has undertaken a series of ambitious projects to address some of the unique challenges faced by Tribal Nations like themselves.

Listen to the The Buzz podcast, featuring, Tyson Johnston, Self-Governance Executive Director for the QIN and Chairperson of the Board for Toptana Technologies, a QIN-owned enterprise seeking to bring high-speed broadband to Quinault territory.

“What we're doing here at Quinault, with Toptana, is a small part of a larger web that needs to be interconnected. All of us are impacted by these issues at some level, and if we really want to move forward with fairness and equality, it's going to take public-private partnerships and strategic thinking and investments. We also have to make sure rural/tribal communities are at the table to help create the solutions and innovations needed to protect our communities and to be the most resilient as possible.” - Tyson Johnston, Head of Development for Toptana Technologies and former Quinault Indian Nation Vice President