9354116 Buller Although relatively slow to start, Native American telecommunications has in recent years begun to flourish and diversify. By Native American telecommunications, we refer to the use of computing and telecommunications technologies by Indian people for any purpose related to education in the broadest sense of the term, including the cultural, legal and educational framework within which these technologies are employed. There exist numerous independent, autonomous efforts by Native Americans and others working with them to design and implement telecommunications systems. Disregarding for a moment the relative merits of these efforts, and the cultural and social barriers to their success, the fact remains that most of these projects are being carried out in isolation and therefore their creators are not taking full advantage of the power of integrative technologies. This is unfortunate because some of this integration will be very difficult to achieve later or done so only at comparatively great expense and labor. In addition, the opportunity is lost for creative and culturally significant collaborative efforts, ones which could promote telecommunications technologies as positive forces with Native American culture. Finally, in a time of more restrictive national funding, cooperation rather than competition will be viewed positively by political leaders. To bridge some of these problems and draw attention to the potential power resulting from the combination of collaboration and technology, we propose to hold a two-day forum on Native American telecommunications. Forum participants would include recognized leaders in Native American telecommunications and selected others from the public and private sectors. The forum would be small, on the order of 25-30, and consist of both informational presentations and small group sessions in which Native communities will share and hopefully create technological partnerships which reflect the soverei gnty of the tribes and other Indian bodies.
