{"id":2880,"date":"2026-03-18T18:17:59","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T17:17:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ereuse.org\/en\/?p=2880"},"modified":"2026-03-19T10:11:56","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T09:11:56","slug":"internet-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ereuse.org\/es\/2026\/03\/18\/an-internet-draft-on-bridging-the-digital-divide-through-circularity\/","title":{"rendered":"An Internet-draft on Bridging the Digital Divide Through Circularity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Disculpa, pero esta entrada est\u00e1 disponible s\u00f3lo en English<\/a>.<\/p>

When we talk about \u00abconnecting the unconnected,\u00bb the conversation usually revolves around infrastructure\u2014laying fiber cables, deploying community Wi-Fi, or optimizing spectrum. However, an often-overlooked reality is that meaningful connectivity relies just as heavily on what is in the user’s hands: affordable, functional, and maintainable devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, at the Global Access to the Internet for All (GAIA)<\/strong> session during IETF 125, Leandro Navarro (UPC, Pangea, eReuse, ISOC.CAT) took the floor to address this exact challenge. He presented the Internet-Draft: draft-gaia-circular-device-practices<\/code><\/strong>, which shifts the focus from purely building networks to sustainably managing the hardware that accesses them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udcfa Watch the full GAIA session and Leandro\u2019s presentation here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The missing link in meaningful connectivity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In underserved and rural communities, limited access to devices\u2014laptops, smartphones, and even local networking equipment like routers\u2014is one of the primary barriers to digital inclusion. Even if a community network is successfully deployed, it provides little value if community members cannot afford the devices required to use it, or if those devices break down with no local means of repair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To solve this, Navarro and his co-authors (Mireia Roura, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Viviana Ambrosi) propose systematizing Circular Device Management<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is circular device management?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Drawing on years of operational experience from community-centered deployments across Spain, Argentina, and Senegal (including initiatives like eReuse.org<\/a>, WEEE <\/a>plant by Tau, EKOA<\/a> at UNLP, and Hahatay.org<\/a>), the draft outlines practical steps to extend the lifecycle of digital devices. Rather than a linear \u00abtake-make-dispose\u00bb model, circular management embraces:<\/p>\n\n\n\n