Community-led bid to break free from 'big tech' and build a sustainable internet

In a quiet Melbourne neighborhood, a small group of residents is taking matters into their own hands to create a resilient and sustainable alternative to the internet dominated by 'big tech'.

In a humble rental property, a palm-sized gadget with "use in case of climate breakdown" scribbled on it sits in the corner of a dining room. This compact computer, known as a Raspberry Pi, is part of a grassroots plan to establish community-run servers powered by renewable energy.

A vision for community-run servers

Jade Ambrose, a software engineer and community organizer, envisions these servers being set up in local community hubs like libraries or neighborhood houses. These hubs would provide a lifeline during power and internet outages, which are expected to become more frequent due to extreme weather events driven by climate change.

"where you could go to in an emergency to get some form of digital services that were in communication with other community facilities even during an outage of power and internet", Ambrose explains.

While the plan is still in its early stages, with 20 individuals signed up to host devices in their homes, convincing community hubs to participate has proven challenging.

Towards digital sovereignty

This initiative is part of a global movement seeking to create environmentally friendly and resilient alternatives to 'big tech'. The idea, often referred to as "digital sovereignty", emphasizes control over one's own infrastructure, software, and hardware.

Ashwin Nagappa, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Digital Media Research Centre, notes that Europe is leading the way in this area, with the European Union proposing plans to reduce its reliance on non-EU cloud infrastructure, software, and hardware.

"Specifically with the AI age in the last two, three years, everyone is consolidating this idea of being sovereign and independent, either for geopolitical reasons or privacy", Nagappa says.

Nagappa also notes that Australia has been slow to develop its own alternative technologies, leaving it reliant on foreign-owned digital infrastructure and vulnerable to geopolitical tensions.

A 'solarpunk' vision for the future

Ambrose describes himself as a "solarpunk", a movement that imagines a future where humanity, technology, and nature coexist positively.

While there are pros and cons to decentralized systems, Nagappa acknowledges that they can be difficult to scale and may be at risk of rogue operators.

For Ambrose, the decision to opt out of 'big tech' is a matter of principle. "It does require a little bit of people saying, 'I'm going to set a boundary here and say no to some of those less ethical options'.".