The NTIA Tribal Broadband Leaders Network, a community of stakeholders who are dedicated to expanding connectivity on Tribal lands, met earlier this month, with more than 130 participants representing more than 70 Tribes attending.

The Tribal Broadband Leaders Network is design to enable NTIA to receive ongoing feedback the Tribal Broadband Grant Connectivity Program (TBCP). The network will also connect Tribal leaders across the nation to discuss priorities, best practices and emerging telecommunications policy issues, as well as to identify engagement strategies with state broadband leaders.

The network will host monthly meetings with Tribal leaders and those authorized to speak on their behalf. Invitations to join the network were sent to Tribal leaders across the country.

NTIA Tribal Broadband Leaders Network

“Our consultations with Tribal leaders have been vital in shaping our Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program and our approach to connecting the unconnected on Tribal lands,” said Alan Davidson, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information, in a prepared statement. “The Tribal Broadband Leaders Network will allow us to continue to hear directly from Tribal leaders, while connecting those on the front lines of these efforts to ensure no one is left behind.”

The network is based on two other groups that NTIA coordinates: the State Broadband Leaders Network and the Digital Equity Leaders Network.

The TBCP is a nearly $3 billion grant program and part of the Internet for All Initiative. To date, NTIA has made a total of 94 awards totaling more than $1.35 billion in funding through the program.