Creating an Inclusive Future: Empowering Rural Digital Entrepreneurs
Digital is a 21st-century tool of communication, media, business, governance, activism, and social norms. Digital is not merely technology—it is life, a medium, innovation, and marketing. Yet, critical questions arise: who controls and benefits from this digital existence? Whose narratives remain unheard? However, the larger society is constantly being left out or excluded and either data fields or data mined for control and appropriation. These questions have guided our journey.
With the advent of the Internet in India on 15th August 1995, India has almost the largest digitally appropriated user population of the Internet and digital tools. On one end, there is a lot of discussion on information society, surveillance, online hate speech, digital interference, virtual domination, and the list of digital jargon seems to be never-ending while on the other end, there is still a huge population reaching out to gain access. The journey of DEF has witnessed a very dynamic shift and complex evolution of the digital divide over the years in terms of impact. Continuous learning has helped to empower the organisation to skillfully and creatively find solutions that aid in bridging the gaps of the digital world. Yet, the country has 665,000 villages, 250,000 Panchayats, 7,274 blocks, 28 States and 8 Union Territories, 780 spoken languages, and 70% of the population belonging to Dalit, Bahujan, and OBC; more than 50 per cent of the population has never used the Internet and another 25% are not meaningfully connected.
The meaning and manifestation of an actual “digital society” is to create a network of communities with equity, open access, active participation, and without exclusion. Digital Empowerment Foundation has been working since 2002 to create a digitally inclusive society with an extraordinary focus on prioritising the inclusion of marginalised communities, especially in rural areas. It has touched more than 35 million people and participated in several policies that have made digital ubiquity wider and empathetic.
The Museum of Digital Society, established with the Art and Collective for Digital Empowerment, serves as a testament to the two-decade journey of the Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF), encapsulating its pioneering efforts in digital development. Through an extensive historical archive, the museum chronicles DEF’s transformative models of digital inclusion and empowerment, highlighting the role of frugal technologies built for last-mile communities. This repository of knowledge, shared through books, publications, and case studies, tells the story of how digital interventions can bring social change. The museum celebrates digital integration, but it has also emphasised access, rights, and entrepreneurship in the digital age. It stands as a beacon of DEF’s mission to bridge the digital divide, showcasing how storytelling and technology can empower marginalised communities. Ultimately, the museum reflects the evolution of a truly inclusive digital society—where technology serves as a tool for equity, innovation, and opportunity for all. The Museum of Digital Society is an effort to create a living ecosystem of the learnings of 23 years of Digital Empowerment Foundation and demonstrate the same for larger masses to experience, live, learn, and replicate.
The Museum of Digital Society launched on 15th September in Pondicherry. The launch included the knowledge materials and living installations of the various programmes of digital development. We initiated a showcase of all GI location artisans from Pattamadai, Ooty and Salem, including artisans from Pondicherry who showcased their pottery, hand weaves, jewellery and traditional food. The museum also included a Life Cycle of Digital Devices centre where DEF put up an experiential centre of the 4Rs of every digital device (Recycle, Repair, Refurbish, Reuse). The event was also hosted by the students at Pondicherry University and Deepsthal and included live storytelling sessions.
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