About SmartLabrador

The SmartLabrador Initiative is Newfoundland and Labrador's Smart Community Demonstration Project under Industry Canada's Smart Communities Program. Smart Communities are communities with a vision of the future that involves the use of information and communication technologies in new and innovative ways to empower their residents, institutions and region as a whole.

SmartLabrador is combining an innovative hybrid network with nine Smart Services to bring an equal opportunity for all Labrador communities to enter the information age and gain access to the global economy. These services will empower remote communities by: providing access to information and services; enabling services in health, education and community life; informing residents about current issues; and celebrating our unique natural and cultural heritage.

SmartLabrador takes a 'people first' approach: it provides training, mentoring and support to foster economic, social and cultural development within the Labrador community. The project is building a network of human resources for the future by blending the digital skills of our youth with the wisdom and traditional skills of our elders.

The SmartLabrador Network

The SmartLabrador Network is SmartLabrador's communications platform. It comprises a Wide Area Network spanning all of Labrador -- an area of 300,000 square kilometres. Distances and environment pose many challenges for travel and communications in Labrador. The SmartLabrador Network enables Labradorians to overcome those challenges through state-of-the-art digital communications.

Advanced communications technologies including satellite, terrestrial, and wireless technology are blended in the SmartLabrador Network. This hybrid network is one of the largest, most innovative and most ambitious wide area networks in Canada today. Read more about SmartLabrador Technology.

During the fall of 2001, after lengthy planning and preparation, SmartLabrador installed its network of 41 sites (in 23 Labrador communities and two Newfoundland communities). Geographically, the SmartLabrador network is one of the largest networks in Canada and is one of the first to integrate telephone and satellite IP network technology.

SmartLabrador Staff and Human Resources

Our initial challenge was to set up a digital network across Labrador -- an area the size of Sweden. This has been accomplished. The ongoing challenge is to offer equal access to services in all communities connected by the network. To ensure that this is done, we have installed regional staff in each Labrador region to provide technical support, IT development support and training at the community level.

Staffing and organizational structures have been set up over the past year. Of a total of 16 staff members, 12 are regional staff located across all regions of Labrador, and four are head office staff. Seven fieldworkers and five technical support staff are in place across Labrador to ensure technical and information technology development support is available for all of Labrador.

SmartLabrador is committed to developing human resources in each region of Labrador -- including our staff, local volunteers and the general public. Our project takes a "People First" approach: it provides training, mentoring and support in order to foster economic, social and cultural development within the Labrador Community. The project will build a network of human resources for the future by blending the digital skills of our youth with the wisdom and traditional skills of our elders.