The electronic improvements could mean better jobs and more power.
Members telecommute to high-paying jobs in Seattle.
Elders trade recipes in a virtual longhouse the same way they would in a physical building. A high-tech bus might pull into your neighborhood for you to practice Microsoft Word applications or take an online college course. The tribe has gone into the Electronic Nation plan without any money budgeted for it, Gemmell said. Through a combination of grant money and adapting existing projects, he hopes to have wireless, high-speed Internet access in place across the reservation by next summer. When the tribal phone system was upgraded, they added the infrastructure to handle data, and convinced Sprint to donate a few computers in the bargain.