Access to phone and internet is not universal within Australia. In some places, just getting mobile phone service can be a logistical challenge. We follow the story of a family in Kwale Kwale, west of Alice Springs, as they try to get connected.

Disconnect is a podcast about the internet in remote Australian Aboriginal communities. Produced by RMIT University, led by Ellie Rennie, Indigo Holcombe-James and Tyson Yunkaporta, with producer James Milsom and production assistance from Campbell McNolty. Additional research assistance for this episode was provided by Sam Kininmonth. Special thanks to Alyson Wright. Disconnect was funded by Telstra as an action within their Reconciliation Action Plan 2018-2021.

In this episode you heard from:

Rhonda Inkamala

Trudy Inkamala

Mark Sulikowski, Telstra

Michael Perez, Telstra

Music prior to credits: Around Here by Tia Gostelow, licensed courtesy of Australian Broadcasting Corporation

The full transcript for this episode is available as a Word document or PDF.

The inDigiMOB program worked with us on this episode. inDigiMOB is a partnership between First Nations Media Australia and Telstra.

First Nations Media Australia is the national peak body for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander media industry.

Soft sculpture of tin can telephone by Rhonda Sharpe, Yarrenyty Arltere Artists. Image design by Pam Koger.

The Home Internet Project mentioned at the start of the episode involved an infrastructure component, which was run through the Centre for Appropriate Technology (CAT) and funded by the Aboriginals Benefit Account. A research component accompanied the provision of internet, which was funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage Project (LP110200440). The research was a collaboration between CAT, the Central Land Council, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network, and university researchers (based at Swinburne University of Technology at the time). A book about the project is available open access