SHASA secures $50,000 grant to expand the
Connect Eurobodalla Program
The South Coast Health and Sustainability Alliance (SHASA) has secured $50,000 from the FRRR Strengthening Rural Communities program to expand the Connect Eurobodalla project. SHASA would like to thank the Colonial Foundation for their generosity in making these funds available for projects across Regional Australia.
This is SHASA’s 63rd grant funded project and brings the total amount of grants secured for projects in the Eurobodalla to approximately $7.5m.
SHASA has been working for a number of years with local IT company The Tec Exec on digital literacy and installing satellite communications at a number of community facilities. The Connect Eurobodalla tech cafes program has been providing one-on-one technical support helping people to reliably access online services and information, using a smartphone, tablet, or computer.
What will this project do?
- Digital Literacy training will be provided to members of the Eurobodalla community through the network of Eurobodalla Bushfire and Heatwave Havens that SHASA helped to establish. Havens are intended as safe places for vulnerable community members, and providing them with skills to access online information is essential. They also have reliable internet connections and are a place to go to to access the Internet, or in case of a power failure. We will train volunteers associated with each of the Havens as digital mentors.
- The Tec Exec will continue to provide this digital literacy training, and significantly increase the reach and availability of this training to the community, and grow the volunteer base of digital mentors.
- A total of 80 two-hour workshops will be provided at Havens and other venues throughout the Eurobodalla.
- We have included promotion by non-digital means to increase awareness of this training among people who are less adept at getting information online.
Key outcomes
- Delivery of digital skills to older and vulnerable residents while growing a volunteer digital mentoring network
- Enhancing the communications skills of Haven volunteers.
