Dickenson County has been chosen to participate in the "Connecting Rural Virginia" and will be among six localities in the state to establish an electronic village. The localities were chosen because they are rural counties, fairly isolated and in need of economic help.
Funded through a grant from the Department of Commerce, the local project began last summer when a technology leadership team was chosen.
The team was tasked with determining how an electronic village could tie businesses, government agencies and residents to the World Wide Web with broad band width speed. Responsibilities were delegated to determine needs and how the project should be designed.
Now the project is moving forward and the village should be up and running within two months.
"We have just begun to build the electronic village," said extension agent Phyllis Deel, who heads the local project.
The Dickenson County electronic village is a business incubator and county businesses will have the opportunity to list and link their web site to the e-village site. "What sets it apart from other electronic villages that colleges are offering is it is a community electronic village," she noted.
It will also benefit folks in the community. Organizations will be able to list their web sites on the e-village site and it will also include a calendar of events section. "We are hoping to provide a place where people can go to get the major calendar of events throughout the county on a regular basis," Deel said.
The site will also include a link where those interested in participating can register as a "villager." After completing an on-line user form, villagers will receive an e-mail from the site giving them a code. The code will enable them to go on the site and place their information there. Someone will be designated to keep the information updated, noted Deel.
The site will also have a community forum. "There are already some forums in the county, but this one will be well monitored and will be another place for sharing information," Deel said.
Through June 2005, the service will be free. "At some point after that, there may be a small fee for a listing but we hope to keep everything as small as possible," she noted.
Those who are already connected to the electronic community understand that electronic information goes all over the world and will take advantage of this service. Those who are not connected can also take advantage of the opportunity by listing their service on the site, she said.
Deel hopes the e-village will benefit local businesses. "We want to help new businesses who cannot afford to have their own electronic means right now to expand and grow," Deel said.
She said once community members post information on the web site, it will be possible to click on different links that will take you to web sites of businesses, churches and organizations located in the county.
While users will not be able to sell items on the e-village web site, they can establish a link to their own web site.
Deel said leadership team members will be contacting local businesses, civic groups and other organizations to schedule presentations about the project.
"No business is too big or too small to be listed. We hope to encourage those who don't have a web site to get a small site soon. For those who may want to put up their own web site, a workshop will be held in the near future.
For more information, contact Deel at 926-4605.
