Image: Unsplash, Filip Gielda

The part of the world that is highly appreciative of Facebook

Where I live almost 100% are connected to the internet and there are more active smartphones than there are people.

The old isolated infrastructure

I was a kid and a teenager before social media became a thing. We only used to see friends and family from other cities once a year or every second year and actually knew very little or nothing about people from the other cities and settlements, even though we were very few. Many kids played in sports teams, some in multiple sports at once, because the annual national championships allowed you to travel to other cities and meet kids from remote cities.

The new overlaying infrastructure we all invested in

Today, the Facebook app is Greenlands most important supporting foundation to every people. Why and how? Greenland is the worlds largest island with very few cities and people. The cities are a few hundreds kilometres away from each other, some more than a thousand. The infrastructure is a heavy investment and heavy in maintenance costs only a few finance. Less than a decade ago it was normal for me to pay almost $4,000 a month for having me and my 7 employees being connected and an additional $500+ a month at home. Every single one complained, but everyone was connected as it was so important for every of us. Facebook became to be the online reflection of our interests and connections, and we do not complain. Today we pay a fixed price of approx. $180 a month per household + $100 for cellular and the Facebook experience alone justifies a major part of what we pay.

Be a bit more self-critical when comparing

When I reflect on the controversies emerging in the news regarding how Facebook is influencing the news and politics I do think it is important to reflect and compare to what already exist instead of comparing it to what could exist (what we invision it to become)

Greenland outside of Facebook’s radar

What I can share to contribute to the discussion of the public matters around Facebook is that Greenland is perhaps fortunate to have the ‘greenlandic’ language that is not supported anywhere online to track or correct. It’s been nominated as the worlds most difficult language to learn and the worlds most complex language to speak.

Acquaintances vs Close friends

Facebook is what the community makes it. I appreciate to live in the part of the world where Facebook is highly positive for our community compared to what I read in the news, particularly from one of the largest cities where acquaintances and public interests are more important to base conclusions from than from our close friends and small community interests.

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Consultant and Speaker.

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