Just five years ago, most Chileans didn’t have access to a computer, let alone the Internet. Now they do, thanks to the national BiblioRedes: Abre tu Mundo (Open Your World) project.

Managed by Chile's Directorate of Libraries, Archives and Museums (DIBAM), BiblioRedes provides free access to computers and the Internet, as well as technology training in DIBAM's network of 378 public libraries throughout Chile. DIBAM received $9.2 million in financial support from the foundation to launch the initiative in 2001. It received another $1 million in 2004 to install computers in Santiago's new public library and create 14 mobile laboratories to serve remote communities in each region of the country.

BiblioRedes has received local and international praise for its work to bring free computers and the Internet to all Chileans. In 2006, it received the prestigious Stockholm Challenge award for culture for its work in training communities to develop local content Web sites. The Stockholm Challenge, an international information communications technology award, cited BiblioRedes as a model that can be replicated throughout the world.

Lea sobre el proyecto en español.

Project Overview

Learn how the Abre tu Mundo initiative has helped Chile's residents—70 percent of whom do not know how to use a computer—gain access to the skills they need to succeed in the new digital world.

BiblioRedes: A Case Study in Smart Advocacy

BiblioRedes has made a remarkable impact in Chile. Learn how smart advocacy tools helped the project achieve its goals.