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Building Local Power

Building Local Power

By: Institute for Local Self-Reliance
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 Building Local Power brings you thought-provoking stories and new ideas for breaking the hold of corporate monopolies and expanding the power of communities to chart their own futures. We deliver insights from trailblazing lawmakers, scholars, business leaders, and advocates. Plus, conversations with in-house experts at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance help reveal the patterns and policies that shape our economy and communities. These stories and conversations help map solutions that distribute power to everyday people. Building Local Power is a podcast from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance that brings you thought-provoking stories and new ideas for breaking the hold of corporate monopolies and expanding the power of citizens and communities to chart their own futures. We deliver insights from trailblazing lawmakers, scholars, business leaders, and advocates, plus conversations with ILSR’s own in-house experts, who help reveal the patterns and policies that shape our economy and communities, mapping the solutions that distribute power to everyday people. Our newest series, The Data Centers Are Coming, brings listeners into the stories of local communities fighting back against Big Tech, corporate greed, bureaucratic secrecy, and a system that prioritizes scale at all costs.© Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Episodes
  • Introducing "The Data Centers Are Coming"

    Introducing "The Data Centers Are Coming"
    Apr 16 2026

    Welcome to the newest season of Building Local Power, The Data Centers Are Coming, where we take a trip across the country to some of the hot spots for data center fights. Big Tech is racing for AI dominance, attempting to steamroll local communities through secrecy and shell companies, but that’s only part of the story. We hear from activists and agitated neighbors, experts on energy supply and the environment, and tech correspondents chasing these fights across state lines.

    Through this series, we start to uncover just how deeply this conflict is steeped in America’s legacy of monopoly corporations versus motivated local communities. And we learn that one thing is certain: the corporate giants behind the data center boom better not underestimate the power of passionate and organized local resistance.
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    3 mins
  • Internet as a Human Right: Christopher Mitchell on Community Networks

    Internet as a Human Right: Christopher Mitchell on Community Networks
    Aug 21 2025
    You'd think a company with as many resources, employees, and facilities as AT&T or Comcast would have good customer service. Surely, with all the billions of dollars flowing through these businesses, there'd be some resources devoted to creating a really good customer experience, right? If only that were the case. The thing is, these telecom monopolies are so big, with their power so entrenched, that it doesn't matter if their customer service is good. When you control the market, you control the market whether customers are happy or not. Time and again, smaller, locally-controlled telecom companies and networks have better customer service and better products. Because they're small and connected to their communities, these small companies have greater motivation to please their customers. Plus, since they're competing against giants, they have a lot to prove to their customers. This is the crux of one of Christopher Mitchell's arguments about why community broadband matters. Christopher Mitchell, today's guest on Building Local Power, is the head of ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative. Community broadband networks can take many forms, from municipal networks to co-ops and more. These networks are important, says Mitchell, not just because they're better for consumers but because Internet access is essentially a human right in the contemporary world. Reliable and affordable Internet access isn't just about social media and Netflix; everything from healthcare to education and beyond relies on a good Internet connection, all the more reason to leave broadband access in the hands of local communities. On today's episode, Christopher explains all this, as well as sharing his thoughts on his friend, ILSR's recently passed co-founder David Morris. It's a compelling conversation with a passionate advocate. For full show notes and transcript, visit https://ilsr.org/articles/blp-internet-as-a-human-right
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    26 mins
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