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Welcome! This website is about the Internet Infrastructure Climate Resilience (IICR) research project which is based in Aotearoa New Zealand and is taking place until mid-2026.
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Internet access is a critical part of our everyday lives and a lifeline for responders and communities during emergencies. However, extreme weather events and longer-term climate impacts are increasingly testing the resilience of New Zealand's Internet infrastructure.
Through mid-2026, the team at Brainbox Institute are leading research on Internet infrastructure resilience in the context of climate change, with a focus on what is needed to support community resilience. This project is based in Aotearoa New Zealand and looks at the local context, while recognising that the issues being discussed have global interdependencies.
The purpose of this work is to focus on actions, solutions and recommendations: it is participatory action research.
At the heart of the project is the Internet Infrastructure Climate Resilience (IICR) Network, a group of people with experience and expertise in a range of areas — from data scientists to community leaders — who come together around different topics related to Internet and community resilience, with support from the research team.
The project is made possible with funding from the Internet Society Foundation.
As of November 2025, key milestones include:
The next phase of IICR Network activities starts in early 2026 and focuses on options and choices for action to support Internet and community resilience. Work is also underway to ensure community perspectives are incorporated into the research.
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We’d love to hear from people interested in the project goals and work, including researchers, technical and data people, community organisations, infrastructure companies, and local and national government departments.
We welcome new members of the Network for our next phase of activity which starts in early 2026. There are also other ways to participate and be connected to this work; please get in touch to discuss what might work best for you.
For more information, please email the project team at [email protected].
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The research team is responsible for shaping and stewarding the project, and leading the production of outputs based on the work done alongside the IICR Network. The project is based at the Brainbox Institute, and members include: