"Native American tribes are spread across the state of Arizona, and Mark Goldstein, president of the International Research Center in Tempe, Ariz., consults with some of the independent nations to make their lives more accessible with technology.

The Hopi Nation's borders rest in northeast Arizona with a rather small population of around 8,000 living in the reservation and 2,000 off, surrounded on all sides by the much larger Navajo Nation of approximately 250,000 residents, with much larger borders that span across four states.

The Hopis live in rough terrain, often amongst somewhat ancient dwellings. It's believed that the city of Old Oraibi, one of nine population centers, has been continually occupied since 1050 A.D.

One hurdle to modernizing the area is that village elders prohibit disturbing the ground to put in any kind of infrastructure. This includes water, sewage, telephone and utilities."

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The Hopi Nation climbs toward wireless in Arizona (RCR Wireless News 5/26)