A set of radio devices and technologies are opening the doorway to new and revolutionary forms of communication. These have the potential to break down the over-reliance on traditional network hierarchies, and present collaborative alternatives where resistance to censorship, control and surveillance are baked into the network topography itself.
The real good news is that FCC recently clarified that Part 15 rules allow for hobbyist LoRa mesh networks without licensing requirements as long as they stay under power limts, which is huge for DIY emergency comms projects and has led to a surge in power-efficient mesh projects on gearscouts.com that can run these nodes for weeks on a single charge.