Caroline Stratton

New York State’s Affordable Broadband Act (ABA), enacted in 2021, took effect in January 2025 after years of legal challenges. The law requires internet service providers (ISPs) with over 20,000 subscribers to offer a low-cost broadband plan to eligible consumers. ISPs are responsible for advertising the program and verifying consumer eligibility in accordance with the law.

On National AI Literacy Day, and as the broadband and digital equity community strives toward universal broadband access, we are also addressing the rapidly developing technologies enabled by connectivity. We are approaching the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump signing an Executive Order that cemented his Administration’s priorities for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in education and the workforc

On a chilly early-February week in Chicago, Illinois, digital inclusion advocates, practitioners, and researchers gathered for the annual Net Inclusion conference, hosted by the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA). At Net Inclusion, members of the digital inclusion community share resources, brainstorm new initiatives, and teach each other about best practices to close the digital divide. A dominant theme at Net Inclusion 2026 was artificial intelligence (AI).

On March 11, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society hosted a discussion about collaboration, funding, and policy considerations around broadband, digital inclusion, and healthcare.

Last month, digital divide researchers convened at two major events: the Digital Access Research Forum and the Research Conference on Communications, Information and Internet Policy (better known as TPRC).

People are more likely to believe and act on information delivered by a “trusted messenger”—this was the rationale behind a federal government grant program to promote awareness and increase participation in the Affordable Connectivity Program.

What is a community anchor institution? The National Telecommunications and Information Administration recently changed its answer to this question.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration recently announced sweeping changes to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program.

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance launched the 2025 Digital Navigator Program Toolkit. It provides guidance for setting up and managing successful digital navigator programs. The authors of the toolkit are experts from the NDIA team who have experience training, supporting, and learning from hundreds of digital navigators and programs providing digital navigator services across the country. The toolkit takes readers from conception to execution to sustaining a digital navigator program, with concrete tools and advice from practitioners across the country. 

Free Geek, a nonprofit organization located in Portland, Oregon, offers digital navigation as a core service, in alignment with its mission to “sustainably reuse technology, enable digital access, and provide education to create a community that empowers people to realize their potential.” Importantly, Free Geek is a computer refurbisher, facilitating access to free and affordable devices—a critical component of digital inclusion. Refurbishing computers enables the organization’s digital navigator work in two critical ways.