The Blueprint for Equitable Digital Participation

Join the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society on July 1 at 1:00 p.m. ET for a webinar about how affordable, reliable high-speed internet is a foundational prerequisite for participation in modern-day life.

A new paper entitled The Blueprint for Equitable Digital Participation by Public Knowledge, UnidosUS, and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA)—the culmination of a multi-year research effort to ensure that the voices of community members are prominently elevated in critical broadband policy debates—centers the lived experiences of those directly impacted by digital inequities.

This webinar, featuring the authors of The Blueprint for Equitable Digital Participation and leading experts in the digital equity field, will offer ideas for how policymakers can ensure low- to middle-income households across America can gain and sustain access to high-speed, reliable internet, connected devices, and digital skills.

Available on the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society’s YouTube page, the webinar will feature: 

• Dr. Alisa Valentin is the Broadband Policy Director at Public Knowledge, where she focuses on ensuring all consumers have access to affordable, reliable broadband. Before joining Public Knowledge, Dr. Valentin was the Senior Director of Technology and Telecommunications Policy at the National Urban League, the Special Advisor to FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, and the Communications Justice Fellow at Public Knowledge. Dr. Valentin received her Ph.D. in Communications from Howard University, her M.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University, and her B.S. in Telecommunications from the University of Florida.
• Claudia Ruiz is the Senior Civil Rights Policy Advisor at UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization, where she works on cross-cutting civil rights issues ranging from voting rights to anti-hate and policing reform to digital inclusion and tech governance. Before joining UnidosUS, Ruiz was a member of the International Human Rights Clinic at the University of Miami School of Law, where she received her J.D. She received her A.B. in Literary Arts from Brown University.
• Gina Cooper Benjamin is the Deputy Director at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA). Cooper Benjamin has spent over twenty years working in under-resourced communities and with underserved populations to close broadband, education, and housing gaps. Cooper Benjamin received her Master of Public Policy from Tufts University, her B.S. in Political Science and Government from Wellesley College, and her certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership from the Institute for Nonprofit Practice.
• Dr. Colin Rhinesmith is an Associate Professor and director of the Digital Equity Action Research (DEAR) Lab in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Rhinesmith is also a faculty affiliate with the Center for Social & Behavioral Science at Illinois, a research fellow with the Quello Center at Michigan State University, and co-editor-in-chief of The Journal of Community Informatics. Dr. Rhinesmith received their Ph.D. in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, their M.A. in Media Arts from Emerson College, and their B.A. in Visual and Media Arts from Emerson College.
• Dr. Dominique Harrison is the Founding Principal of Equity Innovation Ventures, where she advises organizations on building responsible, inclusive approaches to emerging technologies. Previously, Dr. Harrison served as Director of the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, where she led a $268 million federal grantmaking program supporting HBCUs, TCUs, and HSIs to expand broadband access, economic opportunity, and digital equity. Dr. Harrison holds a Ph.D. in Technology, Policy, and Society from Howard University, an M.A. in Media Studies from the University of Texas at Austin, and a B.S. in Advertising from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
• Dr. Bibi Reisdorf is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Reisdorf’s work focuses on the intersection of inequalities and digital media and the Internet. Dr. Reisdorf received her M.A. in Sociology from Bielefeld University and her PhD in Information, Communication, and the Social Sciences from the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford. 

Tune in to learn more about how broadband policy must reflect the experiences of the people it is supposed to serve.