National Broadband Plan: A Framework for Building Digitally Inclusive Communities

In a first step toward providing community leaders with tools for assessment and planning, the Institute of Museum and Library Sciences (IMLS) recently released a preview of Building Digitally Inclusive Communities: A guide to the proposed framework.

What does Digital Inclusion mean for communities?
Digital Inclusion means to bring the benefit of the Internet and related technology into all segments of the population, including people who are disadvantaged due to education, gender, ethnicity, social status, remote geographic region, or those with  disabilities. The purpose behind  the framework for building a digitally inclusive national, and even global community, is the to offer all individuals and groups equal access to information and communication technologies. Digital inclusion encompasses not only access to the Internet but also the availability of hardware and software; relevant content and services; and training or the digital literacy skills required to effectively utilize information and communication technologies.

The IMLS’s proposed framework provides a common set of principles, developed by studying the experiences of communities throughout the U.S., to help city planners and government officials make strategic decisions about technology investment .

Within the framework, five principles have been identified:

Availability and affordability
Communities need reliable and affordable access to broadband technology infrastructure in order to be fully engaged and competitive in today’s information-based world.

Public access
In a world connected by technology, all people, regardless of income, need access to information and communication technologies in order to be fully engaged members of society, both economically and socially.

Accessibility for people with disabilities
Communities should ensure the full participation of all their members, by embedding  accessibility to digital technology for people with disabilities throughout their institutions, processes, and public awareness efforts.

Adoption and digital literacy
Beyond having access to technologies, people, businesses, and institutions need to understand digital technologies and how to use them effectively to achieve their educational, economic, and social goals.

Consumer education and protection
Consumers—both individual and institutional—need accurate, unbiased information to understand the technology options available to them, including how to buy and maintain
equipment and how to safely navigate the digital world.

Six additional targeted principles have also been identified within the digitally inclusive framework, including civic engagement, which concedes  that residents should be easily able to interact electronically with community institutions, government agencies, and one another, to participate actively in community affairs.

Last month the the final report on the guide to proposed framework became available, which includes details about the additional five targeted principles. Read more >>

[This post was inspired by the University of Washington’s Technology and Social Change Group]