To make a difference, you start with sharing your story: “By telling our unique and shared stories, we find that we have neighbors and people in our networks that are experiencing the same challenges,” said Matthew Rantanen from the Southern California Tribal Chairman’s Association and keynote of the Smart Region Summit. “And by coming together, we can find ways to work together to create better, shared solutions for all. It gives us a shared language and shared dialogue to move forward together.”
On the importance of building human networks: “We now have tribes – who previously did not work together – sharing resources, sharing equipment, sharing IT staff,” Rantanen continued. “This human network we’ve grown has become the most valuable tool of anything I’ve done in my 20+ years. They are now able to solve the problem for themselves, which allows us to get out of the middle.”
The Heard Museum, which housed this year’s Summit, is located on O’otham Jeved land, which is the ancestral homeland of the Akimel O’otham tribe. Today, the Akimel O’otham tribe is part of the Four Southern Tribes of Arizona, which is a coalition comprised of the Gila River Indian Community, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, the Ak-Chin Indian Community, and the Tohono O’odham Nation.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego joined the conversation to discuss the digital future of one of the nation's fastest-growing cities.
On connecting underserved communities in Phoenix: “Recently we’ve launched major initiatives, with partners such as ASU, to really address digital equity throughout our city,” Mayor Gallego said. “We hope a silver lining of the pandemic is more internet connectivity, more opportunities and more resources for every young person or job seeker to be successful. As we embrace growing technology industries, we want to ensure that every kid growing up in Phoenix has a chance to access the jobs of the future.”
Addressing the digital divide in Black and Latino communities: “Having connectivity matters. It matters in terms of where you live and in terms of accessibility, scalability and literacy,” said Nicol Turner Lee, a senior fellow at the Center of Technology Innovation at The Brookings Institute. “But it also matters for you to actually have a full-fledged digital citizenship — to have the ability to participate in the digital economy.”
On addressing community resources: “We must focus on who we are talking about when we say ‘digital divide’,” shares Jochai Ben-Avie, co-founder and CEO of Connecting Humanity. “Because we live in a country where 40% of Black folks don't have internet access and about 30% of Latinos don't have internet access in this country, we need to act deliberately about how to involve these communities. Beyond the infrastructure conversation, we need to talk about affordability, about developing digital skills and about workforce development.”
On building a better connected, smart city: “A smart city is a responsive city,” said Joshua Edmonds, of DigitalC in Cleveland. “Sometimes when we have these conversations, we'll talk about potentially life-changing technology enhancements. But when you're dealing with regular, everyday residents, just being responsive and having responsive city services, truly makes a difference in this discussion and in people’s lives.”
On building relationships to close the digital divide: “Building relationships takes time. And it is the most essential piece of what we do. So we go at the speed that the community welcomes us in,” said Erin Carr Jordan, managing director at the Digital Equity Institute. “Once we're invited into any given space, we need to acknowledge who is at the table, and more importantly, humbly join these communities with open hearts so we can learn from their experiences.”
Following the Summit, local and national leaders gathered for the 2nd annual State of Digital Equity Benefit Dinner, hosted by the Digital Equity Institute.
“This year, we were proud to extend our participants to include Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, Gila River Indian Community Governor Stephen Roe Lewis, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and other federal leaders to be part of the discussion,” said Carr Jordan.
As the push toward digital equity gains momentum, it is clear that access to technology and reliable internet is no longer a privilege but a necessity to participate in modern society. Year after year, ASU Enterprise Technology’s Smart Region Summit plays a small but meaningful role in harnessing the power of collaboration to inspire innovation to help underserved communities get and stay connected.
Written by Kevin Pirehpour; Photos by Mike Sanchez