Technology Adoption in Underserved Communities

ZeroDivide has continually assessed how technology’s emerging trends and the continuing “digital divide” disparities of access and adoption amongst underserved communities intersect.

We believe that philanthropy must take decisive steps at that intersection, and act in a way that efficiently and cost-effectively tackles the ongoing digital divide in a manner that empowers underserved communities to leverage technological innovation. These innovations are critical in order to improve economic stability, civic participation, and educational opportunity.

In August of this year we were awarded grants from the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) as part of 94 Recovery Act investments in federal broadband projects in 37 states. As a staunch supporter of technology adoption and capacity-building in underserved communities, we received NTIA funding through the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP).

Generation ZD Digital Literacy Program 

One of the programs called the “Generation ZD Digital Literacy Program” targets low-income, minority, disabled, and otherwise underserved youth between the ages of 5-25, who have limited or no access to digital and information technology in the home. These young people will be served through a three-prong approach of a digital literacy skills curriculum; an online content creation and distribution program; and capacity-building and sustainability efforts at community anchor institutions within each participant state.

Working in partnership with 7 community anchor institutions across 6 western states, ZeroDivide will train new broadband users, build replicable best practices digital media curricula, and provide technical assistance and capacity-building support. In addition, we will work to increase broadband use and build the broadband application skills – resulting in higher educational achievement and job opportunities - of over 140,000 low-income, disadvantaged youth in urban and rural environments.

The youth to be served in the “Generation ZD project” reside in Humboldt and San Benito Counties, CA; Maui County, HI; City of Santa Fe, NM; Multnomah and Washington Counties, OR; Salt Lake City, UT; and King, Snohomish, Skagit Island, and Pierce Counties, WA.

The Community Anchor Institutions for “Generation ZD” are: 

Access Humboldt is an innovative, self-sustaining media resource for community anchor institutions, residents, local governments, educational institutions andin Humboldt County, CA. Access Humboldt will conduct sustainable training, skill-sharing and workforce development programs for the NorthCoast region of California, including youth from the Native American Table Bluff Wiyot Tribe, Karuk Tribe, and Hoopa Tribe.

Akaku: Maui Community Television is designated by the Hawaii Dept. of Commerce and Consumer Affairs as the sole provider of Public Education Government access services in Maui. Akaku’s key role is to implement digital literacy training to Maui’s rural Native Hawaiian and minority youth through its (Project YBEAM) Youth Broadband Education & Awareness Mentoring), an online peer-to-peer program for and about Maui’s marginalized youth. YBEAM provides computer literacy training and raises awareness of broadband technology through TV, radio, webstreaming, and education. The Akaku Y-Beam Project will recruit interpreters to work with their computer technology/broadband/media literacy trainers to culturally/linguistically competently serve youth constituents who speakIlocano, Tagalog, Spanish and various Pacific Islander dialects. The project will also acquire adaptive technologies such as Merit ESL, Interchange, and Connect in order to help students master new media skills.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Fe (BGCSF) This Intel Computer Clubhouse will provide low-income youth ages 6 to 18 with access to broadband technology, hardware, interactive software, and mentorship and training. Over 50% of BGCSF staff is bilingual, and most BGCSF materials are offered in both English and Spanish, to serve members for whom English is not the first language or the language spoken at home. BGCSF is also culturally sensitive to the different approaches needed to serve Spanish-speaking new immigrant families versus multi-generational Santa Fe resident families of Hispanic origin.

Community Media Access Partnership (CMAP) provides free and low-cost media literacy, multimedia storytelling, technology, and video production trainings to residents, community organizations and educators. Through digital media content creation and internet literacy programs, CMAP provides broadband education, awareness, training, access, equipment, and support to community anchor institutions, job-creating facilities, where vulnerable populations are served. CMAP’s large limited English English proficient population will be served through bilingual (English-Spanish) instruction, including Spanish language video and multi-media production trainings.

Portland Community Media (PCM) is dedicated to increasing technical proficiency and reducing technology disparities among youth, the economically disadvantaged, persons of color, immigrants, veterans and persons with disabilities. PCM will implement a Youth Media curriculum for youth aged 14 to 18 to help participants develop a passion for technology, resulting in improved study habits, critical thinking, problem-solving and team-building skills. Media produced by participants will air on PCM’s cable channels.

Reel Grrls empowers young women from diverse communities to realize their talent, power and influence through media production. Reel Grrls is the first all-girl, year-round media training program in the US. BTOP funds will support an afterschool and weekend digital literacy program, and expand athree-month apprenticeship into a year-round program where teen girls produce videos for non-profits. Reel Grrls participants come from populations most vulnerable to recession effects, including young women on probation, foster care, and/or from low-income neighborhoods.

Spy Hop Productions is a youth media arts center that provides safe after-school mentoring programs in film/video production, radio, music, sound engineering, digital design, and animation. Participating youth (K-12) use media to engage in their communities and to learn critical thinking. BTOP fundingwill support programs, which provide hands-on and project- based learning experiences to promote positive youth development through individuality, creativity, leadership, and intellectual curiosity. 

They will be supported in disability accessibility work by the Alliance for Technology Access. 

Tribal Digital Village Broadband Adoption Program 

Through the “Tribal Digital Village Broadband Adoption Program,” ZeroDivide will work with SCTCA to implement a four-prong broadband adoption strategy which encompasses an outreach and public awareness campaign; basic digital literacy skills training; advanced content creation training; and sustainability.

The National Congress of American Indians estimates that only 5-8% of Native Americans living on reservations has residential broadband access. The proposed program is expected to raise broadband adoption among SCTCA’s 8,900 Tribal community members from the current 17% baseline to over 70%. This program will result in 4,000 new broadband users at 2000 tribal homes, 750 new users at community anchor institutions, and 50 new business users-for a total of 4,800 new users. Combined with the existing 1,500 broadband users, there will be a projected total of 6,300 broadband users.

Geographic isolation and cultural barriers make tribal communities particularly vulnerable to disparities in broadband deployment and adoption. Federal stimulus funding is essential in enabling ZeroDivide and SCTCA to address these critically important disparities.

With more than a decade of funding successful programs, ZeroDivide will provide Tribal Digital Village (TDV) with technical assistance and capacity building to guide the implementation in support of sustained technology usage and ongoing adoption. ZeroDivide‘s strategy will go beyond affordability and network access to include a revenue-generating component to create a self- sustainable enterprise capable of building a consumer market for future broadband services and applications.