Beyond wires and towers – the human infrastructure of broadband

Broadband isn’t just about fiber and wireless networks—it’s about people. In this episode of Connected Nation, we explore a groundbreaking research project that examines the individuals and programs working to close the Digital Divide. 

Jessica Denson is joined by Dr. Revati Prasad from the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society and Dr. Caroline Stratton from the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) to discuss their findings, the challenges of digital inclusion, and what’s needed to ensure everyone has access to the internet. 

Tune in to learn why broadband is more than just technology—it’s about the people making it possible.

Recommended Links:

Human Infrastructure of Broadband 

Dr. Prasad's Summary

Dr. Revati Prasad LinkedIn

Dr. Caroline Stratton LinkedIn

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction & topic overview
• 1:00 Meet the experts
• 11:00 What is human infrastructure?
• 17:31 The role of digital navigators
• 24:04 Methodology behind the study
• 27:54 Three C's
• 36:23 What the guests learned from this study
• 40:28 Real world applications
• 46:55 Upcoming projects
• 51:02 Key audience takeaways
• 53:38 Conclusion + outro

Transcript

Jessica Denson (00:08):

This is Connected Nation, an award-winning podcast focused on all things broadband from closing the digital divide to improving your internet speeds with talk technology topics, and impact all of us, our families, and our neighborhoods. On today's podcast, we're focusing on the human infrastructure of broadband. Find out what exactly that is and why it's critical to closing the digital divide as we sit down with some of those behind a first of its kind research project. I'm Jessica Denson, and this is Connected Nation. I'm Jessica Denson, and today my guests are Dr. RTI Prasad, who is Vice President of programs at the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society. And Dr. Caroline Stratton, who is an associate director of research at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, more commonly known as NDIA. RTI and Caroline worked together as part of a larger team on a series of new reports titled The Human Infrastructure of Broadband. Looking back, looking around and looking ahead, welcome ladies. Caroline Stratton (01:08):

Hi Jessica. Thanks for having us. Jessica Denson (01:11):

Thanks for joining us. I'm really excited to talk about this research project. It's very interesting and like I said, it's one of the first of its kind. But before we dive into that, I'd like to hear a little bit about both of your backgrounds, just so we could lay the foundation for our audience. Would ladies like me to call you by doctor or is First name Okay, Caroline Stratton (01:36):

First name? First name is great. Jessica Denson (01:37):

Okay, so let's start with you ti rti, sorry I said it wrong again. Rti, you worked with us as the co-author and research lead on this. So let's start with you. You study economic and political development at Columbia and then went on to get your PhD in communication and media studies at the University of Pennsylvania, but why those two tracks and how did that really lay the foundation for what you're doing now? Revati Prasad (02:05):

Thanks, Jessica. So I'm actually going to say that there are actually one track, which was all part of a master plan to do as much grad school as I possibly could, but in seriousness at Columbia and Penn, I was interested in how people access the information they need for their life. And within that huge foundational issue, I started following a chain of events that emerged. So my research work began with media environment and that led me to ask questions about how technology access shapes our access to the media content and eventually how telecommunications infrastructure shapes our access to the technology and the media. And part of that interest was not just about the thing itself, so not just about media content, the tech platform or the literal fiber optic cables, although that too, but I was always interested in the people in the industry that create the object. So journalists, the tech industry and the work we'll talk about today, the people that help connect other people to the internet, Jessica Denson (03:13):

The University of Columbia, I mean Columbia is a very, it's a prestigious school. What was like attending? Was that an intense program or was it just something that you loved? Revati Prasad (03:29):

Columbia and Penn were both intense programs, but they have really shaped how I understand how elite universities work in this country. My undergrad was at a state school in Ohio and it was very different. Both Columbia and Penn were very different places, but also incredibly challenging and interesting. You got to talk to some of the leading academics and researchers in the field and take advantage of their resources, but also both universities are not the best stewards of the neighborhoods that they are based in. And there are town and gown tensions as they like to say, but overall, they were fantastic learning opportunities and I have gotten to do so much because of those experiences. Jessica Denson (04:20):

And I love that you said that economic and political development is really part of communications and media that those are intertwined, especially in our current climate. I'm not asking you to get into the politics of it, but do you feel like that gives you a unique perspective looking at it through those two lenses? Revati Prasad (04:40):

I would say less that and more that a lot of my work has actually been international before this. So my dissertation was about India. I had done a bunch of research and work on other emerging democracies before. So I think there tends to be an understanding of the United States as unique, but connecting the challenges here to those in other places, I think that's been the, I guess, unique perspective I bring to this. Jessica Denson (05:11):

And working at Benton isn't the first time you've really focused on digital inclusion. Talk about your journey through those types of programs and to the place you are now with Benton. Revati Prasad (05:23):

Sure. So during my doctoral work, I had become interested in internet access. So I began doing research on community wireless networks. I was really interested in the idea of people owning their own infrastructure, and I started by looking at the community networks in the western world, Germany, Greece, but also here in the us. And then that's kind of where I began my dissertation work in India. So I was looking at internet connectivity in India with a focus on community networks, community led networks. The exact structure of that was very different in a developing country as opposed to places like Germany or Greece or the us. So I started looking at those networks, what they could do for the communities that were being served and what gaps remained. And then from there on, I kind of just like I said earlier, followed a little thread and I looked at state government efforts and then the fact that tech companies were getting involved with this sort of rush and narrative of connecting the unconnected.
(06:33)
And I was interested in unpacking who's being helped, what is being missed and how policy shapes all this work. Then after my doctoral program, I was an A CLS fellow, which is basically a postdoc where I was fortunate enough to work with the people at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance where I was researching connectivity in Indian country and working on tribal broadband bootcamps. So that sort of pulled me into the work around internet connectivity in the US in a much more professional way. And then the opportunity at Benton came up and it's been great. I get to design and do research. I get to work with others doing interesting work, like I run this Marjorie and Charles Benton Opportunity Fund fellowship, and I get to collaborate with fine folks like Caroline and Colin Ryan Smith and Lara Clark from a LA who we collaborated with on this project. Jessica Denson (07:37):

Well, since you brought up her name, let's hand it to Caroline for a moment. You took a different track, didn't you? Early on focusing on engineering and information science. Talk a little bit about your background. Caroline Stratton (07:51):

So there's a severe right turn somewhere in my career path, but as a college student, I studied nuclear engineering and my earliest experiences in the working world are actually a big utility. So investor owned utilities working in the nuclear industry. And while I was doing that in those years, just really trying to think about what aspects I liked about the work, what I wanted to do. And I found that I was so much more interested in things like the records, the information and the data and the computing systems involved in the space than I was in the kinds of tasks I was doing as an engineer. And so that sort of led me to big questions about where I might go next. And it led me to information school that I started a graduate program in information studies at University of Texas without a really strong idea necessarily of where I was going. But I found some really helpful and interesting lines of thought through mentors and especially found this really fascinating parallel here, getting back to the international development thing. And that sort of ties together in a weird way, nuclear technology and information technology.
(09:14)
So something that's fascinating here is we think about nuclear technology 50 years ago or a little bit longer ago was the kind of thing that said, we have advanced science and technology in our country. It held a lot of cultural cachet and in the same way and of the diffusion of computers, the diffusion of the internet and the development of things like a tech sector in countries started to symbolize that or replace that. When we think about it's just a much lighter weight technology, the infrastructure involved, the investment involved, and it is quite different than it is for building big heavy infrastructure projects like those involved in nuclear power or weapons production, things like that. But so I got interested in and started doing research and field work in an area that is information and communication technology for development. And I had a geographic focus during my PhD studies in Latin America as well. So in my dissertation work, I was going to particular projects that if they happen in the US we'd say, this is digital inclusion work. When they happen abroad, we would say, this is ICT for development. But going to sites where often development funders, sometimes local money too was being used to do things like get people devices for computing and teach people digital skills all with the idea that it would make their lives and their livelihoods somehow improved. Jessica Denson (11:02):

I'm struck with the fact that you both have worked overseas in some of this space. Is it interesting, Caroline, that some of what we might take for granted here in the us, people don't realize that we might have this image in our minds. I'm pontificating a little bit here that someone in the Philippines doesn't have access. Well, we understand that because it's the Philippines, it's not the us but that is also the case in the US that there are a lot of people, it's everywhere in the United States, it's global, this need for digital literacy and digital inclusion. Caroline Stratton (11:39):

Yeah, I would say that digital inequality can exist in any sort of context, and it may be that the conditions that contribute to the inequality or the causes of the inequality are slightly different. There might be situations where we're talking about more limited internet infrastructure or we're talking about other conditions that make solving the problem quite different or make the nature of the problem quite different. But it absolutely is a global phenomenon with different magnitude and different kinds of conditions, I would say in different places. Jessica Denson (12:14):

And your current role with the NDIA, which again stands for the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, what do you do with them now and what is kind of their role within this space? Caroline Stratton (12:24):

Sure. So I'm in the role of associate director of research, and it's a position in which I propose and conduct research that's useful to our base of affiliates. So NDIA has more than 1900 organizations affiliated with us. And these are organizations that may directly do digital inclusion work in their communities or somehow stakeholders in this environment. And so we are incredibly focused, especially with our research on producing things that will be of immediate practical use and importance to the affiliate community. Jessica Denson (13:06):

So your role within the NDIA, how does that operate within that context? Caroline Stratton (13:15):

Absolutely. So I'm in a position where I both undertake and scope out research related to practical projects that we're doing. So I'm thinking right now about evaluating a program that we've been putting on for the last couple of years. I'll share a little bit more about later. And then there are also things that look more purely like research projects from the start where it's not just research sort of fits into another thing we're doing that is research for the sake of research as well. Jessica Denson (13:48):

Great. Well, you both obviously have a very deep background perfect for this research project. So let's dive in now to what you guys have just done with, I know there's other people and we'll get into that about the partnerships and stuff. But this new report is titled The Human Infrastructure Broadband. Looking back, looking around and looking ahead, rt, you were the lead researcher on this project. Explain what you mean by human infrastructure. I've got air quotes going, you can't see me and why this topic was chosen. Revati Prasad (14:22):

Yeah, it's so funny to be, I've been working with Caroline on this for the last year, and only in this conversation have I discovered other intersections. So we both have done work on infrastructure studies before, but I hadn't put together some of the nuclear stuff. My first job out of college was working on nuclear non-proliferation policy, and I would imagine Caroline, Gabriel Hex work Radiance of France is stuff that you've muck about with as well. Caroline Stratton (14:51):

This is probably just an underlying piece of why we work well together. Revati Prasad (14:57):

So like I was saying about infrastructure studies, the definition of infrastructure that has always resonated really strongly with me is one by a scholar called Brian Kin, and I promise I will stop citing people right after this. Larkin defines infrastructure as objects that create the ground on which other objects operate, and when they do so they operate a system. So basically infrastructure is what creates the ground and things work in a system. So your classic example is roads. They allow for the movement of goods and they interconnect and therefore operate in a network. So we argue that the work of connecting people to devices or broadband service or skills is the undergirding that'll allow a digital society and economy to flourish and benefit us all. So we're talking here about direct digital support and roads and other infrastructure. The human infrastructure about broadband is also a network.
(16:03)
And when I started working on this project, the idea that I had was around sustainability. We were coming off this very celebratory sort of moment post covid where there had been a significant investment, not just in broadband deployment, but also in this digital inclusion kind of work. But what was going to happen after? How would we sustain this work going forward? And that was kind of the impetus for the project, both to demonstrate and understand how fiber is just going to be glass in the ground if we do not have the accompanying investment in the people that'll connect others to this infrastructure. So the term is new for sure, but the work that we are identifying is obviously has a long lineage and we were able to look at some of the history in this first report and look around and do some sort of a stock taking exercise. And then the second and third, half of our second and third pieces of our research project is sort of about figuring out what now to answer that question around sustainability. So yeah, I don't know if I answered that question Jessica Denson (17:31):

Completely. You did. You answered what human infrastructure is within the broadband space, and some of those people are everybody from librarians to digital inclusion managers. It's a whole group of people, correct? Revati Prasad (17:48):

Yeah, absolutely. It's librarians. For a while I was calling them the OG Digital navigators. I was told that I was not allowed to use that kind of language in our actual report. Jessica Denson (18:02):

The project was done in partnership with the Benton Institute and NDIA among others. Rty. Why do you feel like it was important or critical to partner with others on this subject? Revati Prasad (18:14):

So I'll take a quick step back and say what Benton is. So we are a broadband policy nonprofit, and we've been around a while, 43 years. So we were not focused on broadband itself in that entire time. But our DNA has been about media and telecommunications policy in the public interest. So ensuring that all people can access the means of communication in ways that advance their lives. And that the last 10, 15 years, that has meant narrowing our focus on broadband. Specifically this project, we were very, very clear needed to be a collaborative exercise because it needed to be something that we were working on in partnership with the folks that are both doing this work on the ground. So the folks that we've profiled in our case study and the folks that are providing support and sort of policy that shapes their work. So we wanted to make sure that we were able to arrive at a picture of sustainability that the sector would buy into that if we were proposing what should happen next or how we can best position and support the human infrastructure of broadband. We are doing so in one voice and therefore we needed collaborators. We needed collaborators from the American Library Association because OG Digital Navigators and NDIA, because they've been such an important voice in both defining terms like digital navigation, like digital equity, but also the hub that they provide amongst practitioners. So we didn't think anybody would want to listen to just us. We needed to make sure we were speaking in one voice. Jessica Denson (20:04):

And Caroline, for you, what do you see the N d's relationship to the project? Caroline Stratton (20:10):

Yeah, so this predates me joining NDIA, but NDIA early in the pandemic became a huge advocate for the model of digital navigators serving people. So essentially these one-on-one service interactions of bring any sort of need that you might have, whether it's for affordable home broadband service, the need for a specific device or specific digital skills need, application, need, tech support need. And the digital navigator isn't necessarily expected to know how to fix all of that, but they could at least link you to resources so that you could have these needs resolved. NDIA was hugely important in essentially suggesting that this was a good model for serving people. And so now that it's proliferated and it's out there in practice in the world in so many different places, we also know that folks have adapted it to their local circumstances to what their community needs. And so understanding how this model is actually used in practice, how it works in a lot of different places, the kinds of variation, all of that was really important from my organization. Jessica Denson (21:21):

Does it help that you mentioned it was 1900 organizations plus are a part of the NDIA. Does it help that there are probably, I'm guessing a wide range of different kinds of organizations? Caroline Stratton (21:34):

Absolutely. And that's something like the case study work on this project gets to us, the fact that we need a lot of different kinds of stakeholders at the table. And so not to spoil the case studies or anything like that, I guess they're online, so I can't spoil them, but we see there are digital navigators in places we might expect. There are digital navigators in places that might be a little bit more surprising to us, and we need them in all of those places effectively. One of the things that we come away from the case study saying is that we need everybody in this tent together. And that includes different types of organizations, governmental, non-governmental coalitions, organizations that have drastically different missions work in a wide range of sectors. Jessica Denson (22:29):

I noticed while doing some research after the three of us talked in our prep interview was that there were individual researchers, but there was also an advisory board. Caroline, can you keep this or take this question and answer how the advisory board impacts the research versus the individual researchers? Caroline Stratton (22:53):

Sure. So I have been thrilled to be part of this advisory board and I was just thinking about it today. I think that our effort has spanned to the better part of a year, and the advisory board, rty has come to us sort of at every turn in the project from shaping the initial vision to thinking through what data collection looked like in the project, to reviewing, writing, thinking about how we were presenting findings. And even now we're thinking together about where we present findings to whom, what are the messages that we want people to get? And so the advisory board participating in that, I really feel like we've had our hands all over this project that TI has really masterfully led. It's been a really good model actually in this space of clear leader and some clear spots for really meaningful input in how the project's gone. Jessica Denson (23:53):

Well, let's go ahead. Sorry. That's alright, go ahead. Revati Prasad (23:57):

I was just going to say they had no idea what I was signing them up for. Jessica Denson (24:04):

Well, let's pass it now to you again, reti talk about the approach to researching this, the methodology behind it, if you will. And also this is released in a series of reports, correct? Revati Prasad (24:17):

Yep, yep. So we were calling it phase one, phase two, phase three, but obviously as scintillating as those titles are, they're not how we ended up presenting 'em to the public. So what we wanted to do was the world, this work didn't start with covid and we wanted to first sort of acknowledge and understand where this work emerged from. And as Caroline was just saying, sort of the digital navigation as a model was something new. It was about sort of ongoing person to person direct support being provided, but it wasn't the first time support had been provided. So we started by looking back, looking at work under BO, which is the broadband technology opportunity program, which happened after the financial crisis of 2008. There is something to be said about linking crisis and investment in this kind of work. But we looked back first and then very much to what Caroline just said about trying to see how the model of digital navigation had been adapted. See sort of the proliferation of organization doing organizations doing this work that may have been new to it or had been doing it for a long time, but sort of to try and get a landscape assessment, figure out what are we actually talking about? What is the diversity and the breadth of work that is being conducted and is needed? And then finally to start looking forward. So the first was literature review. We are both former academics for programing, academics, I guess Jessica Denson (26:06):

You're always an academic, right? Once one. Revati Prasad (26:10):

And then we did surveys and case studies, so surveys to establish the breadth of the field and then case studies to understand how organizations and actors were working in the space with some depth. And then the last piece, which we will be releasing in a couple of weeks was focused on the future. And we did three convenings with experts who work on skills, service and devices. And we basically asked 'em two questions, what's working right now writ large in your little subfield, and what do you need to keep this work going? So what's working and what's needed? And then we took the learnings from across the whole project and we took it to a group of people we called policy entrepreneurs and we said, here's all the things that we've learned from the field. Here's what we are learning about, what is happening, what's happening?
(27:11)
Well, what is needed? How do we make it so that this work continues? And then a range of leaders in this field offered. We had a pretty robust discussion. And based on that, we have come up with a framework for sustaining this kind of work. And I will not spoil it any further, but some of it is about understanding the systems and understanding the policy and funding environment that shapes the field. And then some of it is about how the field operates itself, building a constituency and building capacity in those of us who are doing this work. Jessica Denson (27:54):

So what are the three Cs that you have on the report page? Revati Prasad (28:00):

So the three Cs are, well, my love of alliteration, Jessica Denson (28:06):

Mine too. I love it. Revati Prasad (28:09):

These are the three program models that we came up with. And this we went back and forth on a whole bunch of structure stuff, and it seemed like what actually differentiated different programs was whether the people that were running the program were a core, a complimentary or a coalition. And by core we mean organizations whose primary goal is digital equity, digital inclusion, information access. So here we include libraries, we include nonprofits that are focused on these issues. Then complimentary are other organizations that have sort of been brought into this field maybe because of covid, maybe because of other reasons. But they've understood that in order to meet their goals, their overarching missions, healthcare education, they need to also pay attention to issues of digital access, digital adoption. And then finally, coalitions, which can have both core organization members and complimentary members, but ultimately they are incredibly important for learning, for resource sharing, for coordinating and for advocacy. So you need all three of these different sort of approaches to this problem because one isn't going to be sufficient. So that sort of structured how we want to think about the work within the human infrastructure of broadband, and then how do we want to support these different kinds of work. Jessica Denson (29:42):

It kind of reflects the research piece with the need for partnership and collaboration. The actual answer and solution to this also needs collaboration, partnership. Am I making a big leap there or Yes, Revati Prasad (29:56):

No, a hundred percent. In fact, one of the big recommendations that we are coming up with is both in terms of our understanding of ourselves as a field and our messaging, but also just in really practical ways. We have to think about integrating, I'll say this, that the complimentary, how you run a digital navigation program as part of a healthcare system, we need to have best practices and learning around that and make sure that how you support that work is kind of creative and integral to how you also provide healthcare services. But at the same time, the other core thing that has been coming out, wow, one of the central critical issues that have been coming out of the research is also that there will always be need for digital equity, digital inclusion focused organizations as well. So something like devices that not everyone is going to be served through just an education organization. Not everyone is going to be served through an affordable housing agency. So you need to have places and spaces for people to go that are directly and solely about tech support to ensure that the human infrastructure of broadband and can continue and support people's actual access to broadband Jessica Denson (31:27):

As part of this. We mentioned the three Cs just now that Gravity just mentioned. Caroline, my understanding though is that you really dealt with the case studies across those three Cs. Can you share a few examples of those and what was learned through them? Caroline Stratton (31:46):

Yeah, absolutely. So within this we wanted to, once we had sort of spent a lot of time categorizing recategorize testing out finding edge cases, getting us to the core complimentary coalition kind of set of things. We identified some case studies within each. And the idea there was to pick up variety. So within core, for example, we have a case study of a large urban public library system that's Denver public library as well as a small library in a small town. We've got nonprofits from different types of sectors in complimentary we organizations coming from different orientations, so healthcare, housing, education, other things there. And we even have some variety within our coalitions too. What makes them hang together? So across these case studies, there are some things that were maybe not surprising and universally true, like everyone could benefit from dedicated and sustainable funding. Everyone could benefit from dedicated and sustainable staffing plans.
(33:03)
We would expect these kinds of things, but we found some interesting differences both within the program model, so core complimentary coalition and across 'EM too. So for example, the kinds of challenges that a small library has in offering digital navigation services versus the challenges that a large library has. They share some things in common. They both find that things like dedicating library staff time, understanding how digital navigation fits in overall library organization, who does the work is interesting, but the resources that are available, even when we think about something like if a client comes to a library in a city and says, I need help with X, Y, Z for self-sufficiency or my livelihood, there's just naturally going to be more resources in that environment potentially to connect a person with. So we got some really good variety across our cases in this way.
(34:09)
One of the things that I just keep kind of thinking about, because I think it leads us in a really interesting direction about variety in our coalitions. So coalitions and NDIA has a strong program of work to support coalitions, encourage people to form coalitions, all of, I guess two of the coalitions that we have in our case studies are at least somewhat place-based. So there's one that's city of Seattle and a whole constellation of organizations around it. And we have one that is Hawaii based, the KAUNA collective, but then there's some other layers or some other really important aspects of coalitions also included, we have a case study of black churches for digital equity, and that's a fascinating coalition because it's not place-based, a coalition of organizations that more or less have the same function and have some really similar missions in their communities. And the Hawaii coalition, the kauna Collective also has a little bit of this flavor in that the organizations that are its members and make it up are all interested in serving older adults.
(35:22)
And additionally, there's a piece of it with significant amount of the membership interested in public health and a healthcare focus for older adults. So all of this is to say that there are so many flavors, types of organizations that have a role to play in digital equity and could be great hosts for digital navigators, for direct service to the community. We need them all. And all of these types are interesting and useful essentially in their places. It's not just to say, oh, libraries totally have this covered, or this is just an urban library thing, or all coalitions are place-based or operate in the exact same way. It really is to say this diversity is what actually makes all of this work and effectively serve people when they show up with particular needs for digital inclusion. Jessica Denson (36:23):

When we met beforehand to discuss this and something that you really said, Caroline stuck with me. You mentioned that you were curious about what this work is like and why it's critical. If you could put that in sentence or two, I know I'm asking a lot. What do you think overall did you learn through this? Caroline Stratton (36:45):

Yeah, I think that what we learned is that people have, people in organizations all over the country have at some point either seen the digital navigator model, become exposed to the digital navigator model, realized something they were already doing as like, oh, yep, that more or less fits under the name digital navigation, but that there's diversity in it that some folks offer services that others don't. That there are digital navigators who are trying to work on affordable broadband and device access and skills, access and tech support and other things. And then there are digital navigators who provide really limited narrow services. And so actually characterizing the work, understanding what the field is doing and seeing the value of each of those different approaches, understanding that not all digital navigator jobs or responsibilities or tasks should look identical, especially based on things like organizational home, the community context that they serve. I think that's one of the really strong pieces of this report of what it contributes. Jessica Denson (38:04):

So there's justs not really a one size fits all. We really have to be flexible and malleable in this work. Caroline Stratton (38:11):

Yeah, I think that's something we get out of this is that if an organization wanted to add digital navigation, they perhaps don't have it right now, that they could look at the pieces that make most sense for them and it need not be all the pieces, and that would still be valuable. Jessica Denson (38:29):

What about for you rt? What do you feel you've learned from this overall? Revati Prasad (38:37):

I think, well, Caroline's so smart, all of the things that she just said, Jessica Denson (38:42):

She is smart. Revati Prasad (38:44):

But I think one of the big takeaways was how many levers, levers we have at a local level and how we don't need to wait for or be oriented towards a national investment or a national framework. This stuff is best or ideally positioned to start at a local level. So our final report that'll be out in a couple of weeks is actually called from the Ground up because we're trying to argue for how, although the Digital Equity Act and bead are very important investments, but that there are other more creative ways and local place-based ways to develop and support this work going forward. I guess I wasn't paying attention to that in such a clear way before this. And the other piece I think is started to learn a little bit about how we need to advocate for this field, how we need to advocate. I mean, part of calling it infrastructure is also a strategic choice is to underline the critical importance of this work that it is like Caroline just said, more wider ranging than you might imagine, but also it's essential. That's what makes it infrastructure. And then to be able to show that to other sectors and allow them to see themselves in the work that we are doing and find connections so that we can sustain and support this work going forward. Jessica Denson (40:28):

I will include links to the report page and where people can find all this data that you guys have been working on or you ladies have been working on with others. How did you really use this research in your mind? I would really like, or rty, sorry, I should tell our audience. Rty told me Jessica rave like rave rty, so I'm trying to get it right. I don't know what my problem is, but how do you see this as, how does somebody use that research? As in, I know that it's there, but what should they be looking for in it? Are there tips? Is it that the full report has so much good data that really to just digest the full thing? What are your thoughts on how people can break that down and use it to make those decisions and find those things that can help their community? Revati Prasad (41:24):

That's an excellent question. I think that one of the things that we are hopefully accomplishing through this work is providing advocates small, A advocates the ability to argue and advocate for the work itself to be able to show the diversity and the importance of the work that's going on. So hopefully that's one of the things that you take away from reading both this report and the case studies. We also think that the program models, the taxonomy we've developed the core complimentary coalition is a productive way of organizing our work and then being able to see what is covered under what and what is being left out. So what services still need to be provided so a county government can think about what they need to be planning for and the kinds of partners they could be working with. We also think that some of the forward facing or the future facing future focused recommendations, one of these days, I'll get it right.
(42:31)
Some of the recommendations that we're coming up with are also leading to sort of the next iteration of this work, which is going to be a lot more practical. I think I mentioned this earlier, but to think about best practices around integrating digital inclusion work in other support services. More and more we expect people to be online and we expect people to have 24 7 access to the internet to be able to fill out government forms, to be able to find out why your water stopped or whether there's a boiled water advisory going out. But we are not, as a society, we may not be doing enough to pull people online, and we want to be able to show folks what that handout to pull people online might look like. And then how to help the helpers. Gosh, that's very cheesy, I apologize, Jessica Denson (43:32):

But it's true. I mean, it might be a little cheesy, but it's true. How do we help those who are trying to help others and what do we need to do to set them up for success? Speaking of which, this is really, I mentioned this in my open. This is really the first of its kind research, at least that I've heard of on the human infrastructure of broadband. Caroline, in your opinion, is this the first step? Does this need to be examined further? Caroline Stratton (43:57):

Absolutely. So this work has gone by different names over time. And our first report situates this work in the history of people helping other people to use technology. And in the earliest days, this went by labels like community technology movement. But the whole idea here is that so long as we have new technologies, so long as we have inequality in the adoption and use of new technologies, which we expect will always be happening, we will have people showing others how to use them, helping others get access to them, and otherwise just kind of shepherding people who need assistance along. And so this isn't a one-time thing. Who knows what the next sort of innovation is that's going to really spur investment interest attention in the human infrastructure of broadband. But I think our work does a really nice job looking at how this all looks right now in the post pandemic world. Jessica Denson (45:01):

And RTI is for you as the lead researcher. I can imagine you want to do more and find out more. Were there any surprises in this or any groups that you were like, oh, that's the standard bearer of what digital inclusion looks like? Revati Prasad (45:18):

I would actually say the lack of a standard bearer, but rather it's all sorts of organizations and people involved in this space. So the importance of black churches as community anchors in sort of advancing digital equity. That may not, if you weren't familiar with the space, that might be surprising to you. But of course Dr. Fallon Wilson who led that work. Thankfully I've seen her worked before. And then also about the Seattle uses cable franchise fees in order to be able to fund digital inclusion activities on a local level that is interesting and something that's adoptable. So we're hopeful that we are sharing all the interesting things that we've learned and we've been able to spotlight through the case studies and through the policy consultations that we did that folks can see themselves in there and can look at specific ideas and examples and be like, oh, we can replicate that. That works. So how does Mass General Brigham run a digital navigation program? Well, they're actually about to come out with a playbook. We're working with them on developing a digital health navigation playbook on how other hospital systems could incorporate such a program and what some of the learnings they have from that work.
(46:51)
I think that's everything. Sorry, I sort of trail off in my thought. Jessica Denson (46:55):

No, you were great. You each work with organizations that are doing good stuff in the broadband space. I would love to hear if there's anything upcoming for your workplace that you'd like to share, any next big projects with the research. Caroline, you could start and then t, how about you pick it up from there? Caroline Stratton (47:16):

I'm going to share something that I am really looking forward to. So we've mentioned here that there's huge diversity in this space organizationally that we see people picking up models and doing what works best for them, what works in their context, working with the resources they have, getting really creative about what services they provide and to who I am excited to bring people into the space who were not familiar with it, but have some sort of notion that it's important. Mentioned people seeing themselves in the work. I'm excited for an education organization's leaders or healthcare organization's leaders to read a couple case studies, for example, the complimentary case studies and think like, oh yeah, we could also add this effort to our efforts and we get how this would support, compliment, otherwise enhance the other work we do to support our mission. I am very much looking forward to thinking about who are those actors who are not in our space yet, but everyone would benefit from them joining us. Jessica Denson (48:35):

Ti what about for you? What is something that you're excited about that's happening at Benton Institute or that you're looking forward to? Revati Prasad (48:42):

We are working more and more with play-based funders, and we want to be able to both make the argument and help them develop effective ways of engaging in this community, sorry, engaging in this work because the human infrastructure of broadband is going to continue to need resources and there's going to be great value in having organizations be convening spaces and supportive spaces where everyone can sort of come together to address what is a joint challenge of what I want to avoid is really the thing that we tend to do a lot is that put it at the feet of librarians and expect librarians to continue to take on more and more work without the additional resources they need to be able to do that work well. And I think the other thing that I'm excited about is thinking about making a larger argument that we have a tendency to think of digital inclusion work is for them, is for the other people, people on the other side of the divide.
(49:55)
But one of the things that we argue in the work and we'll continue to develop further is that technology is going to leave us all behind. We're all going to have to keep our skills up. Our devices are meant to become obsolete and you need them on a continuing basis. There are not just emerging technologies that require new skills, but there's also emerging threats. We need to make sure that not just new users, but all of us are able to know how to keep ourselves safe online and protect our own privacy. And part of that isn't going to be an individual response. It's going to be a systemic policy response. So how do we sort of link our work in digital inclusion and with the human infrastructure broadband to a broader conversation around making sure that technology broadband, they serve our lives and we are not in service of them. Jessica Denson (51:02):

I find that very interesting, the idea that we're all going to have to learn new skills, which is true as the technology changes and moves forward. So on that note, let's wrap up with a final word from each of you. I'd love to know what you hope our audience takes away from today's conversation or the research project you're on. Caroline, I'd love for you to start and RA tea. I'd love for you to give us the final word. Caroline Stratton (51:28):

I guess I hope that our audience takes away the notion that the human infrastructure of broadband, that this is not a one-time need and this is not a need. That at some moment we will have totally fulfilled and be done with that changes in technology, that changes in us, changes in our society, changes in policy. All of those dynamics mean that this is going to be necessary over time. And so this project has done a really lovely job of looking at where our current moment fits in the history of this kind of work, what it looks like right now, what the work looks like, and where we think things need to go for sustaining future efforts because this is an ongoing project for all of us involved in this space. Jessica Denson (52:23):

And rti, how would you answer that same question? Your final thoughts? Revati Prasad (52:29):

Very much in line with what Caroline just said, that this will be an enduring need, but also I hope one of the things that folks take away is that the human infrastructure of broadband is also the human infrastructure of telehealth. It's also the human infrastructure of education. Our world isn't going to stop being digital. It'll only get more intensified. And ensuring that people can meaningfully make use of that technology to improve their lives is going to be an ongoing challenge. And I am hopeful that our work illustrates that, helps make an argument for the critical importance of that work and the ongoing need to support that work. Jessica Denson (53:17):

Well, that's a great place to leave it, and I do agree with you. The world's just going to get more and more digital. Thank you ladies. I really appreciate both of your time, your energy and all that you've put into this report. Revati Prasad (53:30):

Thanks so much, Jessica. Thank you, Jessica. Jessica Denson (53:38):

Again, I've been talking with Dr. Ti Prasad, who is Vice President of programs at the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society, and Dr. Caroline Stratton, who is an associate director of research at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, more commonly known as NDIA. Both women work together as part of a larger team on a series of new reports titled The Human Infrastructure of Broadband. Looking back, looking Around and looking ahead, we'll include a link to the site where you can find all of their research in a description of this podcast. I'm Jessica Denson. Thanks for listening to Connected Nation. If you like our show and want to know more about us, head to connect nation.org or look for the latest episodes on iTunes, iHeartRadio, Google Podcast, Pandora, or Spotify.