The Impact of Working Toward Digital Equity
A blog post by Caleb Brady
The internet has become an almost necessary aspect of most of our lives. We go online so frequently, checking the latest news, attending virtual meetings, etc., that we don’t even think about how important the internet is to us anymore. However, some people still have difficulty accessing the internet in our communities. A considerable number of residents in Washington still lack access to a strong internet connection, do not know how to use a computer or device, or might not be able to afford internet service at all. This “digital divide” has affected hundreds of thousands of people for years, but has been shrinking steadily thanks to the work of many helpful organizations. These teams are working toward digital equity in numerous ways, from offering internet access to teaching people how to use their devices.
Thousands of people in Washington State are without access to the internet or lack a sufficiently strong connection to accomplish essential tasks like streaming videos. According to the Association of Washington Business, an estimated 6.4% of Washington households (or about 138,141 households) had no internet access as of 2021 (AWB Institute, 2022). Another source, the Department of Commerce, reported that 45% of Washington residents have less than 10 mbps download speeds in their homes, including residents with no internet service (Department of Commerce, 2021). That really puts into perspective just how many people don’t have sufficient internet access! The US Census Bureau also found that in 2021, an estimated 94,990 households in Washington did not have any computing device at all (United States Census Bureau, 2021). These numbers may represent just a percentage of our population, but they still represent hundreds of thousands of people who cannot use services we may consider necessary to our daily activity, such as using a map app, applying to jobs online, and more.
In an effort to bridge the digital divide, organizations are banding together and creating innovative solutions to bring the internet to these demographics. Entities such as Goodwill, Comcast, the Broadband Action Team, and our state government are forming ways to build digital equity in Washington. Each of these teams has started unique projects in an effort to reach different areas of the state in their own unique ways. Some great examples of current work in the digital equity field include the following:
The Evergreen Goodwill has created a “digital equity bus” mobile classroom to bring technology lessons to those who need them, free of charge. This bus, along with other programs from Goodwill, is helping create digital equity by reaching out to people who may not have access to the internet where they live or do not know how to use the internet. (https://newsdirect.com/news/evergreen-goodwill-of-northwest-washington-unveils-first-digital-equity-bus-763276861)
Large tech companies are doing their part to make the internet accessible for everyone. In 2021, Comcast committed to invest one billion dollars to help reach low-income Americans through a number of programs, including grants, device distributions, and their low-cost Internet Essentials plan. Other internet providers have followed suit and offered plan discounts and resources to build digital equity. (https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcasts-internet-essentials-program-hits-ten-year-mark)
The Washington State Government has passed bills to help people get connected to the internet reliably. One example is bill HB 1365, which began a program to supply learning devices, such as computers, to public schools so that students and staff would be able to utilize technology and the internet for education. Another bill, HB 1723, prompted an initiative for the Statewide Broadband Office to try and close the digital divide. The SBO’s task is to promote digital equity by utilizing grants and coordinating with other entities to improve broadband infrastructure and access. Their goal is to bring 25 mbps download and 3 mbps upload speeds to all businesses and residences by 2024. (https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1365&Initiative=false&Year=2021#documentSection; https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1723&Year=2021&Initiative=false)
These projects, and many more, have impacted thousands of lives in our state, and will continue to close the digital divide. Although the divide is not completely closed yet, the efforts of those working in the digital equity field are showing encouraging results. In 2019, an estimated 252,489 households had no internet connection, but this number was reduced by over 114,000 households in two years (AWB Institute, 2022). That’s over 156 households gaining access to the internet per day! The 2020 census estimated that, between 2020 and 2021, over 55,000 households gained a computer as well (United States Census Bureau, 2020). Even though there is still plenty of work to do to close the digital divide in our communities, we can look at all the hard work people are doing to bring connectivity to each other, and see how much progress we’re making together.
Sources
https://data.census.gov/table?q=Computer+and+Internet+Use+in+Washington+in+2021&tid=ACSDT1Y2021.B28001 (census 2021)
https://data.census.gov/table?q=Computer+and+Internet+Use+in+Washington+in+2020&tid=ACSDT5Y2020.B28003 (census 2020)
https://newsdirect.com/news/evergreen-goodwill-of-northwest-washington-unveils-first-digital-equity-bus-763276861 (Goodwill digital equity bus)
https://evergreengoodwill.org/blog/595-evergreen-goodwills-role-in-bridging-the-digital-divide (Goodwill’s DE page)
https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcasts-internet-essentials-program-hits-ten-year-mark (Comcast investment)
https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1365&Initiative=false&Year=2021#documentSection (bill 1365)
https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1723&Year=2021&Initiative=false (bill 1723)
