The Divide: Why digital inclusion needs a new funding model

Light Reading Podcasts

1 DAYS AGO

Overview Shownote Highlights Transcript Chapters Pins

Shownote

This week: Connect Humanity's Samantha Schartman and Mission Telecom's Mark Colwell discuss their 'Alt Funding Field Guide,' which explores a new approach to co-investing in digital adoption initiatives focusing on six sectors. ---------------------------...

Highlights

In this episode, Nicole Ferraro sits down with Samantha Schartman and Mark Colwell to explore a fresh approach to funding digital inclusion. They discuss the limitations of traditional grant cycles and political funding, advocating for a more sustainable, co-investment model that brings together businesses, workforce agencies, and community organizations to drive digital adoption.

09:57

We need a sustainable, long-term funding model for digital inclusion.

16:07

Co-investment shifts digital inclusion from grants to economic value.

29:46

Dealing with downstream problems costs more than addressing them upstream.

Chapters

Why the Old Funding Model for Digital Inclusion is Failing

00:00

A New Playbook: How Co-Investment Can Bridge the Digital Divide

13:04

The Real Price of Inaction: Why We Can't Afford to Ignore Digital Skills

26:02

Transcript

Nicole Ferraro: Hi, I'm Nicole Ferraro, and this is The Divide, a podcast from Light Reading, exploring the ongoing digital divide, why and where it still exists, and what needs to be done to get people everywhere connected to reliable, high-speed internet...