Broadband and Bagels: Using Broadband to Close the Urban-Rural Divide

Throughout the United States, rural residents lag behind their urban counterparts in broadband access. This inequity echoes through disparities in access to jobs, education and healthcare, while harming the ability of rural communities to attract and retain businesses and residents. Broadband access has become a major driver of a larger urban-rural divide. However, local leaders are leading innovative plans to bridge that divide. 

A conversation about the state of the urban-rural divide, the most exciting efforts by community leaders to bridge the broadband gap and what urban and rural communities still need from federal policy to ensure that all areas reap the benefits of technological and economic progress.

Speakers include:

• Christiana McFarland, Research Director, National League of Cities

• Kathryn de Wit, Manager, Broadband Research Initiative, Pew Charitable Trusts

• Dr. Christopher Ali, Assistant Professor, Department of Media Studies, University of Virginia

• The Honorable Corina Lopez, Vice Mayor, City of San Leandro, California

• The Honorable Randy Maluchnik, Commissioner, Carver County, Minnesota

• Craig Eccher, President and CEO, Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc., Pennsylvania