Digital Inclusion Week 2021: Supporting Digital Equity and Digital Empowerment

The Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is joining more than 600 organizations to celebrate Digital Inclusion Week, an annual event that raises awareness of solutions to address home internet access, personal devices, and local technology training and support programs. 2021’s theme, Pathways to Digital Empowerment, inspires and underscores the Biden Administration’s commitment to equality and NTIA’s mission to ensure that every American is connected and using broadband to the fullest extent. Two of NTIA’s current grant programs specifically support digital equity in historically underrepresented and marginalized communities in the US; the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program is making $980 million available to eligible Native American, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian entities for broadband deployment, digital inclusion, workforce development, telehealth, and distance learning. The Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program seeks to build the digital capacity of eligible Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and other Minority-serving Institutions with $268 million in grant funding for broadband access, adoption, and digital skills for their students and surrounding communities through partnerships with nonprofit organizations and minority business enterprises. Through the State Broadband Leaders Network, NTIA facilitates communities of practitioners that work on increasing broadband access and digital inclusion at the state and local levels. NTIA will continue to work with its federal partners and stakeholders nationwide to promote universal broadband adoption and digital empowerment.