When World Education launched the national Digital US Coalition in early 2020 with over 20 organizations partnering to advance digital skills and equity, we could never have imagined what a critical role the Coalition would play. As the COVID pandemic hit, the research, human-centered design, new model development, advocacy for systems change, and new collaborations we had formed soon became the foundation upon which diverse stakeholders built or expanded programming to close digital divides. Below we detail some of the top achievements of the coalition, including helping impact policy such as the Digital Equity Act, creating new digital navigator and inclusion models, catalyzing employer investment, defining and advancing digital resilience, and more.
Now, as Digital US reaches its three-year mark, we’ve taken stock of how our work as a collective impact coalition has shifted to meet the main challenges and opportunities in advancing digital equity. Closing inequities in who has access to technology and digital skill development requires all of US to collaborate in unprecedented ways across the learn and work ecosystem.
Our collective action strategies for the next three years are:
Champion Digital Equity
We are working to increase investments in digital equity and resilience and ensure they reflect the priorities of communities. We are adding our voices and advocacy to inform policy such as how the federal Digital Equity Act, WIOA reauthorization, and other investments in digital and workforce inclusion are deployed equitably. We are lifting up the voices and strengths of diverse communities to close persistent digital divides and tackle new challenges such as defining and measuring digital skills and ethical use of generative AI.
Design Inclusive Tech and Approaches
We must ensure technology use closes (and doesn’t exacerbate) existing inequities through inclusive design. Awareness of AI in our daily lives differs by race, economic status, and gender while new learning and employment technologies impact who have opportunities or not. We need to ensure that technology is designed to be ethical, free of bias, and inclusive and represent and advance opportunity for all. Investment in open education and assessment can help all communities benefit from and contribute to technology and tool development.
Collaborate Across Sectors
We facilitate partnerships between stakeholders to create an ecosystem for digital upskilling and equity that works for all of US. We bring together leaders across sectors to collaborate on closing digital divides and advancing digital, AI, media, and information literacies, digital skills, and career mobility. We support the embedding of digital navigation and digital transformation programming into diverse CBO’s, libraries, workplaces, and other settings. Digital skills cut across all industries and communities and offer an ideal ‘sandbox’ for innovating on defining, teaching, and assessing digital skills and creating equitable pathways to careers and well-being.
Since its founding with seed from Walmart Foundation, the Digital US coalition’s top accomplishments 2020-2023 include:
1. Educated on Digital Equity Imperative
Through education campaigns, policy briefings, and our 2020 report, policymakers and practitioners better understand who is affected by digital divides as well as the deep equity imperative to prioritize digital inclusion and skills development. We advanced understanding of the diversity of individuals affected by digital divides, with the majority of disconnected individuals in urban areas and of all ages, with a quarter of US workers with very limited digital skills aged 16-34.
2. Co-Designed Digital Navigators Model
Before COVID-19 broke out, the Digital US coalition had prioritized meeting individuals’ needs for customized, just-in-time supports to gain access to devices, technology, and digital literacy training and had co-designed the “digital navigator” services model. Private and federal funders stepped in to fund digital navigator services and implementation resources, supporting thousands of organizations to close digital skill divides.
3. Impacted Policy for Digital Equity
4. Catalyzed Employer Action
Digital US identified the need to catalyze employer investment and collaboration on digital skills and inclusion as a key strategy towards meeting the immense need for digital inclusion and digital skills training. World Education and the Aspen Institute’s Upskill America coordinated an Employers’ Network, enabling employers to share upskilling resources and strategies and developing resources such as the Employer Roadmap for Advancing Digital Skills and Equity.
5. Advanced Digital Skills & Resilience
These accomplishments represent the impact of diverse stakeholders collaborating across sectors in unprecedented ways to close digital divides and advance digital skills and resilience. Join US.