City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County officials want to bring an end to the digital divide — a term used to describe unequal access to digital technology — that's found throughout the region and they're hoping to do so by 2027.
Unveiled during a press conference on Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Digital Equity Coalition (PDEC), a newly formed working group, will consist of various organizations already promoting digital equity in the region. As part of that coalition, these organizations will also team up with community groups to figure out the exact needs of neighborhoods around the city and county.
PDEC hopes by the second quarter of 2023 to publish a working five-year plan that outlines how it will end the digital divide in the area.
"Investments like this, partnerships like this, building a thriving city not just for those with existing access but for our neighbors in most need, this is what we can do as we continue to grow our economy," Mayor Ed Gainey said during the press conference. "We have to continue that we make sure we shrink the gap and we can't do this as government alone. The city can't do it, the county can't do it, nonprofits can't do it, corporations can't do it. But together we can."
In addition to city and county officials, other entities that PDEC comprises include: A+ Schools, Allegheny County Housing Authority, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Computer Reach, the Greater Pittsburgh Digital Inclusion Alliance, Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh, Literacy Pittsburgh, Meta Mesh Wireless Communities, Neighborhood Allies, Pittsburgh Public Schools, Pittsburgh Regional Transit, United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania and the University of Pittsburgh.
Representatives from these organizations will meet every few weeks to build a playbook that will seek to close the digital divide in the next five years.
That playbook itself will be broken into four parts, the first being an effort that describes the digital divide's history as it relates to Pittsburgh and the unique challenges the region faces in trying to eradicate it. The second element will aim to map the efforts that are already addressing digital equity while another step will outline actions that can be taken by all residents to ensure there can be access to affordable internet service, computers and skills needed for everyone to safely use the internet. Finally, the last element of the playbook will look to prepare the region to receive federal digital equity grant dollars to help make this plan a reality.
