Broadband Opportunities Accelerate in Rural California

Photo: Sunne Wright McPeak, president and CEO, California Emerging Technology Fund.

Today at the 2008 Rural Connection Workshop in Redding, California, Connected Nation and the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF) announced a partnership to support broadband acceleration efforts in California's rural regions. The partnership intends to leverage Connected Nation's successful experiences working jointly with community leaders and technology companies to implement efforts that ensure rural communities can seize the promise of broadband-enabled opportunities.

Kicking off the partnership efforts at CETF's Rural Connection Workshop, Connected Nation presented details of its broadband acceleration model and discussed relevant best practices with participants. As identified in recent broadband mapping efforts, rural areas of California typically lag behind more densely populated areas in terms of broadband availability. Community leaders in those areas are working to ensure they too can access the economic and quality of life benefits that accompany access to the technology. Key to closing this gap is identifying and increasing the demand for broadband and implementing programs that improve technology literacy and use.

"Connected Nation is happy to be working with the California Emerging Technology Fund and to be a part of the Rural Connection 2008 Workshop," Mark McElroy, Connected Nation COO, said. "We have had the opportunity to work closely with numerous states to bridge the digital divide and have seen great successes that will benefit rural California as well. Closing the digital divide is key to ensuring the long-term communal and economic health of the regions' residents. In any community, it involves both enhancing supply and nurturing demand."

"The California Emerging Technology Fund is committed to working with the elected officials and civic leaders from rural counties to aggregate demand for broadband in an effort to attract private investment in bringing high-speed Internet access to Northern California communities," stated Sunne Wright McPeak, president and CEO. "We are impressed with the local leaders who have stepped forward in every region to work together. And, we are especially pleased to partner with Connected Nation to make their expertise from across the nation available to Northern California leaders."

Connected Nation is a national 501(c)3 non-profit organization.