Category Archives: Publications

Call for Submissions: 20th Anniversary Issue of The Journal of Community Informatics

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The Journal of Community Informatics

Call for Submissions: 20th Anniversary Issue of The Journal of Community Informatics

Community informatics (CI) is the use of information and communication technology (ICT) to support community-defined development goals. It is a multidisciplinary field that includes researchers and practitioners from information studies, social work, rural sociology, public policy, urban planning, among other areas. Similar to social informatics, CI considers organizational use of ICTs across digital and physical spaces. However, CI is more concerned with how communities develop the social and technical capacities needed to promote ICT access, adoption, and use. CI projects are as diverse globally as they are locally. A common theme connecting them is community participation in ICTs to promote social action and social change.˟

On October 1, 2004, the first issue of The Journal of Community Informatics was published. It has since remained a free and open access, double-blind peer review journal featuring academic research and practitioner contributions at the intersection of CI research, practice, and policy. A wide range of submissions have been welcome, including research articles, notes from the field, points of view, reports, case studies, and more. As a way to celebrate the past 20 years of the journal, and to open up new avenues for participation, we invite original submissions in these traditional formats, as well as new formats including artistic works such as poetry, audio/video recordings, and visual artwork.

Information for Contributors

We are interested in short paper submissions of 1,500-2,000 words that reflect on any of the topics listed below.

  • The past, present, and future of community informatics
  • Reflections from journal article authors about the impact of their contributions
  • Personal/professional reflections on CI as a field of research and practice
  • Critical reflections on and interrogations of the need for community informatics
  • The role of JoCI and other open access publications in the scholarly communication ecosystem

Contributors should include a 200-300 word abstract that describes their submission. The papers will be non-peer reviewed and will be included as “Points of View” submissions (see Editorial Guidelines). Additional author guidelines can be found here: https://openjournals.uwaterloo.ca/index.php/JoCI/about/submissions#authorGuidelines

Important Dates

  • Submissions due: 1 May 2024
  • Publication issue: 1 October 2024

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˟ Rhinesmith, C. (2019). Community informatics. In G. Ritzer (Eds.), Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology (2nd Ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell.

New Report Highlights Participatory Action Research Project with Tech Goes Home

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Developing a Digital Equity Theory of Change with Tech Goes Home (Report)

Over the past year, my team and I at the Digital Equity Research Center at METRO co-led a participatory action research project with Tech Goes Home (TGH). The purpose of the study was to develop a theory of change for TGH, as well as an analysis of the challenges and opportunities facing community-based organizations in conducting equity-focused program evaluations as part of their their digital equity work.

We hope the findings from our study will help to inform state and federal policymakers as the NTIA’s Internet for All grant funding rolls out over the next five years.

The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society published this summary that I co-wrote with Sangha Kang-Le (TGH) and Malana Krongelb (DERC). The article includes the following recommendations based on the findings from our participatory action research project.

For digital equity organizations, key recommendations include:

  • Allocating time, money, and intentional effort to capture insights and expertise from community members;
  • Engaging evaluation participants in their native languages; and,
  • Working with funders to balance reporting requirements with participants’ privacy and self-defined measures of success.

Policymakers play a critical role in supporting this work and should prioritize:

  • Set aside funding that organizations can use to conduct evaluation;
  • Technical assistance on effective program evaluation; and,
  • Allowing government funding to be used to compensate community members for their expertise.

(Image above by Becca Quon originally published on the Digital Equity Research Center website)

New Article in Mobile Media & Communication

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I am thrilled to announce that my new article, titled “‘It’s one of the most important things we carry for us’: How mobile hotspots support people experiencing homelessness” was just published in the journal, Mobile Media & Communication. It will be part of an upcoming special issue on homelessness and mobile media.

MMC’s Social Media Editor, Nari Sawalha created this fantastic image (below) to be included on social media to help promote the article.

Mobile Media and Communication

Here is the abstract for the article.

Previous studies have examined the benefits and challenges of using mobile phones to support people experiencing homelessness. However, few studies have considered how mobile Wi-Fi hotspots support unhoused individuals and couples through public library lending programs. This paper seeks to address a gap in mobile communication scholarship by contributing insights from a qualitative study of library patrons who checked out mobile hotspots from the Boston Public Library in Massachusetts, USA. The findings show that although mobile hotspots provided many benefits for public library patrons in general, these devices facilitated mobile communication with a different sense of urgency for six people experiencing homelessness who also happened to be in romantic relationships. More concretely, the study found that mobile Wi-Fi hotspots reduced stress and anxiety for unhoused patrons because without the devices, patrons without fixed residences worried they could not be found; that hotspots kept unhoused patrons more connected, and therefore safer, in their tents despite the cold weather and a lack of electricity; and that unhoused patrons were concerned about their devices getting stolen because of their precarious situation. Although the unhoused patrons who participated in this study also shared their recommendations regarding how mobile hotspot lending programs in public libraries could be improved, they also mentioned that the benefits of hotspot availability far outweighed their challenges. The findings have implications for those working to address homelessness, including community-based organizations, government agencies, and policymakers who seek further insights into the positive role that mobile hotspot devices can play in supporting positive health outcomes for individuals and couples experiencing homelessness.

New Book Contract with UC Press!

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UC PressI am incredibly honored and excited to announce that I have just signed a contract for my new book to be published by the University of California Press in 2025!

The title of the book is Digital Equity Ecosystems and will be published as part of the UC Press Technology Studies list.

The book builds on the past 7 years of my own research, including research with others, that has investigated the interactions between individuals, populations, communities, and their larger sociotechnical environments that all shape the work to advance digital equity and social, economic, and racial justice. More concretely, Digital Equity Ecosystems will provide an examination of the formation, structure, and function of digital equity coalitions across the U.S., as one unit of analysis, and their implications for research, practice, and policy using a digital equity ecosystems approach.

As I wrote in my proposal to UC Press,

Through a comprehensive review of theories and concepts across the fields of information, communication, technology, and public health studies, as well as by presenting original case study research of digital equity coalitions in communities across the U.S., the book explains why a digital equity ecosystems approach to digital inequalities is so urgently needed now, particularly during a time of unprecedented national investment in response to the social, technical, and racial inequalities exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The book also underscores the urgency of this approach not only to bridge the digital divide, but also to strengthen civil society and the future of democracy.

I am incredibly excited to join the community at UC Press and their amazing list of authors, including my colleagues Melissa Villa Nicholas and Tonia Sutherland, whose work I deeply admire.

Stay tuned here for updates!

New Working Paper: The Digital Opportunities Compass

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Digital Opportunities CompassAs states across the U.S. develop their digital equity plans this year, as part of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s BEAD and DEA grant programs, a comprehensive and holistic framework is needed to evaluate the outcomes and impacts of these federal investments to advance digital equity in the years to come.

In response, my colleagues and I have developed a working paper, titled “The Digital Opportunities Compass: Metrics to Monitor, Evaluate, and Guide Broadband and Digital Equity Policy.” The paper was published yesterday by the Quello Center for Media and Information Policy at Michigan State University, where I am a Research Fellow.

Here is a snippet from the Executive Summary of the report:

This working paper introduces a measurement framework to guide state and local policy in the United States at a moment of unprecedented investment in broadband infrastructure and digital equity nationwide. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA), together with the Digital Equity Act (DEA) included in IIJA, allocated 65 billion dollars to ensure that all Americans have access to affordable, high speed internet service–a prerequisite to achieve broader outcomes, such as ‘economic success, educational achievement, positive health outcomes, social inclusion, and civic engagement.’

The IIJA includes five categories of measurable objectives to assist states in documenting and promoting: (1) the availability of, and affordability of access to, fixed and wireless broadband technology; (2) the online accessibility and inclusivity of public resources and services; (3) digital literacy; (4) awareness of, and the use of, measures to secure the online privacy of, and cybersecurity with respect to, an individual; and (5) the availability and affordability of consumer devices and technical support for those devices. The law is explicit in its goal to ensure that covered populations, or those most impacted by digital inequalities, benefit from these efforts.

The ‘Digital Opportunities Compass’ framework builds on these core metrics and expands them in important ways. It builds on over 25 years of research and experience related to how broadband and device access, affordability, and digital skills relate to digital equity and broader social and development outcomes. This body or experience suggests that digital equity can be achieved more sustainably if the entire broadband ecosystem is considered. The framework is intended to assist stakeholders interested in metrics to monitor, evaluate, and guide broadband and digital equity policy now and in the future.”

Download the full report on the Quello Center’s website.

Update on February, 28, 2023: The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society has published our overview of the report, titled “Digital Opportunities Compass” on their Digital Beat blog.