Just started. REAL TIME TEXT https://bit.ly/40pUmLx [image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/>On *Tuesday November 7, 2023* at *12:00-13:00 EST* (17:00-18:00 UTC) the *Marconi Society <https://marconisociety.org/> *will host a webinar '*Connecting Maine - An “All In” Approach for Funding Sources, Community Engagement and Sustainability <https://marconisociety.org/events/connecting-maine/>*'. Maine faces a perfect storm of challenges in achieving digital equity. Maine’s remote and rugged terrain makes the state one of the most complex and expensive to reach with digital infrastructure. As the state with the oldest population, many in Maine are not digital natives. Maine’s median household and per capita income lag far behind most other states. A majority of Mainers live in small, rural communities with limited resources. These forces combine to shape the challenging contours of the digital divide in Maine. With the passage of the *IIJA <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrastructure_Investment_and_Jobs_Act>*, the State created the *Maine Connectivity Authority <https://www.maineconnectivity.org/>* as a quasi-governmental entity to drive a proactive and nimble approach to achieve universal connectivity. The Maine Connectivity Authority will share our unique approach, focused on Projects, Places, and People and now layering in the values of urgency, universality, and digital equity. This webinar is part of a series of Marconi Society State case study virtual workshops. *PANEL* *Nick Battista*, Chief Policy Officer, Island Institute *Maggie Drummond-Bahl*, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Maine Connectivity Authority *Kerem Durdag*, President and Chief Operating Officer, Great Works Internet *Jeff Letourneau*, Executive Director, Networkmaine *Marijke Visser*, Director, Library Development, Maine State Library *MODERATOR* *Tanya Emery*, Maine Connectivity Authority *LIVESTREAM https://livestream.com/internetsociety/connecting-maine <https://livestream.com/internetsociety/connecting-maine>* *PARTICIPATE VIA ZOOM https://marconisociety.org/events/connecting-maine/ <https://marconisociety.org/events/connecting-maine/>* *REAL TIME TEXT* (see *ISOC.LIVE <https://isoc.live/17018>*) *TWITTER #ConnectingMaine <https://bit.ly/3FKzCEw> @MarconiSociety @TweetTheQuilt @Networkmaine @islandinstitute @gwimaine @MaineStLibrary @MEConnectivity #Maine #DigitalEquity* *MASTODON #DigitalEquity <https://mastodon.social/tags/DigitalEquity>* *SIMULCASTS* *https://twitter.com/ISOC_Live <https://twitter.com/ISOC_Live>* *https://www.twitch.tv/isoclive <https://www.twitch.tv/isoclive>* *https://www.facebook.com/liveisoc/ <https://www.facebook.com/liveisoc/>* (AI Captions) *ARCHIVEhttps://archive.org/details/connecting-maine <https://archive.org/details/connecting-maine>* Permalink https://isoc.live/17018 -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- - -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -