Broadband Planning for a Sustainable Community

At the recent American Planning Association 2016 National Conference, Connected Nation’s Eric Frederick had the opportunity to present the Connected^SM Community Engagement Program as part of a discussion about broadband planning for building sustainable communities. The Connected program was presented alongside presentations from BroadbandUSA, Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), and the city and county of San Francisco, California.

Planning, as a profession, strives to create better communities. By examining and forecasting a community’s transportation, housing, land use, healthcare, recreation, infrastructure, and economic needs, planners assist communities in casting a long-range vision that improves the quality of life for all. The robust access, adoption, and use of broadband and related technologies are critical for a healthy and sustainable community. Planners—with their unique skillset of facilitation, long-range vision, and capacity building—have an opportunity to fold broadband and technology into their comprehensive planning activities to improve the quality of life for residents, businesses, and institutions.

Discover more by viewing the slides from Eric Frederick’s presentation.