Many thanks to Alonzo Young for sending these photos. As you can see in the following images, ODIS engaged a spectrum of community voices on technology access and community internet issues in Oakland. Youth, elders, women, and communities of color diversified discussions and plenary sessions - making for an innovative day that inspired new audiences to become involved in digital inclusion programs and advocacy efforts in Oakland and beyond. To learn more about Media Alliance’s broadband work in Oakland, call Eloise, Broadband Access Project Director at 510-832-9000, or visit the Media Alliance website.

Davey D.’s number one fan and mother, Peggy D., takes a moment to catch up with ODIS 2008 Coordinator and Media Alliance Broadband Access Project Director Eloise S. Lee (left) before the opening festivities.

Kiana, the daughter of First Voice Co-Director Rainjita Yang-Gessler, finds a quiet corner amidst all the networking.

Dancing Feathers, a Native American Youth Pow-wow dance troupe, welcomes participants with their energy and spirit.

A visual from the morning plenary, “Bridging the Gap: How Communities Attack the Digital Divide”.

Cynthia Mackey, consultant and member of the Mayor Dellums Citizen Task Force on Universal Access, listens to comments from ODIS participants.

David Glover, the Executive Director of the Oakland Citizens Committee for Urban Renewal, discusses their approach to bridging the digital divide in East Oakland through the development of Eastmont Computing Center and Lion Creek Crossings - a technology access hub in the heart of what was notoriously known as 6-9 Village. Depicted in the film New Jack City, 6-9 Village is now home to Lion Creek Corssings, a mixed income housing community featuring a state of the art technology center that welcomes community residents, youth, and seniors to use their facility free of charge.

Laura Valdez, Executive Director of Caminos Pathways in San Francisco’s Mission District, describes their innovative approach in engaging Latino immigrant women in digital inclusion programs as both users and content creators.

Dr. Faye McNair-Knox, Executive Director of One East Palo Alto, sheds insight on the need to build value for technology in historically marginalized neighborhoods.

Solomon Hill, Technology Director at One East Palo Alto, describes their approach to building a sustainable and community driven wireless network in East Palo Alto, CA.

Xavier Leonard, Executive Director of Heads on Fire in San Diego, speaks passionately on approaches that stimulate under represented voices to create their own content through emerging media and internet technologies.

Esme Vos, Founder of Muniwireless(dot)com describes the municipal wireless networks that are underway in European countries - proving that, comparatively, the U.S. has still a ways to go in creating a business model that is sustainable and community driven.

Greg Epler Wood from Vermont’s tri-play ownership project offers a refreshing approach to broadband access in the U.S.

In between plenary and break out sessions, ODIS participants gathered around tables and info booths showcasing the programs and projects of Bay Area media and digital inclusion advocacy groups, including the National Radio Project, OTX-West, Eastmont Computing Center, Media Action Marin, ZeroDivide, Community Technology Network and the First Voice Apprenticeship Program at KPFA.

Laura Flynn from the Women of Color Resource Center, answers questions.

Lisa Rudman from the National Radio Project, prepares for the next wave of visitors.

Marnie De Guzman from One Economy and Rene De Guzman from the Oakland Museum discuss points covered in Davey D.’s keynote presentation (far right).

Martha Wallner, Media Alliance and ODIS 2008 volunteer, greets participants at the registration table.

Many thanks to Nathaniel James from the Media and Democracy Coalition (MDC) for featuring ODIS in their weekly media newsletter. ODIS was a success! Both the program and participants mirrored the richness and diversity of Oakland. Representatives from Center for Digital Storytelling, Women of Color Resource Center, East Bay Asian Youth Center and other community based groups in Oakland complemented panel sessions focused on grassroots solutions to bridging the digital divide, as well as policy making strategies that support the creation of broadband, tech access, and community internet networks. Media Alliance, the primary coordinators of ODIS, would like to thank all the speakers, panelists, performers…and most of all, the participants for making ODIS 2008 an engaging, inspiring and powerful event.

Pleases check digi-I regularly for ODIS wrap ups, media from ODIS and other resources to help with digital inclusion efforts in your area.

For those of you who weren’t able to obtain a summit reader or CD, don’t fret. They are now available for download below:

Media Alliance, A Digital Inclusion Advocacy Toolkit: Bridging the Digital Divide by Winning Community Benefits in Municipal Broadband Projects

The Philadelphia Story: Learning from a Municipal Wireless Pioneer

Broadband for All? A Consensus Conference on Municipal Broadband, Final Report and Recommendations

Public Engagement in Municipal Broadband Policy: Lessons from a Silicon Valley Consensus Conference

Municipal Broadband: A Background Briefing Paper

Localizing the Internet: Five Ways Public Ownership Solves the U.S. Broadband Problem

Municipal Broadband: Demystifying Wireless and Fiber-Optic Options

The State of Connectivity: Building Innovation Through Broadband

For those of you who have already registered - THANK YOU!  We look forward to seeing you tomorrow! For those of you who have yet to register - don’t worry, you can register on-site.  Registration starts at 10:00 a.m.  Just look for the green and white ODIS signs to direct you.  We will see you in the morning.  Dream sweet…

The Oakland Digital Inclusion Summit is hours away now, and we are expecting an AWESOME roster of speakers and presenters. Oakland is full of organizations and individuals that work hard to give back to their community. When I listen to and watch the young people of this community, I sense the nascent fruit of that investment. A key to the integral growth of Oakland’s generations, like anywhere else, is access to knowledge. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) facilitate that access. Through ICTs, people have more information at their fingertips with less cost to receive that information. But access to ICTs is only the beginning. Communities like Oakland must adopt digital inclusion strategies to promote affordable and reliable technologies accessible to everyone in their own language, as well as the availability of the technical training needed to use those technologies. The repercussions of such a policy could be monumental.

Be the spark that lights this fire. Join us at the Oakland Digital Inclusion Summit, 10 a.m., Friday, February 15th at Laney College.

Wow! There are just too many amazing Oakland groups with digital inclusion efforts to fit into this blog before ODIS! Come to the Summit this Friday at Laney College to check out these groups and more:

OCCUR provides technical assistance and support to over 1000 local nonprofit groups. In addition to the Eastmont Computing Center, OCCUR projects include Neighborhood Revitalization, Neighborhood Profiles, Consumer Education, and the FAITHS Initiative.

National Radio Project, founded by International Media Project in 1994, is an independent media group that provides a “voice to diverse perspectives and opinions underrepresented in mass media,” and collaborates with and trains community groups and individuals to raise awareness and encourage civic participation in the media.

ZeroDivide, formerly the Community Technology Foundation, supports community organizations that empower traditionally underserved communities through digital inclusion projects. ZeroDivide focuses its efforts on wireless access, mobile applications, and social media/networking programs.

CAMINOS Pathways Learning Center “uses computers to provide educational and employment opportunities to low-income, immigrant women of the Bay Area.” Founded in 1999, CAMINOS offers tuition-free classes in technology as well as a job skills program to empower women limited by low literacy, poverty, and inadequate English language skills to rely on themselves and improve their living standards by moving from low-skilled manual or service labor to higher-paying desktop publishing and technology jobs.

ODIS is thrilled to launch our main events on Friday with a keynote speech by Bay Area hip hop authority Davey D.

Davey D is a Hip Hop historian, journalist, deejay and community activist. He’s been down with Hip Hop since 1977 in the Bronx where he started out as an emcee for two crews: TDK [Total Def Krew] out of Co-op City and the Avengers out of the Marble Hill Section of the Bronx. Later Davey D came out to Cali to go to school at UC Berkeley and started deejaying in the Bay Area. His mobile deejay work and community activism eventually lead him to deejaying at radio stations including KALX, KPFA and later KMEL. Davey D is a proud member of The PROs Record Pool where he served as director for several years in the late 80s -early 90s. He is also a co-founder of the Bay Area Hip Hop Coalition [BAHHC]. Davey D is also a member of the Bay Area Black Journalist Association [BABJA]. Currently he’s the webmaster for what is considered one of the oldest and largest Hip Hop sites on the web Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner– which can be found at www.daveyd.com. The writings on his website are frequently referenced and quoted by journalists, scholars and professors and fans from all around the world. He writes for numerous publications and magazines and puts out a popular Internet newsletter called the FNV Newsletter, which has a subscriber base of 100 thousand people. His newsletter, like his website, is frequently referenced and quoted. In early 2002, Davey D launched another newsletter called HHPN [Hip Hop Political Newsletter].

Davey D’s been featured in documentaries, magazines, newspapers, videos and TV news shows like Rap City Rhapsody, CNN’s Talk Back Live, ABC’s Nightline, Australia’s Lateline, BBC Radio, Internet Cafe, Computer Chronicles, BET Television, VH1 Television, Soul Beat TV, KRON TV, KTVU TV, Bay TV, KPIX TV, KBHK TV, The Tavis Smiley Show, The Laura Flounders Show, E-40’s Charlie Hustle the Blueprint of a Self-Made Millionaire, 2Pac’sThug Angel documentary, Straight From The Streets documentary, Jahi’s Redefinition documentary, Impact Magazine, Radio Facts Magazine, Rollingstone Magazine, Washington Post, The NY Times, The NY Post, Oakland Tribune, USA Today, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Guardian Magazine [London], The Vallejo Times Herald, The SF Bay Guardian, Vibe Magazine, Stress Magazine, Redeye Magazine and The Source Magazine to name a few. He was profiled in the January 2003 edition of The Source Magazine as being one of the Top 10 most Influential people in the country when it comes to dealing with Hip Hop and politics. In 2000 Davey D was nominated by the Bay Area’s City Flight magazine as one of the Bay Area’s Most Influential African Americans. In 2001, Davey D was voted by the East Bay Express Newspaper as the Best On Air Personality in the Bay Area. The daily radio show he co-hosts, Hard Knock Radio, was voted Best Radio Show in the Bay Area. Davey D is originally from the Bronx and now a native of California. He graduated from UC Berkeley. Davey D also pens a Hip Hop/Political column for the San Jose Mercury News. Davey D also hosts a weekly Hip Hop/Political TV talk show on Oakland’s Soul Beat television. Davey D sits on the advisory board for civic organizations like Black Youth Vote as well as Rock the Vote. Davey D was also the guest curator for the Rock N-Roll Hall of Fame Hip Hop Nation Exhibit when it came to San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center in June of 2001. Davey D has been a featured speaker at high schools, universities and community centers throughout the country. He speaks on topics ranging from Hip Hop to Politics to bridging the Digital Divide.

Get to Laney College early on Friday - you do not want to miss a beat!

ODIS 2008 Program

Only four days left till ODIS 2008 at the Laney College Theater! Here’s a quick rundown of what to expect:

10:00 am – 10:25 am Summit Registration

10:25 am – 10:45 am Community Sharing
Dancing Feathers & United Nations Singers

10:45 am – 11:30 am Welcome
Guest Speaker: City Council Representative Jean Quan
Keynote: Davey D., Journalist, Hip Hop Historian, Community Activist
Presentations from The Center for Digital Storytelling and
Bruce Buckelew, Executive Director of OTX West

11:30 am -12:30 pm Session 1
Bridging the Gap: How Communities Attack the Digital Divide
Moderator: Davey D.
Panelist #1: David Glover, OCCUR, Eastmont Computing Center
Panelist #2: Laura Valdez, Caminos Pathways
Panelist #3: Xavier Leonard, Heads on Fire
Panelist #4: Cynthia Mackey, Mayor Dellums Citizen’s Task Force
Panelist #5: Craig Settles, Successful.com, Consultant, Author

Session 1: Bridging the Gap: How Communities Attack the Digital Divide
In this session, panelists will focus on their organization’s approach in tackling the digital divide in their communities. The role of non-profit organizations and community-based groups in developing strategies that engage marginalized and low-income communities and individuals as active participants will be explored. How to bring community voices to the forefront of digital inclusion initiatives and partnerships will also be discussed.

12:30 pm – 12:45 pm Community Sharing
Presentation from The Women of Color Resource Center

12:50 pm – 1:20 pm Lunch Break

1:20 pm – 1:35 pm Community Sharing
Korean Drumming Performance

1:45 pm – 2:45 pm Session 2
Creating Platforms for Success
Moderator: David Mathison, Be The Media
Panelist #1: Esme Vos, Muniwireless.com
Panelist #2: Sascha Meinrath, CUWiN
Panelist #3: Greg EplerWood, Vermont Triple Play Ownership Project
Panelist #4: Dr. Faye McNair-Knox and Solomon Hill, One East Palo Alto
Panelist #5: Bob Glaze, Chief Technology Officer, City of Oakland

Session 2: Creating Platforms for Success
This session will look at case studies of where technology has been used successfully to achieve digital inclusion and broadband access. Information from this session will focus on revenue generation and approaches to developing a community Internet network that is both sustainable and accountable to communities with the most need. Panelists will consider questions around ownership, maintenance, and funding for digital inclusion initiatives that meet the specific needs of diverse user groups.

2:45 pm – 4:45 pm Session 3
Break-out Sessions:
Session A: Digital Inclusion Oakland: Steps to Increasing Access
Session B: Building State and National Connections

4:45 pm – 5:00 pm Coffee Break

5:00 pm – 5:40 pm Townhall Sharing
Report backs from break-out sessions

5:40 pm – 6:00 pm Closing Ceremony
Presentation from East Bay Asian Youth Center’s Streetside Productions Performance by Cov Records from Covenant House – Oakland

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm ODIS Reception

7:00 pm ALOHA! – Congratulations on a job well done!

Breakfast, lunch, and refreshments will be provided to all registered ODIS participants.

The Laney College Theater is located at 900 Fallon Street in Oakland. If traveling by BART, get off at the Lake Merritt Station and exit via the 9th Street exit. We encourage summit delegates to use public transportation, as street parking is limited. Please visit www.bart.gov/stations/schedules/lineSchedules.asp for exact times and route information.

ODIS 2008 was made possible through sponsorship from the following organizations:

Media Alliance, Oakland Technology Exchange-West, California Consumer Protection Foundation, ZeroDivide, Full Circle Fund, Media Action Marin, First Voice Apprenticeship Program at KPFA, and Community Technology Network

The Oakland Digital Inclusion Summit is this Friday, February 15th! Be sure to register if you haven’t already. For more information, check out the following links:

- Digital Inclusion Advocacy Toolkit

- ODIS Press Release

- ODIS Flyer (also available in Spanish)

- Other ODIS Materials

You can also now view the ODIS Program Overview here .

Eloise Lee spoke with Be the Media and Media Action Marin about digital inclusion and the upcoming ODIS in January. Check out the video here. Entitled Community Internet for All: Internet Access as a Public Utility, this show was the first part of a two-part series on community-driven Internet initiatives. The second part of the show, covering various community Internet solutions around the US, will be taped at ODIS on February 15th.