Data & Technology

The City of Los Angeles is addressing the issue of the digital divide and lack of high-speed internet access, particularly in low-income communities and among people of color. It is leveraging federal grant funds to build fiber conduits and install "dark" fiber, making it easier for internet service providers to... Read more

Medical debt affects 100 million Americans and contributes to personal financial strain and poor health outcomes, while overuse of healthcare services leads to wasteful spending and harm to patients. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is adopting a public health approach to address these issues and is partnering... Read more

The Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office (PDO) is seeking to establish a Data Analytics Unit to help reduce reliance on incarceration and drive criminal justice reforms throughout LA County. The PDO has already undergone a digital transformation initiative to modernize its operations and has restructured 160 million criminal case... Read more

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed long-seated issues with connectivity in Texas, with almost 900,000 residents lacking broadband internet access across the state. In Central Texas, over 37,000 students are without the high-speed internet needed for online learning, and over 50,000 residents in Austin alone do not have use of the... Read more

Like other prosperous American counties, greater King County currently finds itself in the position of possessing both enormous amounts of wealth and staggering levels of homelessness. King County has enjoyed robust economic growth over the past decade, with both Amazon and Microsoft establishing headquarters in the region. Despite these economic... Read more

Los Angeles County is celebrated for its diverse mix of nationalities, cultures, identities, and languages. This cultural richness is stifled by stark racial and socioeconomic inequities that manifest in disparities in health, economic mobility, housing, and homelessness—particularly for communities of color. Black/African American people made up 40% of the total... Read more

In Alabama’s Black Belt the digital divide has compounded issues related to racial discrimination, high poverty, and limited access to healthcare services. Nine counties in the Black Belt have less than 30% access to broadband, and even in Black Belt cities with established infrastructure, like Birmingham, many residents face cost... Read more

In the City of Brooklyn Center, a small, working-class city just outside of Minneapolis, the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, at a traffic stop in the suburb this spring sparked successive days of protest and demands for the city to examine new approaches to public safety... Read more

In Milwaukee, more than 17 percent of Black residents are unemployed, compared to more than 4 percent of white residents. A key to closing this widening economic gap is giving individuals more workforce development opportunities and access to job prospects. Employ Milwaukee, the local workforce development board serving Milwaukee County,... Read more

Washington D.C. is working to increase the availability of affordable housing for its residents, with more than one-third of all households in the district spending more than 30 percent of their income on monthly housing payments and utilities. To help ensure equitable housing options for residents, district officials have prioritized... Read more