The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City hosted the “Digital Access Research Forum” in mid-September, bringing together stakeholders from across the country to share knowledge and impact on the digital divide and what this means for constituents for the present and future.
Federal Reserve Bank Digital Access Research Forum 2025
Last month, six Federal Reserve Banks co-hosted the Digital Access Research Forum, which brought together hundreds of researchers, policymakers, and community practitioners from across the country to discuss issues like digital access in rural areas and the economic impacts of digital inclusion. The event was held at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and facilitated impactful conversations around digital access research.
During one of the many informative sessions, former KC Digital Drive program analyst, William Crumpler, presented his analysis of internet service available in Kansas City, which examined disparities in broadband availability, speed and affordability. Beyond which internet providers offered service, his session highlighted the realities experienced by people living in low-income neighborhoods as it relates to the cost and quality of their internet service as his research found evidence that there were notable differences depending on the income level of potential customers.
Low-income neighborhoods were just one of the wide variety of topics as the forum touched on the economic benefits of bringing broadband to rural areas and related affordability considerations, cities’ role in ensuring digital equity for their residents and the important relationship between digital inclusion and health. It also offered tips on how to use storytelling to “put a face” on the data and covered emerging digital access datasets, recommendations for how to measure the impact of digital inclusion interventions, including new tools created by NDIA, to ensure the best allocation of scarce resources and the importance of digital inclusion for underserved households who are disproportionately unbanked to be able to access digital payment services.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, as well as the other Federal Reserve Banks that co-hosted the forum, go beyond annual convenings by providing a growing body of resources in the digital access space, from their various research reports to their 2024 Digital Inclusion Week webinar series. Their focus on supporting the digital equity ecosystem offers community-based organizations operating on the ground helpful data sources to inform their grant applications. It also provides a platform to amplify the work being done outside of the Federal Reserve purview in universities, think tanks and other institutions. As a go-to thought leader, the Federal Reserve Banks are demonstrating why this work matters as we navigate through the shifting digital equity landscape.
To learn more, check out the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s website here: https://www.kansascityfed.org/events/digital-access-research-forum/