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Most Recent PostsBroadband Ambassador Program
The IIA has embarked on a national education and advocacy campaign to promote the importance of broadband as a means to enhance economic development across all demographics, promote quality of life through broadband-enabled applications, and ultimately eliminate the Digital Divide.
The IIA Broadband Ambassador program enlists the participation of notable Internet executives, elected officials, academics and real Americans across a broad spectrum of fields such as health care, education, business and technology to help stress the critical importance of every American having access to broadband and its many benefits and to promote equal opportunity for universal broadband availability and adoption.
Honorary Leaders
The Honorable Fabian Nunez, Speaker Emeritus of the California State Assembly, and David Steward, chairman and co-founder of World Wide Technology, Inc., the largest African-American-owned business in America, will lead the IIA Broadband Ambassador Program, the IIA announced today. As Honorary Chairmen of the program, Nunez and Steward will seek to harness their legislative and business experience to highlight the critical importance and benefits of every American having access to broadband, particularly at a time when adoption and accessibility of wireless Internet is receiving increased focus.
David Steward
Chairman and Founder of World Wide Technology, Inc.
Fabian Nunez
Former Speaker of the California State Assembly
Meet the Ambassadors
Roll over the images to learn why they think broadband is important to the economy, consumers and the nation.
We need to let broadband breathe and grow. Excessive regulation will lead to slower growth. Access and affordability can be sustained through less governmental intervention.
Harry C. Alford
President & CEO, National Black Chamber of Commerce
If America is to continue as the world's innovation headquarters, she will need the creativity of all her people - and that requires ubiquitous and affordable broadband.
Phil Bond
CEO, Information Technology Association of America
Changing the way physicians and patients interact, how the elderly are cared for in their homes and how specialists deliver services to people from afar have one thing in common. They rely on reliable, fast and ubiquitous connectivity.
David J. Brailer
Health Evolution Partners
Historically, America's geographic vastness has been viewed as an asset. This asset is not currently paying dividends in connecting our social and economic communities. Available technology and funding is closing the gap, but we have a responsibility to connect all Americans. We must look at the future broadband technology in such a way that spurs economic development and heightens social responsibility.
Jason Brennan
Partner, Stream Strategies
Underserved populations are often left behind due to the ever increasing digital and health divide. It is with this in mind that we must have broadband Internet in order for the American health care industry and those that they care for to fully adopt and utilize the benefits of health information technology, including telemedicine and electronic medical records. The National Health IT Collaborative for the Underserved is fully supportive of the IIA and its efforts to maintain focus on the development of a National Broadband Strategy and the adoption of broadband for the purposes of increased access to care and decreased cost among underserved populations, with an emphasis on communities of color.
Marcia Thomas-Brown
Program Manager for the National Health IT Collaborative for the Underserved
The internet has brought the world to my doorstep. Living in a small rural community I could not have had a successful business. As the owner of a small home business, being able to market my product via the internet is vital. As our nation becomes connected by broadband service I think it will transform the way small business operate to be more successful.
Becky Collins
Owner, Grannybsclothesline.com
As the U.S. Soccer Foundation expands its work in support of children in underserved communities broadband is a critical tool. Broadband enables us to provide grassroots service providers with the training needed to expand their capacity and it is the vehicle for connecting children in vulnerable communities with the equipment and volunteers that are essential to our programming.
Ed Foster-Simeon
President U.S. Soccer Foundation
The Internet has a tremendous positive multiplier impact on the overall economy and especially on the environment. Public policy should therefore encourage expansion of the Internet. However, telecommunications is highly taxed. We should not tax what we want to encourage.
Joseph P. Fuhr
Professor of Economics, Widener University and Senior Fellow, American Consumer Institute
Broadband connectivity to the Internet helped catapult Pinnacle from a relatively small and unknown provider to one of the largest providers of IT services and vendor management in our industry in less than 6 years. Affordable and widespread accessibility to a host of broadband services - specifically SaaS - continues to enable our clients to access Pinnacle's proprietary human capital management solution from any Internet connection. Going forward, the evolution of broadband connectively and cloud technology will accelerate smaller and mid-sized companies' abilities to provide robust and scalable solutions at a nominal fee, dramatically leveling the playing field for technology-based services.
Nina Vaca-Humrichouse
Chairman of the Board, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Broadband is a force multiplier for video games. With two-thirds of US households playing video games and millions playing them online every day, broadband connects friends and families around the world. Robust broadband infrastructure in the US is vital for job creation in the fast-growing video game industry, and the expansion of markets here and abroad.
Michael Gallagher
CEO, Entertainment Software Association
The history of the rise of the United States in the 19th and 20th centuries is a testament to the power of combining freedom of movement of people, goods and ideas with the infrastructure to make it happen. Our political freedoms can only survive with economic stability and strength through this century, which in turn requires a telecommunications infrastructure that is the envy of the world, not an embarrassing throwback. Ubiquitous broadband now!
Douglas S. Glucraft
Partner Nixon Peabody LLP
The American Homeowners Grassroots Alliance believes that universal broadband access is critical to the future of the country. Both Internet commerce and teleworking offer ways for homeowners to help reduce energy consumption and global warming while saving money. Education is increasingly dependent on broadband tools, and healthcare is the next frontier for this technology.
Bruce Hahn
President, American Homeowners Grassroots Alliance
My passion lies in getting minorities, women and the 'underserved' to understand the dire importance of technology. Tech, Web 2.0/ Social Media and their accompanying change agent – Broadband – will drive jobs, entrepreneurship, productivity, education and generational wealth to our communities. Right now, we need this more than ever. My work, the work of my clients, and the work of organizations like the Internet Innovation Alliance, are living testimonies that technology can be catalysts for change.
Lindsey Holmes
CEO / Lead Strategist, LCH Business
The increasing dialogue about the need for a national broadband strategy and ubiquitous coverage is really exciting. Never before in the history of America has there been a more opportune time to join efforts and see this vision become reality. Perhaps nowhere in the country would widespread, affordable broadband service transform a state moreso than in Alabama. Our state offers cutting edge medical research at renowned teaching hospitals, serves as home to widely respected academic institutions and small and large businesses thriving in the global market. But the gap is large and the distance long in our ability to effectively share this expertise with others. With ubiquitous broadband throughout Alabama, the world will finally witness the entrepreneurial spirit that enriches the very fabric of our people.
Kathy Johnson
Director, Alabama Broadband Initiative
"Sports fans have always helped drive the adoption of media technology — going back to the days when radio and television were first becoming popular mediums. Approximately 70% of sports fans are displaced fans, meaning they don't live in the areas where they grew up, but the internet and wireless devices are key tools to allow sports fanatics keep up and stay connected to their favorite teams and players. Broadband is the best way for fans to be able to track sports content, including the latest scores, stats, news and video highlights."
Jimmy Lynn
Managing Partner at JLynn Associates
Coming soon.
Brian Mefford
CEO, Connected Nation
I am very pleased to be assisting the Internet Innovation Alliance in meeting their goal to raise the awareness and importance of new technologies making the internet available at higher broadband frequencies, to satellite served subscribers and especially the Mobile Satellite Service markets.
Anthony J. Navarra
President, Global Operations of Globalstar, Inc.
Broadband is an economic driver that benefits all industry sectors. Nearly three million new jobs were created or supported by broadband and countless small businesses and entrepreneurs invent, manufacture, collaborate and sell innovative services and products thanks to this technology. As President & CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, I look forward to sharing with our entrepreneurs the many ways broadband can increase the reach of their business.
Javier Palomarez
President & CEO, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
coming soon
Susan Patrick
President and Chief Executive Officer of the International Association for K-12 Online Learning
coming soon
Jess Peterson
Executive Vice President of the United States Cattlemen’s Association
Coming soon.
Tom Rogers
CEO and President, TiVo
At Ciena, we believe that broadband is a fundamental driver of the global economy with all sectors and members of today's information age bound together by the need to communicate. Increasing numbers of Americans are using the Internet in ways that touch virtually every aspect of daily life, and they covet the ability to communicate in a private, reliable, and secure fashion to share information and enrich their lives. As an industry, we must work toward a common broadband strategy that ensures all citizens can share in this opportunity, bringing the benefits of technology into their homes and businesses and enabling them to partake in today's digital global economy, competing and collaborating with anyone, anywhere.
Gary Smith
CEO, Ciena Corporation
Real broadband will drive an "exaflood" of rich new applications and services that can boost American productivity and innovation and revive the U.S. economy.
Bret Swanson
President, Entropy Economics LLC | Visiting Fellow, Digital Society
Effective community broadband strategy, properly conceived and executed, improves local businesses, creates and attracts new ones, prepares current and new generations of workers for a digital economy and overall raises the quality of life for everyone.
Craig Settles
Founder & President, Successful.com
We stand at a moment in time when our health care system is under enormous pressure due to rising costs, a perception of poor quality and heightened demands by patients, employers, providers of care and payors. Our health care system must get smarter, more effective, more efficient, safer and more accessible. We will only achieve these goals when the knowledge and practices at the best caring centers of the world is also known and practiced by the most remote rural provider caring for her patients. We are at the threshold of empowering the emergence of individuals to know more and do more to manage their health regardless of their geographic location, disability or condition. This empowerment however requires real time transference of best practices, which can only occur in a fully wired America.
Carl W. Taylor
Director of the Center for Strategic Health Innovation at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine
I continually see the frustration rural business and nonprofit leaders face in struggling to get reliable access to broadband - access that their urban competitors take for granted. Not only is reliable broadband connectivity necessary for rural businesses to compete with companies across the world, it is necessary to create jobs, improve health care, promote higher education, and increase prosperity for rural Americans.
Jon Troen
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Catchfire Media
The history of the rise of the United States in the 19th and 20th centuries is a testament to the power of combining freedom of movement of people, goods and ideas with the infrastructure to make it happen. Our political freedoms can only survive with economic stability and strength through this century, which in turn requires a telecommunications infrastructure that is the envy of the world, not an embarrassing throwback. Ubiquitous broadband now!
George M Tronsrue III
Executive Chairman SinglePipe Communications, Inc
Ubiquitous broadband (wireline and wireless), is a key foundational growth driver for a multitude of industries and has the power to impact every life in America. As a leading company in the mobile data infrastructure markets, we have seen the roll-out of high speed wireless broadband networks drive exponential growth of mobile internet usage, which includes everything from teenagers creatively personalizing their phones, to businesses enabling their workers to access critical time-sensitive information from any location in the world, to parents being able to locate the nearest hospital in a matter of seconds from a mobile search. All of these examples share a common denominator: access to broadband networks.
Navarrow Wright
Social Media & Internet Consultant, Maximum Leverage Solutions
Ubiquitous broadband (wireline and wireless), is a key foundational growth driver for a multitude of industries and has the power to impact every life in America. As a leading company in the mobile data infrastructure markets, we have seen the roll-out of high speed wireless broadband networks drive exponential growth of mobile internet usage, which includes everything from teenagers creatively personalizing their phones, to businesses enabling their workers to access critical time-sensitive information from any location in the world, to parents being able to locate the nearest hospital in a matter of seconds from a mobile search. All of these examples share a common denominator: access to broadband networks.
Ryan Wuerch
Chairman & CEO, Motricity
Broadband’s possibilities allow us to think and act locally and globally at the same time. Linkages can be made between schools in a single community, or between teaching hospitals engaged in telemedicine and rural clinics on another continent. With broadband networks, applications and devices working together in this boundless ecosystem, the impact on our daily lives truly can be profound.
Stuart N. Brotman
President, Stuart N. Brotman Communications
