Bridging the digital gap
One of the ambitions set out in the City of Amsterdam's Digital City Agenda was to counter digital inequality. It was estimated that around 20% of Amsterdam residents were unable to manage digitally, that 14% of lower-income Amsterdam residents had no PC, laptop or tablet at home, and that almost one in ten lower-income residents reported having no internet access in their household. These were remarkably high numbers for a wealthy city like Amsterdam.
This created a tension with the trend of increasing digitalisation of public services, which involves growing use of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), aimed at making access easier for Amsterdam residents. One consequence of this increasing digitalisation was that not everyone benefited equally from the use of (online) public services. Limited access to technology or a lack of digital skills were just some of the reasons why Amsterdam residents did not profit equally from the advantages of these services.
Digital inequality
The distinction between Amsterdam residents who are digitally skilled and those who are not is often referred to as the digital divide. In a world that continues to digitalise, those who cannot or do not want to keep up with the digital world risk being left behind. Both in the literature and in practice, it repeatedly emerges that digital technologies do not reduce digital inequality, but rather increase it. Within the European Union, the access gap (having access versus not having access), skills and literacy, as well as indifference, are identified as causes of digital inequality. But what are the underlying causes of this inequality in Amsterdam?
Waag Futurelab researched how and why digital inequality occurs in Amsterdam. Because new digital public services are constantly being developed, research into the causes of this digital inequality is essential. This research aligns with our mission to work with society towards an open, fair and inclusive future. Read the research.
Based on this research, Waag, together with Iedereen Verbonden, developed the guide Lokale Verbindingen (Local Connections): a guide for civil servants and civil society organisations to improve communication around (digital) support services.
The guide mapped out the contact preferences of Amsterdam residents, which forms of (digital) contact people preferred to avoid and what they actually needed, and presented four recommendations for the City of Amsterdam based on these findings, aimed at making its (digital) services more accessible for residents. Read the guide Lokale Verbindingen for the recommendations and more information.
