Smart & Equitable City Strategy for the Bronx

The Bronx Community Foundation (Bx.C.F.), the first and only community foundation in The Bronx. Bx.C.F. supports and invests in community power to eradicate inequity and build sustainable futures for all Bronxites. They are solely dedicated to delivering resources to the entire borough of The Bronx. Their model is unique in that they engage community stakeholders across the borough in identifying challenges and designing solutions that create four pillars of sustainability: Community, Equity & Justice, Economic Security and Health.

The SIPA Capstone team was enlisted to assist the Bx.C.F. with a humancentric approach to addressing the need for Digital Equity in the borough. The ultimate goal was to identify programs and pilots that will make the Bronx a self-sustaining community, with direct access to the educational and professional opportunities the borough needs and deserves. Over the course of the semester, the Capstone team conducted research and interviewed community leaders and experts about the Bronx, and digital equity efforts and obstacles at large, to inform the project. The final report briefed The Bronx Community Foundation on initiatives it can take to engage Bronxites in both identifying its most urgent challenges and taking part in finding and implementing solutions. It also offered several case studies of how other communities, both domestically and internationally, have addressed issues related to the digital divide. Additionally, the report identified several suitable funding sources and partnerships for the Bx.C.F.