This content was created by Xtra’s branded content team alongside ODLAN, separate from Xtra’s editorial staff.
When it comes to ensuring that its staff, participating volunteers and advisory council members across Canada can fully participate in the work it is doing, and benefit from its resources, the Ontario Digital Literacy and Access Network (ODLAN) created an innovative tech subsidy program.
“Removing barriers can be like life and death when it comes to being able to find community, and I don’t know if that is how the members of our advisory council feel, but anything we can do to remove the barriers, so someone can access our space, is great,” said Kerry Duncan, a project coordinator with ODLAN.
ODLAN is dedicated to creating safe, accessible, and inclusive digital spaces for the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. By transforming how organizations approach digital engagement they equip organizations with tools, resources and expand their reach to 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. ODLAN offers a range of free resources, such as on-demand digital safety training modules and they provide training and consulting services.
The tech subsidy is part of the larger project funding ODLAN received from Women and Gender Equality (WAGE) Canada, which is committed to advancing equality with respect to sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.
As part of ODLAN’s funding application to the federal department for its Digitally Empowering 2SLGBTQIA+ Organizations program, it included the idea of creating a tech subsidy program. “Our funder, WAGE, said we were the first ones to propose this kind of program,” said Stephanie Jonsson, executive director and co-founder of ODLAN. “That really surprised me.”
Jonsson said before ODLAN started, she was working with another organization where she encountered people who did not have an Internet connection in their home, or that were using a laptop that was so old it would not work with the programs the organization was using.
“It really came down to the question of, ‘Who isn’t able to access this program?’ and ‘How do we reach those people?’” Jonsson said.
“The tech subsidy really is a stepping stone to expanding accessibility and, really, participation,” added Duncan. “The advisory council is folks from across the country who are interested in ODLAN’s work. With the tech subsidy, we are understanding that participating in digital spaces takes resources, and the subsidy helps offset costs, like an internet bill.”
Or, Duncan said, it may be helping an advisory council member to update a phone, purchasing an iPad or smart device, digital literacy and training in how to use a programs, like Zoom, accessing a mic and headphones, or even purchasing a standing desk to allow them to fully participate and access ODLAN’s resources.
“When we think about accessibility, folks are still in the process of fully understanding what that means for everyone,” Duncan said. “There are pretty obvious ones when it comes to in-person accessibility—like the ability to enter a space or utilize a washroom—but when we move to digital spaces, you may be in your home but you still need an internet connection and other tech.
“We know that for queer and trans people, they might be working multiple jobs to ensure they have access to the life they want, or they might be people living in rural areas who may not have access to the tools that we think are mainstream.”
Duncan said having access to a device, understanding how to use it, and being able to access a wider community through it, can be empowering and allow people to find a larger community. They said ODLAN’s origin was working with rainbow seniors and getting them plugged-in digitally during the COVID pandemic to help them combat isolation.
“When we look 2SLGBTQIA+ folks across all ages, combating isolation is a consistent theme. And having accessible digital spaces is one way we’ve been able to use the Internet to really address that,” they said.
“I have been part of online groups where it’s included everyone from a 14-year-old all the way up to a 64-year-old, having conversations about shared experience. To have examples of ourselves, and people who think like us and have also faced similar barriers, internally and externally, it changes your ability to feel and speak like an expert in your own life.”
Jonsson said all organizations can benefit from also having a tech subsidy program since for many of them a component of their work takes place online. “It helps ensure that people who are going to participate in digital spaces can be there, can use it confidently, and are able to participate,” she said.
To help others understand how beneficial a tech subsidy can be, ODLAN will be holding a free event on Friday, Jan 10, from noon to 1 p.m., where organizations can learn more about what this type of program can look like, how to structure it so they can include it in their funding proposal or integrating it into their annual budgets.
To learn more about the Ontario Digital Literacy and Access Network and the work it is doing, or to register for its upcoming tech subsidy workshop, visit odlan.ca.
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