A panel of government, university and technology experts debate the impact, potential and perils of Big Data and Open Data to introduce the theme of the 2018 ICF Summit.

Roberto Gallardo is Assistant Director of the Purdue Center for Regional Development and a Purdue Extension Community & Regional Economics Specialist. He holds an electronics engineering undergraduate degree, a master's in economic development, and a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration. Gallardo has worked with rural communities over the past decade conducting local & regional community economic development, including use of technology for development. He was Founder of the ICF Institute for Rural Studies at Mississippi State University.

Dr. Roberto Gallardo, Executive Director of the MSU Intelligent Community Institute, has published a new paper: Missed Economic Opportunity: Broadband in Mississippi. 

As the digital age continues to unfold, broadband applications are becoming more and more important for residents, businesses, and government agencies. In this context, broadband is any type of high-speed internet access. From accessing vast amounts of information to applying for jobs, broadband is a critical technology, and those not taking advantage of it are being left behind. The digital divide—defined as those who can afford broadband and know how to use it versus those who don’t—is a key issue that policymakers at the national, state, and local levels should address.

The ICF Dublin Institute’s May 4 workshop welcomed more than 40 attendees who were able to hear an inspiring keynote presentation from Roberto Gallardo, Executive Director of the MSU Intelligent Community Institute.

In Mississippi, Dr. Gallardo is on a mission to close this digital divide, one citizen, one neighborhood, one business, one community at a time. Dr. Gallardo discussed with Institute members the steps he has taken and the community development model he uses to move the dial toward a more connected and intelligent Mississippi.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service Intelligent Community Institute (MSUES-ICI) assists and educates rural communities on how to plan for, transition to, and prosper in the digital age.

The MSUES-ICI conducts outreach and research that generates knowledge and shares information with Mississippi residents and the world on how communities can transition into and benefit from the digital age.

Dr. Roberto Gallardo (pictured right) of the Mississippi State University Extension Intelligent Community Institute has published a 50-state Digital Divide Index using data provided by the FCC.

The DDI is a county-level index score (from 0 to 100) measuring the digital divide. The higher the number, the larger the digital divide. The objective of the DDI is to serve as a descriptive and pragmatic tool for policymakers, community leaders, and residents. The DDI consists of two components: infrastructure/adoption and socioeconomic characteristics.

Dr. Roberto Gallardo has published a new book titled Responsive Countryside: The Digital Age and Rural Communities. Dr. Gallardo is the founder and leader of the Mississippi State University Extension Service Intelligent Community Institute (MSUES-ICI), part of a worldwide network that assists rural communities to better plan for and prosper in the digital age. A brief description of the book follows.

Roberto Gallardo, founder of the ICF Institute of the Mississippi State University Extension Service, was profiled in a November 2015 article in WIRED magazine by W. Ralph Eubanks. The article digs into the work of the Extension Service and Roberto's personal passion for helping the countryside become connected, so that rural citizens enjoy the same economic opportunities and quality of life as their urban brethren. Writes Eubanks:

Institute founder Dr. Roberto Gallardo is hard at work on a book that explains the Intelligent Community movement to the small rural communities that he serves through Mississippi State University Extension Service. Ideas like the innovation economy and smart city technology can seem pretty remote to mayors and council members of small municipalities. Roberto is putting these ideas into context that makes sense to places with one or two thousand residents and explaining why every community everywhere needs a strategy to survive and prosper in the broadband economy. ICF’s Robert Bell reviewed a couple of chapters for him and thinks it make a very valuable contribution.

The Intelligent Community Institute of the Mississippi State University Extension Service (ICIM) has had an active summer season. Led by Professor Roberto Gallardo, a faculty member at the Center for Technology Outreach, the Institute has led digital literacy classes in the small city of Quitman, where a public-private venture with C-Spire has developed a fiber-to-the-premise network.